Episode 17 – Designer Babies

Germline Choice and the Future of Parenthood

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and

James J Hughes

step into one of the most heated debates in bioethics: Should parents be able to choose their child’s genes?

From designer babies to de-extinct direwolves (yes, really), we explore the limits of germinal choice and its implications for:

• Parental autonomy

• Children’s rights

• Societal consequences

We reflect on:
📚 The Case Against Perfection by Michael Sandel
🧬 The legacy of He Jiankui and the world’s first gene-edited babies
🐺 The speculative ethics of genetic resurrection and designer species

Is gene editing a gift—or a burden? And what does it mean to raise a child in a world where perfection might be a product?

🎧 Listen to Episode 17 now