Whole-genome sequencing in synthetic biology is advancing, making the possibilities open in new medicines, treating genetic diseases, and sustainable energy. Scientists must keep in mind the ethics of this technology and how it can be misused.

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Recent news offers compelling evidence that an effective vaccine for #COVID19 is on its way. Although this news provides optimism, many questions are considered. Who gets it first? Could it help quell the pandemic? Questions follow this exciting news.

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Digital therapeutics is uncharted waters. In a recent development, “a new product, developed by Akili Interactive Labs, is the first game-based therapeutic to be approved by the FDA for any condition and the first digital therapeutic approved for ADHD.”

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Ransomware attacks surged last month, targeting big businesses and hospitals alike. Data extortion attacks can manifest in many different forms. This article describes an example of a particularly vicious attack that occurred in Finland.

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“A lab experiment aimed at fixing defective DNA in human embryos shows what can go wrong and why leading scientists say it’s too unsafe. In more than half of the cases, the editing caused unintended changes, such as loss of an entire chromosome.” Evident from the analysis of the CRISPR babies made in the years prior, embryo editing has proved to be unstable and not ready for widespread use despite the potentials of editing in solving certain health conditions.

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“AI promises to expertly diagnose disease in medical images and scans. However, a close look…suggests these powerful new tools may perpetuate health inequalities.” How can we train algorithms to work for all patients regardless of origin? Many tools are currently trained in richer countries such as the United States, but are expected to recognize patterns in patients all across the world. This difference leads to certain AI interventions only being effective in countries with greater resources.

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Can AI help doctors differentiate between COVID-19 and the regular flu? What information would the technology need and where should we draw those boundaries? Some models are showing promise by sifting through common health data.

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“In health care, a new force is redrawing barriers: algorithms that blindly soak up and perpetuate historical imbalances in access to medical resources.” Investigations reveal algorithms commonly inject racial bias into decisions for vulnerable areas. How can we better redesign software to reduce the infusion of racism into health care as we move towards a more digital age?

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“Digital health companies are making broad promises about immediacy, universal access, affordability, early detection and intervention, treating the untreated, overcoming the social determinants that have been barriers to good health.” Moving forward, it is essential to argue for adherence to standards that ensure the interests of the patient population and balancing these interests with the personal interests of the company.

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Could speech technology help COVID-19 diagnosis? Experts argue that these speech samples can be used without explicit consent or to obtain personal health information, and potentially discriminate against their customers. Although the speech technology could provide some insight into further knowledge of true infection rates, concerns over privacy and the merit of information provided are a small snapshot of the factors to consider with wider implementation of this software.

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