AI Cracks 10-Year Superbug Puzzle in Just 2 Days
Scientists had been trying to answer one question for ten years, but a new artificial intelligence tool solved it in just two days. Professor Jose R. Penades from Imperial College London and his team spent many years trying to understand why some superbugs become resistant to antibiotics. They asked a small research question using Google’s tool called “Co-Scientist.” In just 48 hours, the tool provided an answer the same answer that had taken the team many years to figure out.
In an interview with the BBC, Professor Penades explained that he was shocked by the AI’s result because their research had not yet been published. This meant that the AI hadn’t found the answer from any public source. He even recalled a moment during a BBC Radio 4 program when he had to pause his shopping to focus on understanding the result, and he later emailed Google asking if they had access to his computer an idea that Google firmly denied. the researchers believe that most of the ten years were spent proving their theory. They now think that if they had received the AI’s hypothesis at the start, they could have saved many years of work.
When discussing AI, Professor Penades noted that the AI tool produced results even better than the team’s own work. Not only did it confirm their original hypothesis, but it also suggested four additional, correct hypotheses. One of these was so unexpected that the team had never thought of it, and they are now investigating it.
Regarding superbugs, scientists have long been trying to understand how dangerous bacteria evolve into superbugs and become resistant to antibiotics. They suspect that superbugs develop a tail-like structure almost like a key that helps them spread easily from one host to another.
What makes this research especially notable is that the hypothesis was an original discovery of the team and had never been published or shared before. Professor Penades used this unique hypothesis to test the new AI tool, and within two days, the AI generated several hypotheses. The first one matched the team’s idea, supporting the concept that superbugs spread by forming a kind of “tail.”
There is much debate about artificial intelligence. While some fear that AI might lead to job losses, many believe it will advance science significantly. Professor Penades understands these concerns but is convinced that AI is a very powerful and useful tool. He expressed his excitement by comparing the experience to getting a chance to play in a major match, like a Champions League game an opportunity that fills him with joy and optimism about the future of science.