The dire wolf, the species that came to life in the famous HBO hit series Game of Thrones, is now really alive.
Colossal Biosciences, the world’s only de-extinction company, made this possible. The organisation announced on Monday the rebirth of the once extinct dire wolf.
SOUND ON. You’re hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024.
The dire wolf has been extinct for over 10,000 years. These two wolves were brought back from extinction using… pic.twitter.com/wY4rdOVFRH
— Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025
“This is a revolutionary milestone of scientific progress that illustrates another leap forward in Colossal’s de-extinction technologies and is a critical step on the pathway to the de-extinction of other target species,” the company said.
How Is it Possible?
Colossal Biosciences, a Texas-based genetic engineering company, announced the birth of three dire wolves in a press release.
The three litters of Colossal’s dire wolves include two adolescent males (Romulus and Remus) and one female puppy (Khaleesi).
Meet Romulus and Remus—the first animals ever resurrected from extinction. The dire wolf, lost to history over 10,000 years ago, has returned. Reborn on October 1, 2024, these remarkable pups were brought back to life using ancient DNA extracted from fossilized remains.
Watch… pic.twitter.com/XwPz0DFoP5
— Colossal Biosciences® (@colossal) April 7, 2025
Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024. The dire wolf has been extinct for over 10,000 years. These two wolves were brought back from extinction using genetic edits derived from a complete dire wolf genome, meticulously reconstructed by Colossal from ancient DNA found in fossils dating back 11,500 and 72,000 years
“Our team took DNA from a 13,000-year-old tooth and a 72,000-year-old skull and made healthy dire wolf puppies,” Colossal CEO and co-founder Ben Lamm said in a press release. “It was once said, ‘any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.’ Today, our team gets to unveil some of the magic they are working on and its broader impact on conservation.”
Colossal also shared a video on X, capturing the moment dire wolf puppies howled for the first time in over 10,000 years. The caption reads: “You’re hearing the first howl of a dire wolf in over 10,000 years. Meet Romulus and Remus—the world’s first de-extinct animals, born on October 1, 2024.”
About Colossal Biosciences
Founded in 2021 by entrepreneur Ben Lamm and renowned Harvard Medical School biologist George Church, Colossal was initially created to bring back the woolly mammoth. Over time, its mission expanded to include the de-extinction of other iconic species, such as the Australian thylacine (Tasmanian tiger) and the dodo, as reported by Bloomberg.
