Gene birth and death are continuous and dynamic processes in evolution. The theory that gene duplication has a crucial role in evolution and adaptation was formalized by Susumu Ohno in his landmark book Evolution by Gene Duplication. Subsequent decades saw scientists using theoretical and empirical approaches to determine birth and death rates as well as to characterize the functions of duplicated genes. Until the mid-2000s, the prevailing view was that young genes were entirely or partially derived from pre-existing genes or exons. However, more recent research has shown that a small subset of these young, lineage-restricted genes arises de novo from ancestrally non-genic sequences. For many scientists, the growing interest in this subfield of de novo genes was catalysed by a seminal paper by Levine et al. in 2006. This paper also captivated my attention, broadening my perspective on the potential effects and importance of de novo genes in evolution. I read this paper in the autumn of 2006, during my first year as a graduate student. I can still vividly recall the thrill of reading the paper and the discussions I had at the time with my peers.