---
title: "Neuralink Co-Founder Says We Have the Tech to Build an Actual Jurassic Park"
description: "Neuralink cofounder Max Hodak says that creating a real-world Jurassic Park is now possible. Find out how these dinosaurs could be created."
date: "2021-04-05"
modified: "2021-04-14"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/neuralink-cofounder-tech-build-actual-jurassic-park"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "de extinction"
  - "jurassic park"
  - "the digest"
---

# Neuralink Co-Founder Says We Have the Tech to Build an Actual Jurassic Park

![Neuralink cofounder Max Hodak says creating a real-world Jurassic Park is probably within reach, and that it could be cool to create novel forms of life.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/jurassic.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Futurism\</em\>*

## Paging Jeff Goldblum

Max Hodak, the Neuralink cofounder who recently made headlines for suggesting a [religion that incorporates drugs](<https://futurism.com/neuralink-co-founder-new-religion-drugs-experience-god>) and that his company's brain-computer interface [would revolutionize gaming](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/neuralink-cofounder-better-term-video-game>), is back — and now he's calling for someone to build a real-world Jurassic Park.

"We could probably build Jurassic Park if we wanted to," [Hodak tweeted](<https://twitter.com/max_hodak/status/1378575534536323074>) on Saturday. "Wouldn’t be genetically authentic dinosaurs but \[shrugging emoji\]. Maybe 15 years of breeding + engineering to get super exotic novel species."

For the uninitiated, "Jurassic Park" and "Jurassic World" make up a five-movie franchise — with a sixth in the works — all based on Michael Crichton's hit novel about how bad of an idea it was to open a place like Jurassic Park. Leveraging recent advances in genetic research to create entirely new creatures is certainly an enticing idea, though there's a big difference between something potentially being feasible and actually being a good idea.

## De-Extinction Drama

But it's not all fun and games when you're playing god and creating new dinosaurs. Hodak later added that de-extinction could be a valuable tool for increasing biodiversity, perhaps because we find ourselves in the midst of an [era of mass extinction](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/more-than500-vertebrates-poised-extinct>).

"Biodiversity (antifragility) is definitely valuable; conservation is important and makes sense," [Hodak tweeted](<https://twitter.com/max_hodak/status/1378575534536323074>) minutes later. "But why do we stop there? Why don’t we more intentionally try to generate novel diversity?"

For years, conservationists [have expressed concerns](<https://scienceline.org/2017/03/de-extinction-debunked-didnt-learn-jurassic-park/>) over [resurrecting extinct species](<https://futurism.com/the-cost-of-resurrecting-extinct-species-could-be-devastating>) — a process called de-extinction — in part because the ecosystems those species lived in, for one reason or another, moved on without them. To that end, resurrecting species — and especially creating brand new forms of biodiversity — would functionally be the same as introducing a new invasive species to an ecosystem no longer equipped to support it.

In other words, it's a cool idea, but it runs the risk of being extremely counterproductive — just like in the movies.

**More on Max Hodak:** *[Neuralink Co-Founder Has an Idea for a New Religion](<https://futurism.com/neuralink-co-founder-new-religion-drugs-experience-god>)*

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)