Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsColossal’s progress report describes groundwork for a possible thylacine-like animal, not a thylacine brought back to life. The company says it completed a high-quality thylacine genome and outlines further steps involving marsupial cells, genetic editing, embryos, and development. Its published roadmap makes clear that these are stages on the way to an animal, not proof that one exists.
What the report shows—and what it does not
Colossal describes its goal as genetically recreating a close approximation of the extinct thylacine using a living relative, rather than cloning the original animal. Its genome report presents a completed sequence as a foundation for future research. A genome is a digital reference: it is not a living cell, embryo, or animal.
| Reported work | What it supports | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| Colossal says it completed a high-quality thylacine genome | A sequence resource for comparative and future engineering work | A thylacine cell, embryo, birth, or independently verified animal |
| Research on fat-tailed dunnarts, including studies listed by Colossal | Related model-species research on marsupial reproduction and development | That a thylacine embryo has been made or brought to term |
| Colossal’s published roadmap | The company’s proposed steps toward a genetically recreated proxy | That those steps have all been completed |
The project-specific evidence in the reviewed sources is largely from Colossal’s own materials. Its descriptions should therefore be attributed to the company, rather than treated as an independent audit. The available evidence supports progress on enabling research, not a completed de-extinction.
What still has to happen, according to Colossal’s roadmap
Colossal’s published plan describes a sequence of biological steps between genome work and a possible animal. The roadmap is a description of what the company says is required; it is not evidence that each step has succeeded.
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- Establish compatible marsupial cell lines. The roadmap includes developing the cellular systems needed for later work.
- Edit selected genetic loci. Colossal describes editing hundreds of loci, but the roadmap does not show that this has produced a thylacine-like animal.
- Generate an embryo. The proposed process requires producing an embryo from engineered material.
- Gestate it in a dunnart surrogate. This is a further proposed stage, not a reported thylacine birth.
- Support development in an external pouch. The roadmap includes maturation after surrogate gestation.
Related research on fat-tailed dunnarts can contribute to a marsupial reproductive and developmental toolkit. Colossal’s research listing includes studies on dunnart oocytes, embryology, and spermatogonial stem-cell enrichment. Those studies are enabling model-species research; they are not evidence that a thylacine has been produced.
Why a genome is only one part of the work
A sequence can help researchers compare an extinct animal with living relatives and plan future engineering. It does not, by itself, show how to recreate every trait or make an animal develop normally. The 2026 scholarly synthesis by Colossal and University of Melbourne authors describes de-extinction as a broad workflow involving ancient and museum genomics, comparative analysis, genome engineering, stem cells, assisted reproduction, ex-utero gestation, and ecological modeling.
That synthesis provides context for the range of work involved, but it is not a report that the thylacine project has completed those stages. The central distinction is between having a genome resource and demonstrating a healthy animal with the intended characteristics.
What “de-extinction” means here
Colossal describes its approach as genetically recreating a close approximation, not cloning an unchanged thylacine. In this context, “de-extinction” refers to an attempt to engineer a proxy using a living relative and selected genetic differences. It should not be taken to mean that the original extinct animal has been recovered.
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Colossal presents restoration of an apex predator in Tasmania as the project’s ecological rationale. That is the company’s stated rationale, not proof that a future engineered proxy would produce a particular ecological benefit. The reviewed scholarly synthesis identifies ecological modeling as part of the wider workflow, not as a guarantee of a successful outcome.
More broadly, related marsupial research may contribute knowledge useful beyond this project. But the sources reviewed here do not establish a specific conservation result from the thylacine program. Any claims about benefits to living species should be tied to demonstrated evidence rather than inferred from the project’s aims.
What evidence would mark a major next step?
Readers can distinguish research groundwork from animal-production milestones by asking what has actually been demonstrated. On Colossal’s published roadmap, the key stages still to establish include:
- that the intended edits are present in suitable cells;
- that those cells can generate a developmentally competent embryo;
- that an embryo can complete gestation and develop after birth; and
- that a resulting animal is healthy and has the intended thylacine-like characteristics.
A company roadmap or genome announcement is not a substitute for evidence of those outcomes. The public materials reviewed for this article describe groundwork and proposed steps, not a living thylacine-like animal.
FAQ
What does Colossal’s progress report actually show?
It shows that Colossal reports completing a high-quality thylacine genome and describes related marsupial research and a roadmap for further work. It does not show that a thylacine-like animal has been born.
Has Colossal brought back the thylacine yet?
No. The reviewed public evidence describes genome work, dunnart model research, and proposed future stages. It does not demonstrate a living thylacine or thylacine-like animal.
Is the thylacine being cloned?
Colossal says its approach is genetic recreation of a close approximation using a living relative, not cloning an unchanged thylacine.
What still has to happen before a thylacine could be born?
Colossal’s roadmap includes establishing compatible cell lines, editing selected loci, generating an embryo, gestating it in a dunnart surrogate, and supporting development in an external pouch. The roadmap describes required stages; it does not establish that they have been completed.
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Do the dunnart studies prove the thylacine project has succeeded?
No. The studies listed by Colossal concern model-species research on marsupial reproduction and development. They may support enabling research, but they are not evidence of a thylacine embryo or birth.
Bottom line
Colossal reports a high-quality thylacine genome and related research that may support future work. Its own roadmap still describes multiple steps between that groundwork and a living animal. The evidence reviewed here supports progress toward a genetically recreated approximation—not a thylacine brought back to life.
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