GCBR Organization Updates, April 2026

In this issue:

• A major RFP from Coefficient Giving;

• What the WHO and UN Secretary General’s Scientific Advisory Board think about on mirror life;

• Who did Blueprint Biosecurity fund for glycol vapor safety testing?

• An abundance of AI x Biosecurity fellowships

• And more!

The most recent updates from Active Site, Asia Center for Health Security, IBBIS, SecureBio, and Sentinel Bio can be found in our previous issue.

The Mirror Biology Dialogues Fund (newsletter) supports efforts to understand risks and develop governance frameworks for mirror biology research before it becomes technically feasible to create mirror life.

• The UN Secretary-General’s Scientific Advisory Board published a brief on mirror life noting “widespread scientific agreement that mirror life should not be made”.

• The World Health Organization published a detailed Q&A on mirror life and related technologies.

• The Nuclear Threat Initiative and the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association issued a joint statement calling on the international community to “Develop national and international frameworks to guard against the risks posed by mirror life.”

• In their 2026 Doomsday Clock Statement, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists urged the international community to take “all feasible steps to prevent the creation of mirror life” through multilateral agreements and national regulations.

The Global Health Security Network brings together policymakers, technical experts, and regional partners to strengthen global preparedness through cross-border collaboration, evidence-based policy, and coordinated detection and response to biological threats.

GHS2026 is just around the corner, and we’re excited to share what’s in store.

This year’s programme features keynote speakers addressing some of the most pressing challenges in global health security- from deliberate biothreats and emerging technologies to governance reform and multisectoral collaboration. Alongside the plenary sessions, GHS2026 will bring together workshops, panels, and side events spanning biosurveillance, outbreak investigation, mis/disinformation, DURC oversight, AIxBio, synthesis screening, medical countermeasures development, and the investigation of deliberate biological events.

GHS2026 is where experts from across sectors, industries, and programmes come together to build the connections and partnerships that strengthen bioresilience globally. Registration is still open - we hope to see you there. https://www.ghsconf.com/welcome-to-ghs-2026/

Coefficient Giving’s Biosecurity & Pandemic Preparedness team strives to prevent catastrophic biological risks through supporting efforts to safeguard dual-use technologies, detect and block the transmission of pandemic pathogens, and build the field’s capacity to solve these hard problems.

• Changed our name: Open Philanthropy is now Coefficient Giving!

• Welcomed two new team members to advance our grantmaking: Associate Program Officer Fiona Conlon and Senior Program Associate Aman Patel. We also welcomed the return of Senior Program Officer James Wagstaff to the team.

• Recommended substantial grants across our portfolio, including to:

  • Active Site, general support

  • Mirror Biology Dialogues Fund, general support

  • ProEquip, general support

  • Blueprint Biosecurity, for their grantmaking program

  • SecureBio, to expand their team

• Launched a major Request for Proposals, aiming to accelerate our grantmaking further in light of rapid technological progress. Actively soliciting expressions of interest until May 11, 2026, particularly in the areas of transmission suppression, AIxBio, policy/advocacy, and field-building.

The Biosecurity Policy Unit at the Centre for Long-Term Resilience (CLTR) works closely with the UK Government and other stakeholders to reduce extreme biological risks.

• In January 2026, we published our Defensive Acceleration report on how the UK can operationalise defensive acceleration for biological defence, detailing four concept notes on priority defensive applications.

• In February 2026, we provided a summary of CLTR recommendations that were included in the EU Biotech Act draft regulation.

• In April 2026, we hosted a closed-door panel event at the London Defence Conference entitled ‘Exploiting AI to defend against Biosecurity Threats’ with UK Government panelists from AISI, MOD, and FCDO for senior Parliamentarians, civil servants, and leaders from industry and the third sector.

• We published two commentary articles: One in TIME on AI CBRNe threats and another in RUSI on Iran biological weapon programme risks.

• Two of our staff commenced UK government secondments in AISI and DSIT working on high-impact biosecurity topics, and we completed a hiring call for three new staff positions.

The Council on Strategic Risks (CSR) is a nonprofit, non-partisan security policy institute devoted to anticipating, analyzing and addressing core systemic risks to security in the 21st century, with special examination of the ways in which these risks intersect and exacerbate one another.

• Hosted an event led by CSR’s Ending Bioweapons Fellows, Simon Grimm and Temi Ibitoye, on Scaling Pathogen Agnostic Detection of Biothreats.

• Co-hosted a panel discussion for Congressional staffers with the Engineering Biology Research Consortium on cloud labs producing AI-ready biological data.

• Partnered with the Japan Institute of International Affairs in leading security officials from the Government of Japan through a bioweapons scenario discussion.

• Featured work from CSR Visiting Fellows Brian O’Neil on the benefits of using aptamer technology for pathogen detection and Eva Siegmann on respiratory masks as an immediate defense against biothreats.

• Recommended resource increases to optimize biodefense as part of proposed DoD spending increases.

Blueprint Biosecurity is a nonprofit dedicated to achieving breakthroughs in humanity’s ability to prevent, mitigate, and suppress pandemics.

• Announced the recipients for the GlycolISER program. This initiative supports research evaluating the safety, efficacy, and potential applications of three glycol vapors: propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, and triethylene glycol.

• Bioresilience Fund: We’re actively expanding the fund this year to accelerate high-impact pandemic preparedness efforts. Explore our funded projects.

• Members of the Blueprint team will be attending the following upcoming conferences:

  • National Air Filtration Association Technical Seminar (Louisville, KY, Apr 8–10)

  • National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) Preparedness Summit (Baltimore, MD, Apr 13–16)

  • Hoover Institution Bio Leadership Summit (Stanford, CA, Apr 14)

• Major request for proposals from the Coefficient Giving (CG) Biosecurity and Pandemic Preparedness team.

  • CG invites ambitious proposals aimed at both preventing and responding to engineered biological threats. Core priority areas include bolstering transmission suppression (e.g., PPE, clean air), safeguarding AI-bio capabilities, advancing policy, and growing the field.

  • Submissions of short expressions of interest will be accepted until May 11 2026 at 11:59pm PT. Anyone is eligible to apply, including those working in academia, nonprofits, industry, or independently. For more information, and to submit an expression of interest, go here.

• Fellowships and Jobs

  • The Council on Strategic Risks has announced a call for the next cohort of Mid-Career Biodefense Bootcamp Fellows, with applications due by April 24.

  • Blueprint Biosecurity will continue to have open roles throughout 2026 and encourage anyone interested to submit an Expression of Interest here.

  • ERA will host a 10-week, fully-funded AIxBiosecurity Fellowship in Cambridge UK from July to September. Applications due by April 27.

  • Cambridge Boston Alignment Initiative (CBAI) will host a full-time, in-person AI x Biosecurity research fellowship from June 8 to August 10. Applications due by May 3.

• Challenges and Hackathons

  • Apart Research AIxBio Hackathon (April 24-26) is a three-day online research hackathon exploring how AI can strengthen biosecurity. Co-organized by Apart Research, BlueDot Impact, and Cambridge Biosecurity Hub, with in-person hubs in San Francisco and Berlin. Four tracks: DNA Screening and Synthesis Controls (Cambridge Boston Alignment Initiative), Benchtop Synthesizer Security (Sentinel Bio), Pandemic Early Warning, and AI Biosecurity Tools. $4,000 in prizes. No prior AI safety experience required.

  • DARPA Bio-attribution Challenge: The deadline to register is June 15. Learn more and register here.

  • The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and The Elders are launching a new intergenerational initiative to generate the ideas and leadership needed for a safer future against biological threats.

    • Application deadline: Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 11:59PM ET

    • Application form: https://www.tfaforms.com/5213832

Do you have any opportunities (jobs, events, etc.) you would like to share with our network? Please email Anemone at anemofranz@gmail.com to submit them for our next issue.

We regularly solicit updates from a group of organizations that we believe are doing impactful work to reduce GCBRs in order to improve transparency, facilitate collaboration, and otherwise accelerate progress in our community.

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Cover image credit: An operating team, 1951 postcard, US National Library of Medicine.