by Joe Tracy, editor of Theme Park Magazine
April 1, 2023
Hold onto your hats, dino lovers! Universal Studios Resort – Island of Adventures is preparing to unveil its biggest attraction in years: The Jurassic World Petting Zoo.
“For years, our Creative team has been working on creating real dinosaurs based on a mix of organic material, genetic engineering, and AI technology,” said Brian Robinson, Executive Vice President, Chief Creative Officer of Universal Creative. “We had a major breakthrough in 2022 and were able to create an organic living creature through genetic engineering, complete with an Artificial Intelligence brain. It’s the biggest advancement in this area ever.”
That breakthrough is leading to a number of upcoming Universal Studios theme park attractions, starting with the Jurassic World Petting Zoo, which will be built on the waterway by the Jurassic World VelociCoaster. Guests can expect to encounter a delightful array of herbivorous dinos, including the gentle Triceratops, the lovable Stegosaurus, and the ever-popular, leaf-munching Brachiosaurus.
Dinosaurs Genetically Engineered for “Cuteness”
The dinosaurs, affectionately dubbed “Jurassic Pets,” are designed to be gentle, affectionate, and unquestionably cute. Each species has been carefully selected for its potential to elicit heart-melting coos and “awws” from visitors.
“We did make them cuter than they were in reality,” said Robinson. “We got the idea from The Mandalorian when they introduced Baby Yoda. That’s the ultimate in cuteness, and we want to compete with that. Everyone will want to own our Jurassic Pets.”
Universal Creative Leaders Leave Over Jurassic World Petting Zoo
The creation of organic dinosaurs based on AI technology isn’t without controversy. In 2022, the President of Universal Creative and several Senior Vice Presidents left the company to protest the development of organic dinosaurs with AI brains.
“Did no one see the movie Jurassic Park?” asked Thierry Coup, former Senior Vice President, Chief Creative Officer of Universal Creative. “Now imagine taking those dinosaurs but giving them AI brains. It’s only a matter of time before they eat the tourists.”
Universal Studios is assuring fans that the lifelike dinosaurs are not dangerous.
“They are vegetarians,” Robinson told Theme Park Magazine. “Vegetarians have never hurt anyone.”
According to Robinson, the Jurassic Pets are programmed with strict behavioral limits, ensuring that they will never threaten visitors. A highly trained staff is always on hand to monitor the animals and provide emergency belly rubs as needed.
The Jurassic World Petting Zoo will also feature a special “Dino Daycare” area, where guests can assist park staff in caring for baby dinosaurs. Visitors can bottle-feed a hungry Apatosaurus, help a Pachycephalosaurus learn to head-butt, or even teach a baby Parasaurolophus how to play fetch.
Jurassic Pets for Home Use
Universal Creative is looking to make empathetic dinosaurs that may one day become human pets.
“Our AI-brained dinosaurs are not only kind and gentle, but they’re also programmed to understand and interpret human emotions,” says Mark Woodbury, Chairman and CEO of Universal Destinations & Experiences. “If little Timmy starts to cry, the nearest Stegosaurus will promptly offer him a comforting pat on the head with its soft tail spikes.”
A trademark search shows that Universal Studios trademarked “Jurassic Pets” three years ago. That’s about the same time Universal Creative created a division to develop dinosaur pets for domestic living.
“Imagine coming to Universal Studios, and instead of walking out of the park with a plushy Stegosaurus, you walk out with a real one,” commented Woodbury.
Last week, Universal Studios invited over a dozen families to a secret outdoor facility where they set up a display similar to the one that will be used in the park and filmed guest interactions. See Explore More (Videos) below for the test commercial they created on the experience.
The Jurassic World Petting Zoo will open in Spring 2024 at Universal Studios Resort – Islands of Adventure.
Explore More (Videos)
Editor’s Note: Hold onto your (dino)hats, folks! We must admit, we had a little too much fun hatching this prehistoric prank. š¦ In case you haven’t figured it out, this article is an April Fool’s joke! You can find clues like the April 1st date under the title, the byline, and the “April Fools” tag under the headline. We indulge in these playful shenanigans every year, so don’t worry – no actual dinosaurs were involved (or harmed) in the making of this article. š
About Joe Tracy
Joe Tracy, the creator and editor of Theme Park Magazine, is a lifetime enthusiast of theme parks and immersive experiences. The publication was launched under his leadership on June 1, 2021, as a manifestation of his deep-seated love for all things themed. Joe has amassed over 20 years of expertise in both traditional print and online publishing.
I would absolutely love this idea. Loved Dinosaurs my whole life. I will be 62 soon. This would be on my bucket list.
dinosaurs can never be brought back to life, dinosaur dna is way too old to survive to this day
Did we learn NOTHING from the movies?
Yes! Exactly!
I agree with you on that
Wth have you done? You’re not God. There’s a reason dinosaurs are extinct. We survived, they didn’t! There’s a reason for everything.
They will be robot dinosaurs, not real dinosaurs.
All they really did was clone the DNA of a dinosaur add a little bit of enhancement and you got a living creature why is it so hard for people to understand the evolution of science science can bring anybody back from the dead so can God
Technically you didn’t survive because he wasn’t alive whenever they were alive
Was I the ONLY one waiting for the “April Fool’s” at the end? Like announcing that the Animals in Action shop was being re-imagined, replacing pets with people. One loud and clear message from dozens of Sci-fi and Horror movies, God doesn’t like competition! š¤£
I had a good laugh. But the idea of animatronics was a cool to think about. ššš»
Well Genie, it looks like I have only two wishes left now.
this was posted on April fool’s day, it’s fake
It’s real I’ve already confirmed it with universal studios and opens 2024 be prepared to be eaten
LOL. Now we’re curious as to what the last two wishes are.
Well you got me! I fell for the April fools joke š¤£. This would be an awesome idea though. Iām sure it can be done with all the AI we already have. I feel like many of people would come all around the world just to see lifelike dinosaurs. Not only that, it would be a different level of immersive learning. Well thanks for the joke. Nobody ever gets me on April fools until now.
We love your comment, Savanna. Thanks! It seems we fooled so many people that this is the only April Fools’ article we’ve done that we had to edit to add a disclaimer at the end (in addition to the April 1 date and April Fools’ tag). š And we agree with you that it can probably be done within the next decade.
It is real I’ve already confirmed with universal resorts it opens 24
Well done. I saw the date and “April fools” at the beginning, but read the article hoping it was real…someday soon
Did anyone else think we were talking animatronics before opening the article. I’m super sad lol there won’t be a random petting zoo my kid would be stoked lol
Caitlin – an animatronic dinosaur petting zoo with baby dinosaurs is a great idea. We may see it sooner rather than later at the rate of these advancements.
Really fun theme park