Written by: Zuo Ye
The black box of large models is frustrating; blockchain hopes to create transparent white boxes in research.
In 1943, quantum state cat owner Schrödinger delivered a challenging lecture in Dublin, demonstrating the relationship between atoms, life, and cells from the perspective of statistical physics. At that time, across the ocean, young Watson was only 15 years old and already a freshman at the University of Chicago.
After reading Schrödinger's lecture, Watson wrote 'What is Life,' confirming that genetics would be his lifelong pursuit.
A decade later, when Watson, who had already obtained his PhD, proposed the double helix structure of DNA, the 25-year-old had already locked in the Nobel Prize early.
Grafting, cloning to gene editing
There are two trees in front of my house, one is a jujube tree, and the other is also a jujube tree.
Anyone who has attended middle school knows that genes are information fragments of DNA, like the 'function body' in code, representing the most basic functional implementation, while DNA is like an instance module, RNA serves as routing and communication functions, transmitting gene information to specific targets.
Watson discovered the structure of DNA, but humanity did not know how to utilize it. It's like we know the quantum state of the cat, but the cat is easy to find, while quantum communication will take many more years.
At least Watson was luckier than Schrödinger. In the summer of 2012, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna discovered that CRISPR sequences and Cas proteins could be combined. By artificially cutting specific sequences and inserting desired information fragments, they completed the process of grafting using the body's repair mechanisms without notice.
It really resembles gardening pruning, where the visible branches connect with each other. Even without understanding the biological mechanisms, one can discern the matching relationships among different plants—just through continuous experimentation.
Experiments can continue, cloning can too. Cell nuclei and cytoplasm can be separated and 'connected.' Through continuous experimentation, cloning can achieve marvelous effects of isomers, as stated in 'What is Life.'
Gene editing is not mysterious; it is a further step in cloning, a further micro-level advancement in size. Life from the atomic perspective is merely the final, irreversible process of thermal motion cooling down, just like time. Perhaps it can stretch or compress, but it is forever irreversible.
Humans can graft fruit trees, and humans can clone animals; can humans edit humans?
In 2018, the mad scientist He Jiankui became Eve or the snake, performing gene editing on a pair of twin embryos whose parents had AIDS. Humanity thus opened Pandora's box. Cloning animals can be humanely destroyed, but is a gene-edited human still human?
Image caption: CRISPR-Cas9 working principle, image source: @zuoyeweb3
However, the deep exploration at the genetic level has a fatal allure for certain populations—longevity. Finding the gene segments that influence lifespan, like a hacker for General Jin, modifying its value from 100 to ♾️, even if just adding a 0 is sufficient.
In 2023, Fred Ehrsam, co-founder of Paradigm, decided to leave the crypto industry and establish a biomedical research company called Nudge. Coincidentally, Fred is also a co-founder of Coinbase, transitioning into crypto VC after the company's IPO in 2017.
Also in 2017, Paul Kohlhaas joined Consensys as BD director, but left to start his own business a year later. Why not use blockchain to do something more interesting?
For instance, in research, Molecule was established in 2018, one of the early explorations of the integration of blockchain and research, especially in biological studies. Meanwhile, Alpha Go's parent company, DeepMind, released its life science model AlphaFold in 2016, showcasing its power in the field of protein structure observation.
In 2020, AlphaFold2 successfully solved the protein folding problem, and 25-year-old Watson was set for a Nobel Prize. This time, the 4-year-old AlphaFold2 is also poised for 50% of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2024.
Fred's career change in 2023 wasn't even early; as early as 2020, another co-founder of Coinbase, Armstrong, initiated the establishment of ResearchHub to break down the systemic research process involving universities, papers, and funding, introducing incentive mechanisms to let universities lead the way, with publishers profiting, and easing the pressure of funding applications from scholars.
Especially, the costs of submitting papers by scholars to publishers are borne by the scholars themselves, but the reviewers selected by the publishers often work without remuneration, with only the publishers profiting in between.
All elements have come together; AI, research, and papers are converging towards life sciences. The 21st century is indeed the century of biology.
The crypto circle offers longevity, first seeking the elixir of life.
Decentralized research (DeSci) is a pharmaceutical development initiative under the guise of life sciences research.
DeSci is the crypto version of the AI4Sci movement, but it is highly focused on AI, life sciences, and new drug development. Perhaps it has taken some 'detours' through meme culture; remember Paul Kohlhaas's Molecule? In 2022, it even received investment from Balaji; no one can resist the allure of longevity.
Further, in 2022, Paul Kohlhaas established Bio Protocol, beginning to develop products that would allow crypto tycoons to live longer, with multiple sub-DAOs addressing various scientific mysteries from male to female and across life.
In 2024, the 'reborn' CZ and Vitalik appeared together at Bangkok DeSci Day. At that time, young V recommended the supplement VD001 from Vita DAO under Bio Protocol to the older CZ.
Then, Bio successfully received investment from CZ's YZi, and the token smoothly headed to Binance. Paul Kohlhaas is quite adept at creating excitement and even started 'Pump Science,' mimicking PumpFun. Is there potential in combining memes with scientific research?
However, after Bio surged, there was dissatisfaction with the delivery of results. In traditional research, the development of a new drug can easily exceed $1 billion and take years or even decades. In contrast, Bio's secondary market can't wait five minutes; taking the money without providing results is a sin in genuine research.
The story has not ended, as the wave of Agents has arrived. AI Agents truly hold the promise of changing the efficiency of research. Interestingly, ResearchHub secured a $2 million investment from Boost in February 2025, and there are now reviewers for DeSci's Agent publications.
In August 2025, Bio Protocol released the V2 plan, creating a brand new Launchpad, BioXP points program, and BioAgents, still utilizing ElizaOS to once again keep pace with the times.
In just 7 days, more than 100 million BIO have been staked. However, on August 7 alone, 80 million poured in. Thus, there are still some issues with the data. Additionally, the economic model designed for V2 is more rational.
Small market cap avoids sell pressure, encouraging continuous sponsorship of projects.
Image caption: $BIO staking data, image source: @cl2pp
However, the progress of DeSci, represented by Bio Protocol, is slower than that of AI4Sci. AlphaFold has already opened its database in 2021, having published protein structure data for 200 million proteins, covering known species.
Feeling significantly behind schedule, Bio Protocol has continually hoped that the FDA will publish or integrate the data accumulated by large pharmaceutical companies to accelerate open-source scientific research.
In addition, Bio V2 is expected to drive the launch of multiple new drugs in the UAE, significantly shortening traditional research and development timelines. The relaxed human experimentation restrictions in the Middle East will also accelerate life research, though it remains uncertain whether it will be He Jiankui or Watson.
Conclusion
The performance of GPT-5 is disappointing, but in niche areas like medicine and research, we can still wait for the Scaling Law to blossom. The data potential in these high-value fields has yet to be fully explored, and once progress is made, it will significantly enhance human cognition.
Also in the field of life sciences, Silicon Valley's Colossal is advancing plans to resurrect ancient organisms, using CRISPR-Cas9 technology, such as creating the 'woolly mouse' from a combination of mammoths and mice, and breeding the pure white giant direwolf from ancient giant wolves.
Perhaps one day, humanity will evolve, and one day, humanity will also perish.
