The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation put up $200m to fund the vaccine in the 90s. Unfortunately, the vaccine wasn’t great, and there were other methods (like genetically altering the mosquitos) that were a better use of additional funds. The vaccine took a backseat for a while, until another company came in with a new vaccine. They went through all of the trials in 2015, but the factory they’d planned to produce in wasn’t able to meet the demand, and the vaccine itself required multiple year long boosters or it was near worthless. Again, the vaccine was shelved. Then, finally, an Indian company created one in December 2021 that worked well and could be quickly produced. 25 million doses were made and shipped in 2024.
The headline seems so dramatic, but this is all a bunch of good people doing good things and trying to help overcome a deadly disease.
Here’s a non-AI summary.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation put up $200m to fund the vaccine in the 90s. Unfortunately, the vaccine wasn’t great, and there were other methods (like genetically altering the mosquitos) that were a better use of additional funds. The vaccine took a backseat for a while, until another company came in with a new vaccine. They went through all of the trials in 2015, but the factory they’d planned to produce in wasn’t able to meet the demand, and the vaccine itself required multiple year long boosters or it was near worthless. Again, the vaccine was shelved. Then, finally, an Indian company created one in December 2021 that worked well and could be quickly produced. 25 million doses were made and shipped in 2024.
The headline seems so dramatic, but this is all a bunch of good people doing good things and trying to help overcome a deadly disease.