--- alias: - George Church - George M. Church - George McDonald Church born: 1954 category: Scientists & Researchers created: 2026-09-25 location: Boston, Massachusetts relations: - fn: 1 role: Professor of Genetics, Harvard Medical School type: employed_by with: '[[Harvard University]]' - fn: 1 role: director start: 2005 type: head_of with: '[[Personal Genome Project]]' - fn: 1 role: director of an IARPA brain project type: contractor_to with: '[[Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity]]' - fn: 2 start: 2021 type: founded with: '[[Colossal Biosciences]]' - fn: 3 role: scientific co-founder type: founded with: '[[eGenesis]]' - end: 2007 fn: 7 reverse: true role: 686,000 dollars through Harvard; Epstein Foundation, St. Thomas start: 2005 type: funded with: '[[Jeffrey Epstein]]' - fn: 7 reverse: true role: 2 million dollars for Church research after Epstein introduction type: funded with: '[[Leon Black]]' - fn: 3 role: Georgarage investment company, incorporated in Delaware by Darren Indyke start: 2014-07 type: partner_of with: '[[Jeffrey Epstein]]' - fn: 2 role: contributor; listed as a non-profit affiliation (science communication) start: 2005 type: member_of with: '[[Edge Foundation]]' - end: 2020 fn: 2 role: scientific advisory board start: 2013 type: member_of with: '[[Centre for the Study of Existential Risk]]' summary: George Church is a Harvard Medical School geneticist who took Jeffrey Epstein's money from 2005 to 2007, received Epstein-introduced Leon Black gifts, and in 2014 formed the investment vehicle Georgarage with Epstein. tags: - Person - JeffreyEpstein - Harvard - Genetics - SyntheticBiology - Transhumanism - InQTel - SciencePhilanthropy updated: 2026-09-25 --- George M. Church (born 1954) is an American geneticist, Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, head of synthetic biology at Harvard's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, and director of the Personal Genome Project. He has co-founded more than fifty biotechnology companies, among them Colossal Biosciences, in which the [CIA](/organizations/central-intelligence-agency/)'s venture arm [In-Q-Tel](/organizations/in-q-tel/) took a stake in 2022. [Jeffrey Epstein](/people/jeffrey-epstein/)'s foundation funded Church's laboratory from 2005 to 2007; after Harvard stopped accepting Epstein's money, donors Epstein introduced gave 2 million dollars for Church's work, and in 2014 Church and Epstein formed an investment company, Georgarage, that Epstein's lawyer incorporated in Delaware.[^1][^2][^3] ### Genomics and Company Formation Church's 1984 Harvard doctorate introduced methods for direct genome sequencing and molecular barcoding, which led to the first sequenced bacterial genome, *Helicobacter pylori,* in 1994. He co-initiated the Human Genome Project in 1984 and the Personal Genome Project in 2005, an open-access registry of volunteers' genomes, health records and cell lines, and in 2011 the BRAIN Initiative. His own biography lists him as director of an [IARPA](/organizations/intelligence-advanced-research-projects-activity/) brain project and of three NIH Centers of Excellence in Genomic Science between 2004 and 2020, and records an affiliation with the [MIT Media Lab](/organizations/mit-media-lab/) beginning in 2014.[^1] Church publishes a self-maintained disclosure of his companies, advisory roles and funders. It lists Colossal Biosciences (founded 2021) for "molecular biology for endangered species," the xenotransplantation company eGenesis, Editas Medicine, Nebula Genomics and dozens of others. Among the investors it records in Church's startups are In-Q-Tel in Colossal, and [Boris Nikolic](/people/boris-nikolic/)'s Biomatics Capital in Editas, eGenesis and Twist Bioscience. Nikolic, a former science adviser to [Bill Gates](/people/bill-gates/), was named in Epstein's will, signed two days before Epstein's death, as a backup executor; Nikolic said through a spokesperson that he had not been consulted and had no intention of serving. In-Q-Tel explained its Colossal investment in September 2022: "it's less about the mammoths and more about the capability." Among its non-profit entries the disclosure lists "Epstein Foundation St. Thomas, VI 2000 (2005-2007; cutting edge science & education)," and, as affiliations, the [Edge Foundation](/organizations/edge-foundation/) of the literary agent [John Brockman](/people/john-brockman/) from 2005 to the present ("science communication") and the [Centre for the Study of Existential Risk](/organizations/centre-for-the-study-of-existential-risk/) at Cambridge from 2013 to 2020.[^2][^4][^5][^6] ### Epstein's Money and Leon Black's Harvard's 2020 review found that before Harvard stopped accepting his gifts in 2007 and 2008, Epstein had given Harvard 686,000 dollars to support Church's work. Church told *STAT* in 2019 that he last received research funding from Epstein in 2007.[^7][^8] Between 2010 and 2015, donors whom Epstein introduced gave 2 million dollars to support Church's work, alongside 7.5 million dollars for [Martin Nowak](/people/martin-nowak/)'s [Program for Evolutionary Dynamics](/organizations/program-for-evolutionary-dynamics/). The donor was [Leon Black](/people/leon-black/) of [Apollo Global Management](/organizations/apollo-global-management/). Black met Church in Cambridge and at Black's New York office, and Epstein's accountant, rather than Black or his foundation, notified Harvard Medical School development staff of Black's intended gift. A former development staff member recalled Epstein's donor record as flagged in a way that would have blocked the gift; the investigators found the only flag, recording Epstein's 2008 conviction, dated June 30, 2008, "months after Black's $2 million gift to Church." The report's dates for the Church gift do not agree: its summary finding places the 2 million dollars between 2010 and 2015, while this footnote implies a Black gift to Church before June 2008, and the report does not reconcile the two. Black's representative told the investigators that "the gifts made in support of Professor Church's and Professor Nowak's research were made by Mr. Black. None of the funds were provided by Mr. Epstein and no attempt was made to conceal the source of these gifts." Between 2012 and 2017 Black paid Epstein about 158 million dollars for tax and estate-planning advice.[^7][^9] Church was a regular guest at Epstein's gatherings at Nowak's program. He appears in 2012 photographs of a lunch there with Epstein, Black, Eric Lander, David Gergen, [Seth Lloyd](/people/seth-lloyd/) and others. His online calendar, first reported by NBC News, recorded a further meeting with Epstein at the institute and a 2014 dinner involving Nowak and Epstein, and listed [Joi Ito](/people/joi-ito/) of the MIT Media Lab as a guest at a meal with Epstein. Church confirmed six phone calls with Epstein in 2014. A photograph released by the [Department of Justice](/organizations/department-of-justice/) in 2026 purports to show Church and Nowak on Epstein's island, [Little St. James](/places/little-st-james/).[^3][^8][^10] ### Georgarage In July 2014 Epstein emailed Church, "I have a great idea. lets speak today if possible." The next day Church sent a ten-stage proposal for investments totaling 10 million dollars, opening "Many thanks for your very encouraging words yesterday morning" and listing "Supercentenarianstudy.com," gene editing to make virus-resistant animals, reversing aging and "cold-resistant elephants." Epstein replied, "lets start on first investment," and told Church to "decide what you would like to call your investment co." Church offered three names; Epstein chose Georgarage, from "George's Garage," the working title of a newsletter Church was considering, with "Geo" also standing for genetically engineered organisms. The company was incorporated in Delaware by Epstein's lawyer, [Darren Indyke](/people/darren-indyke/). The Justice Department release includes a 2016 check for 300 dollars, signed by Indyke, to the Delaware Division of Corporations for Georgarage. Delaware records list the company as inactive for failure to pay taxes.[^3] Emails show three prospective Georgarage investments. In October 2014 eGenesis's chief scientific officer, Luhan Yang, sent Epstein stock options and rates, and in February 2016 wrote, "please kindly let us know if we can help in anyway to help Jeffrey to make decision on the georgarage investment in Egenesis." An eGenesis spokesperson said the company received no money from Georgarage or Epstein and that "the current leadership team has no knowledge of that entity." Also in October 2014, Church, Epstein and James Clement held a conference call about Clement's gene-editing company Androcyte; Clement said Epstein proposed becoming chairman of its board and that "I did not like anything about Mr Epstein's proposal and immediately afterwards . . . told that to George and that was the end of it." Clement closed Androcyte in 2017 and moved its assets to BetterHumans, a nonprofit that describes itself as "the world's first specifically-transhumanist bio-medical research organization." In July 2015 Church asked Epstein about a California DNA-sequencing company, "Are you considering a Georgarage LLC investment?" Epstein answered, "Yes." The released files show no completed investment in any of the three.[^3] ### The Personal Genome Project Samples In the summer of 2013 the Personal Genome Project's director of research, Madeleine Ball (known as Mad Ball), noticed a colleague pushing to sequence a sample that had been in the refrigerator only weeks, when the funding backlog normally meant waits of years. She looked up the donor identification number, found it was Epstein's, and searched his name. "It looked like a quid pro quo sort of thing," she said. "But this was a rich, bad person, and it looked awful." Ball left the laboratory; staff objections stopped the expedited handling. Justice Department documents show Epstein was a project participant and that cell lines containing his DNA were created in 2013. Church confirmed the episode in 2026 and denied personally pushing for special treatment: "Multiple people were telling me various things that were mildly contradictory and I made the wrong call. . . . I felt he had served his time and that was bad judgment." STAT reported that the released files show funding connected to Epstein or his associates reaching Church in the years after 2013, and that on January 31, 2026, one day after a Justice Department release, someone altered the project profile page believed to be Epstein's to record consent on that date.[^11][^12] *[The New York Times](/organizations/new-york-times/)* reported in 2019 that Epstein had told scientists of a plan to seed the human race with his DNA by impregnating women at his [New Mexico](/places/new-mexico/) ranch, and that he wanted his head and penis frozen after death.[^13] ### Apologies and Reviews In August 2019 Church became the first scientist to apologize for his Epstein ties. "I certainly apologize for my poor awareness and judgment," he told STAT. "There should have been more conversations about, should we be doing this, should we be helping this guy? There was just a lot of nerd tunnel vision." He said that of the 2008 conviction he had "read a couple of news articles . . . but they weren't clear enough for me to know there was a serious problem." Emails released in 2026 show a Church and Epstein lunch planned for December 2018, weeks after the *[Miami Herald](/organizations/miami-herald/)* series. Another released text to Epstein read, "George Church came to speak in my bioethics class today!"[^3][^8] In a 2015 deposition, [Alan Dershowitz](/people/alan-dershowitz/), who had represented Epstein, named Church among Harvard academics who saw Epstein travel with young women: "They were seen by [Larry Summers](/people/larry-summers/), they were seen by [George] Church, they were seen by [Marvin Minsky](/people/marvin-minsky/), they were seen by some of the most eminent academics and scholars in the world. . . . There was no hint or suggestion of anything sexual or improper in the presence of these people." Dershowitz did not accuse Church of wrongdoing.[^3][^14] Neither Church nor Nowak has been accused of any crime in connection with Epstein. Harvard's 2020 review did not lead to Church's dismissal. On November 18, 2025, Harvard said it was "conducting a review of information concerning individuals at Harvard included in the newly released Jeffrey Epstein documents." Church did not respond to questions from CNN or *The Boston Globe* in February 2026.[^3][^15] [^1]: Church, George M. "George M. Church Bio," Church Lab, Harvard Medical School, updated October 31, 2025, on the 1984 doctorate, the 1994 *H. pylori* genome, the Human Genome, Personal Genome and BRAIN projects, the IARPA brain project and NIH centers, and the 2014 MIT Media Lab affiliation. https://arep.med.harvard.edu/gmc/ [^2]: Church, George M. "George M. Church's Tech Transfer, Advisory Roles, and Funding Sources," Church Lab, Harvard Medical School, accessed September 25, 2026, listing Colossal Bio, eGenesis, Editas, the investors In-Q-Tel and Biomatics Capital/Boris Nikolic, "Epstein Foundation St. Thomas, VI 2000 (2005-2007; cutting edge science & education)," "Edge Foundation, NYC 1988 (2005-present; science communication)," and CSER (2013-2020). https://arep.med.harvard.edu/t [^3]: Owermohle, Sarah, and Austin Culpepper. "How Epstein enlisted Harvard scientists to burnish his reputation, and try to make a profit," *CNN,* February 19, 2026, on Georgarage, Indyke's incorporation and 300 dollar check, eGenesis, Androcyte and BetterHumans, the sequencing company, the six 2014 calls, the December 2018 lunch, the island photograph, the Dershowitz deposition, the student text, and Harvard's November 18, 2025 statement. https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/19/politics/harvard-epstein-donations-influence-exclusive [^4]: Fang, Lee, and Jack Poulson. "The CIA Just Invested in Woolly Mammoth Resurrection Technology," *The Intercept,* September 28, 2022. https://theintercept.com/2022/09/28/cia-extinction-woolly-mammoth-dna/ [^5]: Aldhous, Peter. "Jeffrey Epstein's Links To Scientists Are Even More Extensive Than We Thought," *BuzzFeed News,* August 27, 2019, on Nikolic's naming as backup executor and his spokesperson's statement. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/peteraldhous/jeffrey-epstein-science-donations-apologies-statements [^6]: "Could science destroy the world? These scholars want to save us from a modern-day Frankenstein," *Science,* on the CSER scientific advisory board including Church. https://www.science.org/content/article/could-science-destroy-world-these-scholars-want-save-us-modern-day-frankenstein [^7]: Lopez, Diane E., Ara B. Gershengorn, and Martin F. Murphy. *Report Concerning Jeffrey E. Epstein's Connections to Harvard University.* Harvard University Office of the General Counsel and Foley Hoag LLP, May 2020, pp. 3, 13-15 and nn. 8-10, on the 686,000 dollars for Church's work, the 2 million dollars from Epstein-introduced donors, Black's meetings with Church, the accountant's notice to development staff, the June 30, 2008 database flag, and the statement of Black's representative. https://ogc.harvard.edu/file_url/208 ; mirror: https://archive.org/download/epstein-docs_20240108/1.%20Harvard%20Epstein%20Report.pdf [^8]: "Citing 'nerd tunnel vision,' biologist George Church apologizes for contacts with Jeffrey Epstein," *STAT,* August 5, 2019, as quoted in Aldhous, *BuzzFeed News,* August 27, 2019. https://www.statnews.com/2019/08/05/citing-nerd-tunnel-vision-biologist-george-church-apologizes-for-contacts-with-jeffrey-epstein/ [^9]: "Billionaire Leon Black made a $158 million payment to Jeffrey Epstein. Senators want to know why," *CNN Business,* July 25, 2023. https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/25/business/leon-black-jeffrey-epstein-senate-investigation [^10]: Aldhous, Peter. "Jeffrey Epstein's Links To Scientists Are Even More Extensive Than We Thought," *BuzzFeed News,* August 27, 2019, on the 2012 lunch photographs and Church's calendar entries, including the Ito meal. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/peteraldhous/jeffrey-epstein-science-donations-apologies-statements [^11]: Molteni, Megan. "Jeffrey Epstein's tissue samples ignited a furor in the Harvard lab of George Church," *STAT,* February 24, 2026, republished in shorter form by *The Boston Globe,* on Ball's account, the cell lines, Church's 2026 statements, and funding after 2013. https://www.statnews.com/2026/02/24/epstein-cell-line-george-church-harvard-personal-genome-project/ ; https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/24/business/jeffrey-epstein-george-church-harvard-tissue-samples-lab/ [^12]: Molteni, Megan. "A new mystery emerges about Epstein's involvement in Harvard genetics study," *STAT,* March 4, 2026, on the 2013 cell lines and the profile edit dated January 31, 2026. https://www.statnews.com/2026/03/04/jeffrey-epstein-new-mystery-harvard-genetics-project-george-church/ [^13]: Stewart, James B., Matthew Goldstein, and Jessica Silver-Greenberg. "Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA," *The New York Times,* July 31, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/31/business/jeffrey-epstein-eugenics.html [^14]: Brandom, Russell. "AI pioneer accused of having sex with trafficking victim on Jeffrey Epstein's island," *The Verge,* August 9, 2019, quoting Dershowitz's 2015 deposition. https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/9/20798900/marvin-minsky-jeffrey-epstein-sex-trafficking-island-court-records-unsealed [^15]: Fernandes, Deirdre, and Tricia L. Nadolny. "Introductions to women. Free flights. Business deals. Jeffrey Epstein's ties to Harvard run deeper than previously known," *The Boston Globe,* February 25, 2026, on the 2014 Black gift brokered by Epstein and Church's non-response. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/02/25/metro/jeffrey-epstein-harvard-spotlight-report/