A research team from the University of Sydney in Australia has developed a "bio artificial intelligence (AI)" system called PROTOUS. This system can create molecules with new functions within a few weeks by mimicking natural evolution processes, bringing breakthrough progress to drug development and biotechnology. This achievement, published in the latest academic journal, not only showcases the prospects of the integration of biotechnology and AI, but also has the potential to provide key tools for personalized medicine and precision therapy. The PROTEUS system is based on directed evolution technology, which is a mature method for simulating natural evolutionary forces in the laboratory, in other words, "transforming evolutionary forces into programmable biological systems". Unlike traditional directed evolution that mainly operates in bacterial cells, PROTEUS is the first to achieve molecular evolution in mammalian cells, enabling the design of proteins and other biomolecules that are more adapted to the human physiological environment. This innovation enables scientists to quickly screen millions of possible sequences and find the optimal solution to complex biological problems. The team stated that PROTEUS is like a machine learning system in the biological world. It can complete natural evolution processes that take years or even decades to achieve in a short period of time, such as optimizing the efficiency of CRISPR gene editing tools or designing new molecules that can accurately shut down disease genes. The team has successfully developed two new types of molecules through PROTEUS: a drug regulated modified protein and a nanobody capable of detecting DNA damage. The latter is of great significance for early intervention in cancer. But the application of PROTEUS goes far beyond that, as its algorithm framework can be extended to enhance the functionality of most proteins and molecules, providing a universal solution for drug development, mRNA therapy optimization, and other fields. The key to technological breakthroughs lies in the design of chimeric virus like particles. Their team combined the shells and genes of two different virus families to create a stable and anti cheating system. This design allows cells to handle multiple solutions simultaneously, eliminate ineffective mutations through natural selection, and ultimately screen for the optimal molecule. PROTEUS has been independently validated in a laboratory, demonstrating high stability and reliability, and is expected to drive the development of a new generation of enzymes, molecular tools, and therapies. The emergence of PROTEUS also marks an important leap in directed evolution technology towards mammalian systems. This technology won the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for its application in bacteria, and now PROTEUS has extended its capabilities to more complex biological environments, opening up new dimensions for unlocking molecular machine learning. If Darwin knew that the collision between evolution theory and artificial intelligence would create new sparks, would he feel relieved? Directed evolution technology is a technique that simulates natural evolution mechanisms and accelerates the optimization of functions such as proteins, cells, and microorganisms in the laboratory. This technology breaks through the randomness and slowness of natural evolution and is widely used in industrial enzyme modification, drug development, and other fields. Integrating artificial intelligence into directed evolution technology will further promote its development towards higher throughput, precision, and efficiency, providing a powerful engine for driving technological innovation in fields such as precision medicine and biomanufacturing. (New Society)