Break-Glass paper lays out emergency biosecurity licensing regime for an AI biological incident
davidmanheim · x · 2026-10-22
Roger Brent and Alejandro Colman-Lerner published a preprint, 'A Break-Glass Plan for Biological Security,' sketching contingency plans for the day after an AI-assisted or AI-initiated biological warning shot.
- Bibliometric analysis identifies advanced DNA polymerases as key reagents for building virus-length recombinant DNA constructions, making them a natural control point
- 'Plan B': after a triggering event, the existing bio-economy is brought under licensing, with the status quo grandfathered in via immediate temporary licenses
- Institutional licenses for anyone buying, holding, or distributing advanced polymerases and other controlled materiel, with vendor KYC rules
- Personal licenses modeled on vehicle/aircraft/radioisotope regimes: easy 'learner's permit' and Standard licenses for supervised or unsupervised work; Advanced licenses for work with viruses require harder exams and demonstrated practical competence
The argument: design this break-glass regime in advance so it can be imposed quickly if a biological incident occurs.
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