Dwarkesh Podcast Evolution designed us to die fast; we can change that — Jacob Kimmel
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Aug 21, 2025 In this enlightening conversation, Jacob Kimmel, Co-founder and President of NewLimit, shares his groundbreaking work in reversing aging through epigenetic reprogramming. He discusses why evolution hasn't optimized for longevity and the complexities of drug discovery. The chat delves into the role of transcription factors in rejuvenating cells and innovative gene delivery methods that could transform medical treatments. Kimmel also offers intriguing insights into CAR-T cell therapy and how biotech innovations may revolutionize healthcare.
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Why Evolution Didn’t Prioritize Longevity
- Evolution often didn't optimize for long human lifespans because baseline hazard rates were high during our evolution. Small selective gradients and optimization constraints made longevity a low-weight objective for natural selection.
Aging As An Evolutionary Regularizer
- Evolution may select against partial longevity because aged individuals can be net negative for genomic propagation. Optimization constraints, mutation rates, and population pressures favored defenses like infection control over extreme longevity.
Why Humans Didn’t Evolve Their Own Antibiotics
- Microbes produce antibiotics because their huge population sizes and tolerance for mutation enable metabolic diversity. Multicellular organisms face cancer and mutation-rate constraints that make evolving similar broad antimicrobials unlikely.
