We should have known that Tom and Tiger were behind this.
In case you missed it, we’ve got a real life Jurassic Park situation playing out in 2025. A company called Colossal Biosciences recently made the shocking announcement that they brought back an extinct animal known as the Dire Wolf. How did they break the news to the world?
They just slapped it right on the front of a magazine. How else are you supposed to do it?
TIME's new cover: The dire wolf is back after over 10,000 years. Here's what that means for other extinct species https://t.co/LQtosdfiEf pic.twitter.com/bv8EbeefuW
— TIME (@TIME) April 7, 2025
As that headline states, the Dire Wolf – which once roamed from Venezuela to Canada – went extinct over 10,000 years ago. But their DNA remained (thanks to preserved carcasses), and that’s where Colossal Biosciences stepped in. They extracted the genes of the once extinct Dire Wolf in order to bring the species back to life… in a way.
Using domestic dogs as surrogate mothers, Colossal scientists have created three Dire wolves: Romulus and Remus (6 months old, already 4 feet long and 80 pounds) and Khaleesi (2 months old). While you should probably check out the full version of the story in Time, Colossal post on X gave a quick rundown of their breakthrough:
“The dire wolf has been extinct for over 10,000 years. These two wolves were brought back from extinction using genetic edits derived from a complete dire wolf genome, meticulously reconstructed by Colossal from ancient DNA found in fossils dating back 11,500 and 72,000 years.
This moment marks not only a milestone for us as a company but also a leap forward for science, conservation, and humanity. From the beginning, our goal has been clear: ‘To revolutionize history and be the first company to use CRISPR technology successfully in the de-extinction of previously lost species.’ By achieving this, we continue to push forward our broader mission on—accepting humanity’s duty to restore Earth to a healthier state.”
SOUND ON. You’re hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024.
The dire wolf has been extinct for over 10,000 years. These two wolves were brought back from extinction using… pic.twitter.com/wY4rdOVFRH
— Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025
Hey, every Jurassic Park movie I’ve watched always turns out okay at the end (sarcasm), so what could possibly go wrong?
Colossal Biosciences is doing all of this in pursuit of helping global conservation efforts. They’ve been backed up by plenty of investors, especially from the sports world. Co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mark Walter, and co-owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Yankees, Thomas Tull, are members of the Colossal investment team.
And they aren’t the only names from the sports world that are in on the de-extinction movement.
The NFL’s legendary quarterback Tom Brady and PGA Tour’s world famous golfer Tiger Woods are also included in the investment team. So just know that when you see a Dire wolf walking around at the zoo in the near future, you can point at it and say, “Thanks Tom Brady and Tiger Woods!”
Tom, a 7-time Super Bowl winner, is incredibly excited to be involved with Colossal Biosciences, and had this to say about the company’s progress so far:
“Last month Colossal showed the advancements made bringing back the woolly mammoth by presenting the world with the woolly mouse. And this month the company gives us another science first, the world’s first animal back from extinction – the dire wolf.
The dire wolf will not only break into the pop culture zeitgeist, it will also raise awareness of what is possible in science which will inspire kids of all ages. This is just the beginning.”
Now that the Dire Wolf is checked off the list, Colossal Biosciences is now moving their attention to bringing back the Woolly Mammoth, the Dodo bird, and the Tasmanian tiger. Remember all of those animals that we learned about in school that we were told would never live on Earth again? Well… they are on their way back.
Guess it’s only right that Tiger Woods plays a part in bringing back the Tasmanian Tiger…
