The Download: Inside the Biological De-Aging Contest and Why LLMs Still Don't Reason
Plus: OpenAI says rogue agents may have affected more than 100 organizations.
By Thomas Macaulay | October 2, 2026
This is today's edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.
A New Contest Pits Competitors Against Each Other in a Race to Biological Youth
—Jessica Hamzelou
This week, I officially signed up for an unusual competition—one that rewards competitors for getting younger.
I recently turned 40, and I don't need reminding that both time and my chronological age only tick forward. But this game is focused on competitors' biological ages, figures that are meant to provide a better way to measure the age-related health of our organs and bodies.
Over six months, around 500 of us will try to reverse our biological age using a range of different measures. There's even a leaderboard. But is it even possible to measure whether someone is getting younger?
This story is developing. Check back for updates on the de-aging contest's results and methodology.