AI Leaders Urge Congress to Mandate Bioweapon Screening for Synthetic DNA Sellers

Some of the artificial intelligence industry's most prominent figures have signed an open letter pressing U.S. lawmakers to require companies selling synthetic DNA and RNA to screen purchases for genetic sequences that could be used to engineer dangerous pathogens.

Signatories include Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Microsoft AI chief Mustafa Suleyman, alongside Meta's AI chief Alexandr Wang and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, who was awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on AI-based protein prediction.

The letter was also signed by prominent scientists, national security and policy experts, and executives from biotech companies including Twist Bioscience and Ansa Biotechnologies — both major sellers of synthetic genetic material.

At the center of the concern is the ability to order genetic material online and assemble it in a lab. The letter argues that AI tools could make it substantially easier to design potentially dangerous sequences, place orders with manufacturers, and exploit that material in ways that would previously have required far more specialized expertise.

While several of the largest synthetic DNA and RNA providers already conduct screening, the letter notes that the practice remains voluntary rather than legally required. The signatories are calling for that to change, and also want detailed records kept on orders so that any threat that evades initial screening can be traced.

"Given the pace at which the underlying technology is changing, we believe the need is urgent," the letter states. "This is a rare moment of agreement across stakeholders that are often at odds. We hope policymakers will meet it with decisive action."

The letter was reportedly organized by two think tanks: the Foundation for American Innovation and the Institute for Progress.

Scientists have for years cautioned that advances in synthetic biology could lower the barrier to engineering dangerous organisms or resurrecting long-extinct pathogens. The added concern now, according to experts cited in the letter, is that increasingly capable AI models — combined with cheaper and more accessible biological tools — are eroding the safeguards that once confined such work to well-resourced, highly skilled researchers.

The letter also flags the risk of AI-assisted development of chemical weapons, signaling that the biosecurity concern is part of a broader anxiety about AI's potential for misuse in the life sciences.

The call to action arrives amid a period of heightened AI policy activity in Washington. President Donald Trump signed an executive order this week asking AI companies to voluntarily provide the government access to their models for up to 30 days before public release, a move that Altman and other executives voiced support for on social media. OpenAI also published a policy blueprint Wednesday outlining recommendations for a national AI safety framework, including strengthening the Center for AI Standards and Innovation.

Whether Congress moves on the biosecurity request remains to be seen, but the unusual alignment of competing AI companies behind a single legislative ask is likely to draw attention on Capitol Hill.