(IM)POSSIBLE BABY, CASE 01: ASAKO & MORIGA

(Im)possible Baby is a speculative design project that aims to stimulate discussion about the social, cultural, and ethical implications of emerging biotechnologies that could enable same-sex couples to have their own genetically related children.

Delivering a baby from same-sex parents is starting to look less like science fiction. Recent developments in genetics and stem cell research — including achievements by scientists from Cambridge University and Israel's Weizmann Institute of Science — have brought this possibility much closer to reality. Jacob Hanna, the specialist leading the Israeli arm of the project, stated that it may be possible to use the technique to create a baby within just two years, adding: "It has already caused interest from gay groups because of the possibility of making egg and sperm cells from parents of the same sex."

Is creating a baby from same-sex parents the ethical thing to do? Who has the right to decide this, and how?

This project analyzes the DNA data of a lesbian couple using 23andMe to simulate and visualize their potential children. The results were used to create a set of fictional "what if" future family photos, compiled into a hardcover album and presented to the couple as a gift. To achieve broader public outreach, we collaborated with Japanese national broadcaster NHK to produce a 30-minute documentary film documenting the entire process, which aired in October 2015.　（info of 2015）

Since this project was first presented in 2015, the science has advanced dramatically. In 2023, a research team led by Professor Katsuhiko Hayashi at Kyushu and Osaka Universities published a landmark paper in Nature, successfully converting XY mouse iPSCs into functional XX oocytes in vitro, which upon fertilization gave rise to live offspring — in other words, mice with two biological fathers. Seven pups were born from 600 embryos, and these mice went on to have their own offspring as adults. NatureResearchGate

In humans, in vitro gametogenesis (IVG) — the generation of eggs and sperm from pluripotent stem cells — remains in its early stages, with the current scientific goal being to fully reconstitute human gametogenesis outside the body. Nevertheless, progress is accelerating: human primordial germ cell-like cells (hPGCLCs) have now been successfully derived from iPSCs, and biotechs like Conception are building platforms to derive functional eggs from stem cells, while Gameto is focused on maturing human eggs outside the womb. Most significantly, in August 2025, Japanese regulators quietly gave researchers a historic authorization to generate human embryos from stem cells in the lab — no ovaries or testes required. News-Medical + 4

IVG could enable gay and trans couples to have babies genetically related to both partners, for the first time allowing families, regardless of gender identity, to have biologically related children. Yet the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology currently restricts IVF to heterosexual married couples, and IVG technology is expected to significantly challenge existing values, laws, and regulations. In July 2025, the UK's Nuffield Council on Bioethics published a comprehensive report on the ethical and policy dimensions of IVG, signaling that the debate has moved from speculation to urgent public necessity. Who decides how this technology is used — and who gets access? These are no longer hypothetical questions.( info of 2026)

実在する同性カップルの遺伝情報をもとに、生まれうる子供の姿や性格を予測し、「家族写真」を制作した。現在ではまだ"不可能"な子供だが、遺伝子データ上であれば、同性間であっても子供のシミュレーションは可能だ。ウェブの簡易版シミュレーター（β版）では、カップルの23andMeの遺伝データをアップロードすると、考えられる遺伝的組み合わせからランダムに子供がシミュレーションされ、病気のなりやすさ・外見・性格に関する情報が文章で出力される。

2004年の二母性マウス「かぐや」の誕生からおよそ20年が経った今日、生殖科学はさらに大きく前進している。2023年、九州大学・大阪大学の林克彦教授らの研究チームは、雄マウスの尾部の細胞からiPS細胞を作製し、そのXY染色体をXXに変換することで機能的な卵子を体外で生成することに成功。受精後に仔マウスが誕生した──これはすなわち、遺伝的に二人の「父親」を持つマウスの誕生を意味する。この研究では600個の胚から7匹の仔マウスが生まれ、成長した後に自ら子孫を残すことも確認された。 NatureResearchGate

ヒトへの応用については、iPS細胞を用いたヒト体外配偶子形成（IVG: In Vitro Gametogenesis）の研究はまだ初期段階にあり、現在の主目標はヒト生殖細胞の形成プロセスを体外で完全に再現することだ。それでも研究は急速に進んでいる。ヒトiPS細胞からの始原生殖細胞様細胞（hPGCLC）の誘導はすでに成功しており、米国ではConception社がiPS細胞から機能的な卵子を作製するプラットフォームの開発を進め、Gameto社は体外でのヒト卵子成熟技術に取り組んでいる。そして2025年8月には、日本の規制当局が研究者に対し、卵巣や精巣を介さずに幹細胞からヒト胚を生成することを歴史的に承認した。 News-Medical + 4

同性間での子供の誕生は、もはや夢物語ではなくなりつつある。しかし、技術的に可能であることと、倫理的に許容されることは別の問題だ。日本産科婦人科学会（JSOG）は現在、体外受精（IVF）の適用を、他の方法では妊娠できない異性婚カップルに限定しているが、IVG技術はこうした既存の規制や社会的価値観に根本的な変容を迫るものだ。一体誰が、どのようにしてその是非を決定するのか。2025年7月にはヌフィールド生命倫理評議会（英国）がIVGの倫理・政策問題に関する包括的な報告書を公表するなど、国際的な議論は急速に高まっている。しかし、議論の主導権が一部の専門家や機関に握られていいのか。私たちにもその決定に関与する自由はあるのではないか。

このプロジェクトは、生命倫理と科学技術に関わる決定を広く社会に開放するための装置として、アートがどのように関与できるかを模索する試みでもある。

この子供たちの"存在"に対して、あなたは何を思うだろうか。議論の行方によっては、今は"impossible baby"であっても、近い未来に I'm possible baby になるかもしれない。

追記： より広く議論するために、本プロジェクトは2015年10月初旬にドキュメンタリー番組として放送された。制作過程のほか、「かぐや」研究者の河野友宏農学博士、CiRAの八代嘉美准教授、指導教官のスプツニ子！、そして遺伝データ提供者で同性婚をしている牧村朝子・Morigaカップルへのインタビューも収録されている。

SNPs Infomations and Visual making

Asako's Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNPs) Data Created based on 23andMe data, cross-referenced with SNPedia and Promethease (https://promethease.com/). (Both individuals have given their informed consent to the publication of this genetic information.)

Moriga's SNPs Data Positions that differ from Asako's are highlighted in red.

朝子さんの一塩基多型（SNPs）情報 23andMeのデータをもとに、SNPediaおよびPromethease（https://promethease.com/）を参照して作成。（遺伝情報の公開については、両人の同意を取得済み。）

モリガさんのSNPs情報 朝子さんと異なる箇所を赤で表示している。

Web-Based Simulator (Beta Version)

http://aihasegawa.info/impossiblebaby/twoparents.html

Click the face icon to upload your own 23andMe raw data file in .txt format, then click the second face icon to upload your partner's data. The application randomly shuffles each parent's SNPs data, takes half from each, and combines them to generate a child's dataset. Since the combination is randomized each time, no two generated children will ever be the same. The child's traits are cross-referenced against the SNPedia database, and only entries with a magnitude of 2 or above are displayed as a list. The raw data can also be saved and uploaded to Promethease (https://promethease.com/ — fee: $5) for a more detailed analysis.

簡易版シミュレーター（β版）

http://aihasegawa.info/impossiblebaby/twoparents.html

顔のアイコンをクリックして、自分の23andMeの生データ（.txt形式）をアップロードする。次に別の顔のアイコンをクリックして、相手のデータをアップロードする。各親のSNPsデータをランダムにシャッフルして半分ずつ取得・統合し、子供のデータを生成する。毎回ランダムに生成されるため、同じ子供が生まれることはない。子供の特徴はSNPediaのデータベースと照合され、マグニチュード2以上の項目のみが箇条書きで表示される。生データも保存可能で、Promethease（https://promethease.com/ ／有料：5ドル）にアップロードするとより詳細な情報が得られる。

This application was developed to speculate your possible baby by uploading each parent's 23andMe .txt file. It uses data from SNPedia, matching your baby with the most interesting genotypes of magnitude 2 and above. The application does not store the user's personal data or results in any way. When uploading, please wait a few minutes while the app processes the results.

NHK Broadcast and Public Response

NHK Educational Television — Heart Net TV [Breakthrough] File 39: To the Child I Was Never Supposed to Meet First broadcast: Monday, October 5, 2015, 8:00 PM Repeat broadcast: Monday, October 12, 2015, 1:05 PM

No matter how deeply they loved each other, a child was supposed to be impossible.

That summer, Asako Makimura (writer and talent, age 28) was shown the image of a baby — a child who might have been born between her and her French wife. In the near future, iPS cell technology is expected to make same-sex reproduction technically possible. In late 2014, a team from Cambridge University, and in July 2015, a team from Kyoto University, each announced success in generating cells capable of becoming sperm or eggs from iPS cells. The possibility of a future in which eggs could be made from male skin cells and sperm from female skin cells was suddenly beginning to feel real.

Artists Ai Hasegawa (MIT) and Sputniko! turned their attention to this topic — one that many would hesitate even to discuss — and set out to analyze the couple's DNA and simulate the appearance and personality of a child they might have together, creating it as an artwork. What does it mean to bring a child into the world? What does it mean to build a family? The four-month journey of a female couple venturing into territory no human has entered before poses a profound question to us all.

NHK General Television — NEXT: For the Future To the Child I Was Never Supposed to Meet Broadcast: Wednesday night / Thursday, October 21, 2015, 12:10–12:40 AM Narration: Nana Seino

Following the broadcast, over 950 substantive tweets and discussions involving more than 560 people were recorded. Twitter summary: http://togetter.com/li/882876

NHK Broadcast and Public Response

NHK Educational Television — Heart Net TV [Breakthrough] File 39: To the Child I Was Never Supposed to Meet First broadcast: Monday, October 5, 2015, 8:00 PM Repeat broadcast: Monday, October 12, 2015, 1:05 PM

No matter how deeply they loved each other, a child was supposed to be impossible.

That summer, Asako Makimura (writer and talent, age 28) was shown the image of a baby — a child who might have been born between her and her French wife. In the near future, iPS cell technology is expected to make same-sex reproduction technically possible. In late 2014, a team from Cambridge University, and in July 2015, a team from Kyoto University, each announced success in generating cells capable of becoming sperm or eggs from iPS cells. The possibility of a future in which eggs could be made from male skin cells and sperm from female skin cells was suddenly beginning to feel real.

Artists Ai Hasegawa (MIT) and Sputniko! turned their attention to this topic — one that many would hesitate even to discuss — and set out to analyze the couple's DNA and simulate the appearance and personality of a child they might have together, creating it as an artwork. What does it mean to bring a child into the world? What does it mean to build a family? The four-month journey of a female couple venturing into territory no human has entered before poses a profound question to us all.