$10M XPRIZE on Interspecies Communication launches next month, betting AI can talk to animals
anselm · x · 2026-10-17
Steve Jurvetson revealed a new XPRIZE with a $10M purse launching next month, challenging teams to demonstrate ethical, verified two-way communication with wild animals.
Dr. Irene Pepperberg shared her grey parrot research: she taught parrots 100 English labels, exact quantities up to 8 with addition/subtraction, colors, shapes, and concepts like same/different and zero-like absence — and her parrots ask questions and learn from answers, despite early grant reviews asking "what are you smoking?"
It ties into Earth Species Project, whose founder Aza Raskin predicts "everything that can be translated will be, by 2030," noting AI may communicate with animals before humans understand them.
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