I think that it’s more likely to be the result of an effort to mitigate potential harm from future pandemics. One piece of evidence that supports this is the grant proposal, which was rejected by DARPA, that is described in this New Yorker article. The grant proposal was co-submitted by the president of the EcoHealth Alliance, a non-profit which is “dedicated to mitigating the emergence of infectious diseases”, according to the article.
I think that it’s more likely to be the result of an effort to mitigate potential harm from future pandemics. One piece of evidence that supports this is the grant proposal, which was rejected by DARPA, that is described in this New Yorker article. The grant proposal was co-submitted by the president of the EcoHealth Alliance, a non-profit which is “dedicated to mitigating the emergence of infectious diseases”, according to the article.