Phylogenetics - GoKawiil

ELIZAGen project applies biology's phylogenetics tools to ELIZA chatbot code history

A research effort called ELIZAGen is building a family tree of ELIZA chatbot implementations by treating them as biological specimens rather than comparing source code directly. Researchers encode 27 versions spanning 1965-2025 across eight languages using 13 binary architectural features, then analyze the resulting matrix with PAUP*, software standard in evolutionary biology. The work is detailed in a December 2025 draft paper by Jeff Shrager titled 'Reconstructing Program Genealogies from Abstract Program Descriptions: The ELIZA Case Study.'

elizagen.org · 2026-10-12

Delphy speeds up Bayesian phylogenetics for real-time outbreak tracking

Researchers describe Delphy, a phylogenetics tool that encodes evolutionary trees as timed nodes carrying explicit mutation and 'missation' (missing-data) annotations relative to a reference sequence. This design lets the software efficiently reconstruct full sequences at any tree point and handle uncertain tip collection dates, aiming to make Bayesian phylogenetic analysis fast enough for near-real-time outbreak response.

nature.com · 2026-09-16