Then identify the "morph", the gene cluster, that did the trick in the initial species, to speed up the uplift for the rest of them.
But given how intelligent they are, and how much they learn in their short lifetimes, completely self-directed and self-learning highly curious autodidact geniuses from the moment they escape their tiny egg, a race of long lived octopuses without learning brakes might be an existential threat for us.
Or they might create a magical ocean civilization. There are octopus species everywhere. Deepest ocean floor, under the polar cap, even a "land" species that lives on the beach. Everywhere from sea level down.
Death follows mating for the males and the eggs hatching for the females. Not an uncommon behavior, all sorts of plants (ie agave) and animals (ie salmon) have a similar strategy.
Meaning the strategy works very well, and would likely be controlled by very different genes, depending on the species.
Changing this "death gene" via a breeding program is likely to fail, but could perhaps be accomplished via gene editing like CRISPR.
Another approach would be delaying sexual maturity. Doubling the lifespan to something like 4-5 years in the common octopus would have very interesting results.
However, doubling the lifespan would effectively halve the number of offspring, meaning these mutants would be less competitive, compared to their wild relatives.
This could be seen as the needed safeguard to prevent a race of highly intelligent mollusks from taking our planetary domination crown.
So all in all, delaying sexual maturity seems to be the better way to go for your project.
Yes, delayed reproduction would be the first step.
And simultaneously for post breeding longevity (however short that starts). Which can be done by post-selecting the young based on the phenotype of the parents. (No need for any harsh selection, simply choosing which young remain in the breeding pool, vs. which go there own way.)
Their short breeding cycles are a boon, since that allows for faster generations, and even small lifespan improvements would reflect significant change.
The high number of species is also a tremendous advantage.
All done at scale. Millions of octopus, across dozens of species, to efficiently select from as much existing genetic diversity as possible. Not just for faster gene clustering, but to gain different insights from different species that can be transferred, via CRISPR. As you noted.
And finally, also selecting for individual intelligence and social collaboration. They are unique in being an extremely socially intelligent animal, with high cross species cognitive understanding. There preference for solitude does not reflect any lack of social awareness. So this is one of the easier and potentially rewarding challenges.
Since effective intelligence in practice is a (literal) product of individuals and collaboration. There is tremendous opportunity for gain of function.
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Of course, I will need a vast underground laboratory under a tropical island for all this. A not-too-dormant volcano for cheap geothermal power. And a comfortably furnished submarine of my own design, for research forays, with a streamlined exterior inspired by the profile of a jetting octopus. Christened with an ominous name.
As for other resources? Well the ocean has infinite untapped resources, and I will soon have infinite assistants.
Ok, some of the latter might be me getting ahead of myself.
