South Island Giant Moa by Colossal Biosciences: status and timeline

South Island Giant Moa

A de-extinction program to resurrect the South Island giant moa using giant tinamou as a host genome and a 3D-printed artificial egg incubator, backed by Māori tribe Ngāi Tahu and filmmaker Peter Jackson.

ProtoStage 2 of 5

3D-printed egg incubator works (26 chicks hatched). Partial genomes rebuilt. 12-foot bird in development.

Updated 19 May 2026Checked 10 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · Partial moa genomes reconstructed from bone samples

$50M project announced with Ngāi Tahu and Peter Jackson backing8 Jul 2025Complete.
3D-printed artificial egg incubator prototype hatches chicks19 May 2026Complete.
26 healthy chicks hatched and being monitoredMay 2026Complete.
Partial moa genomes reconstructed from bone samplesTarget 2026Current milestone.
First moa egg incubation trialTarget 2028Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Colossal hatches 26 chicks from artificial egg using silicone membrane system in breakthrough for de-extinction19 May 2026

Upcoming

2026Partial moa genomes reconstructed from bone samples (next)
2027Moa genome fully reconstructed
2028First moa egg incubation trial
2028First moa embryo implanted in artificial egg

Current obstacles

Extreme size mismatchA 12-foot tall bird has never been reared by human technology. Scaling from chick to adult is unproven.
Incomplete genome reconstructionMoa bone DNA is fragmented. Missing regions are inferred from related species, which may lose critical traits.
Ecological role unknownMoa went extinct 700 years ago. Diet and behavior are poorly understood, making reintroduction to habitat difficult.

Physics limits

Ancient DNA degradationMoa fossils are thousands of years old. DNA in bone is chemically damaged; pieces are lost. The older the specimen, the more incomplete the genome.
Artificial development risksAn artificial egg is an unproven technology at this scale. Even small deviations in temperature, oxygen, or humidity during months-long incubation could be fatal to the embryo.
Size-driven metabolic challengesA 12-foot flightless bird has never existed in the modern world. Scaling up metabolism, skeletal strength, and organ function from tinamou embryos to adult moa size is theoretically uncertain.

How it works

3 parts

Genome source

Moa DNA from bone fossils

Museum bone samples preserved over thousands of years contain fragmented moa DNA. Researchers sequence these fragments and reconstruct the partial genome.

Host genome

Giant tinamou as the genetic foundation

The giant tinamou, a large flightless South American bird, shares a common ancestor with the moa. Its genome serves as the scaffold for moa DNA insertions.

Artificial incubation

3D-printed lattice eggs and environmental control

No bird can incubate a moa egg (8x larger than emu egg). A 3D lattice mimics a shell and controls temperature, humidity, and gas exchange.

Spec sheet

Spec	South Island Giant Moa
Project funding and backing	$50M+^R (reported)
Estimated adult height	12 feet (3.7 m)^E (estimated)
Proof-of-concept chicks hatched	26^R (reported)
Moa egg size relative to emu	~8x larger than emu egg^R (reported)

^R reported by the company · ^E our estimate

Update log

1 update

Tue 19 May

Major: Colossal hatches 26 chicks from artificial egg using silicone membrane system in breakthrough for de-extinctionPressTest

About Colossal Biosciences

The team behind South Island Giant Moa

Colossal Biosciences

De-extinction, dire wolf, woolly mammoth

Dallas company co-founded by Ben Lamm and George Church that edits living animals to carry traits of extinct ones: mammoth, thylacine, dodo, moa. In 2025 it announced wolf pups edited with dire wolf traits and 'woolly mice'.

Apr 2025: announced three pups cloned from gray wolf cells with 20 edits in 14 genes chosen from ancient dire wolf DNA.
Many scientists, including the IUCN wolf and dog experts, say they are modified gray wolves, not dire wolves.
Reported in Jul 2026 to be raising at a $20–30B valuation, up from $10.2B in Jan 2025.

colossal.com (opens colossal.com)Company profile →

Founded: 20215 yrs
Headquarters: United States
Status: Private
Valuation: $10BprivateJan 2025
Raised: $350M2 rounds
Last round: Series C · $200MJan 2025$10B post
Works in: BiotechDe-extinction
Coverage: 5 programs · 11 updateslatest 1 Jul 2026checked 25 Sep
Lead investors: TWG GlobalUS Innovative Technology Fund
Partners: Form Bio (opens formbio.com)University of Melbourne (opens unimelb.edu.au)
Investors: TWG Global
People: Ben Lamm (opens en.wikipedia.org)Co-founder and CEOGeorge Church (opens en.wikipedia.org)Co-founderBeth Shapiro (opens en.wikipedia.org)Chief Science Officer

Spec

South Island Giant Moa

Project funding and backing

$50M+^R (reported)

Estimated adult height

12 feet (3.7 m)^E (estimated)

Proof-of-concept chicks hatched

26^R (reported)

Moa egg size relative to emu

~8x larger than emu egg^R (reported)