The “better angels of our nature” remain primary drivers in our development of genetic technologies, but the dark side of human nature could also be empowered through these same tools.We need a very strong ethical and cultural framework to increase the odds that we’ll use these technologies wisely, not least because access to them will be decentralised and democratised.Although the positive possibilities far outweigh the negatives, it would be crazy to ignore the many ways things could go wrong.Like Icarus, we could fly too close to the sun and get burned if we hubristically assume we know more than we actually do.Our gene drives could crash ecosystems.We could use these tools to undermine our common identity as a species and social cohesion.The good news is that while the technologies are new, the values we’ll need to use them wisely are often old.The Economist: What sort of regulations need to be in place to "enable" these technologies—and what rules should "constrain" them?Mr Metzl: Genetic technologies touch the source code of what it means to be human and must be regulated.