So does chemical spraying.

Given that mosquitoes are also pollinators - this whole genocide approach is wrong IMHO. If they could make it so the females produced their own protein or at least had an immune system that prevented them from being carriers for various blood based parasites, then that would be great.

But sterilizing the females will inevitably lead to genocide of an entire range of pollinators that could have devastating impact in parts of the World that depend upon them more than we appreciate or understand today and we won't realise until it is too late.

The Aedes genus of mosquitoes are an invasive species in most of the world that was introduced by human activity in the first place.

I am extremely wary of genetic engineering and think it should probably be illegal and all research on the subject destroyed (because of the threat it poses to humanity), but I will admit to some ambivalence when it comes to eradicating an invasive species that had sickened and killed millions of people.

> The Aedes genus of mosquitoes are an invasive species in most of the world that was introduced by human activity in the first place.

Life, uh, finds a way. While it was an invasive species, it's now part of the respective ecosystems. Setting up a bunch of houses in the middle of a grassland is invasive, but you may not make life better by trying to burn it down during the dry season.

The plan is not to eliminate all mosquitos, just certain species.

That's the plan.

Humanity's plans to eliminate specific animal populations through introduction of other species, disease, or similar means have always backfired.

All the comments advising caution are unpopular. I didnt expect hacker news people to be so gung ho. But then again maybe I should have expected hubris.

Do mosquitoes really serve any benign purpose in the biosphere with their existence?

They are a source of food for the next step in the food chain. You risk disturbing the entire ecosystem by eliminating mosquitos. Maybe some other insect will take their place, but the you risk eliminating the species as well because to many are eat.

It’s insanely complicated, and you can’t think in terms of benign or not. All animals are benign, they’re just animal filling out their niche in nature.

I don't think we can know with absolutely certainty, and driving a species (or many) to extinction is irreversible with our current technology, so we should think real hard before choosing to wipe a species out.

You are missing the point. Gene drive can do this to any species.

Now the clouds part. Mosquitoes are just the first guinea pigs to see if this Gene Drive works as desired or not, am I right?

We do not understand well enough to even believe we can properly assess that question, let alone express reputable confidence.