150-year-old human might already be among us, claims Harvard scientist. His experiment may have unlocked how long we can really live

A human lifespan of 150 years may sound far beyond the limits of modern medicine. But Harvard geneticist David Sinclair believes the first person who reaches that age may already have been born, as researchers work on therapies designed to reverse some effects of biological ageing.

Sinclair, a professor at Harvard Medical School, has spent years studying whether ageing can be slowed or reversed by restoring cells to a younger state. In recent discussions about his work, he has said that advances in cellular reprogramming and artificial intelligence could bring age-reversing treatments closer to practical use.

“I do believe that we could double the human lifespan,” Sinclair said.

Sinclair says ageing could become treatable

Speaking at the World Governments Summit in Dubai, Sinclair argued that ageing itself should increasingly be viewed as a condition that can be treated rather than simply accepted as an unavoidable part of life.

He pointed to the fact that several chronic diseases tend to appear together as people grow older. His research therefore focuses on addressing the ageing process itself rather than targeting each age-related disease separately.

Sinclair has predicted that healthcare could look very different over the next 10 to 20 years if researchers succeed in developing treatments that can slow or reverse biological ageing.

“For many years, we ignored ageing,” Sinclair said, adding that ageing should no longer be accepted as inevitable.

The research involves resetting older cells

A major part of Sinclair's work involves so-called Yamanaka factors, genes that can reprogram mature cells into a younger state.

Research led by Sinclair has explored a modified version of this process known as partial cellular reprogramming. Instead of completely turning mature cells back into stem cells, the approach aims to restore some of the information that cells lose as they age.

His research has produced striking results in animal models. A 2020 study from his team demonstrated the reversal of glaucoma-related vision loss in mice, while later work reported restored vision in aged monkeys.

Sinclair's explanation is based on his “information theory of aging”, which proposes that ageing is linked to the loss or disruption of epigenetic information that helps cells function properly.

“What we do is we use a set of genes that are normally only on in embryos,” Sinclair said. “We turn them on in adult tissues—[in] mice and monkeys—and we can cure diseases and injuries that have never been cured before.”

First human treatment has now begun

The research has also moved beyond animal experiments. According to Time's reporting, in June 2026 the first patient received a cellular-rejuvenation therapy developed from Sinclair's research.

The treatment was given to a patient with glaucoma as part of a trial conducted by LifeBiosciences, a company Sinclair co-founded. The study is expected to involve up to 18 people with conditions that can cause blindness.

The trial is significant because it is testing whether the biological ageing of specific human cells can actually be reversed rather than merely slowed.

“For all of us present, including the patient, it was an emotional moment,” Sinclair told Time.

AI could help turn the research into pills

Sinclair's team is also using AI to search for molecules that could reproduce some of the effects of the gene-based approach without requiring the same type of therapy.

According to the interview with Peter Diamandis, trillions of molecules have entered the team's virtual screening process. Sinclair said experiments that once could have taken extremely long periods can now be conducted in months with AI-assisted research.

He believes such work could eventually lead to age-reversing pills. The gene therapy approach could cost around $2 million, according to the reports, while Sinclair has suggested a future pill could cost about $100 for a month's supply.

Preclinical research has found that four weeks of treatment with certain molecules made mice physically and behaviourally younger and reduced their biological age.

But whether the same effects can be achieved safely in humans remains to be established. Sinclair has nevertheless said that, if the research succeeds, age-reversing treatments could become available within the next decade.