Anthropic says its Bay Area biology laboratory has identified a previously unknown enzyme system with characteristics that may resemble CRISPR-based DNA tools.
The system was found within the genetic material of bacteriophages, viruses that interact with bacteria. According to Anthropic, the enzymes may be capable of operations comparable to cutting, copying and inserting DNA--functions that could be valuable for future biotechnology research.
AI accelerates the search
The company reports that its Claude model played a central role in the discovery process, examining biological data through roughly 950 AI agents. Anthropic estimates the focused computational work took about 21 hours and processed 210 million tokens.
The finding still requires independent scientific validation to determine its originality, mechanism and potential applications. Anthropic also noted that earlier research, including work at Stanford University, has explored related enzyme systems and AI-supported gene-editing research.
Human-led experiments remain central
While AI supported data analysis and hypothesis generation, Anthropic emphasized that all physical experiments were conducted by human scientists. The laboratory operates at lower biosafety levels and does not work with pathogens that infect humans.
The announcement reflects a broader shift in life sciences, where AI systems are increasingly helping researchers interpret genetic information, design proteins and explore new enzyme functions. Anthropic has not automated laboratory equipment, though it sees a future in which carefully safeguarded AI systems could assist more directly with experimental workflows.
If independently confirmed, this work could illustrate how AI and human scientific expertise together may shorten the path from biological data to new research tools.
