The linked article by Nicholas Wade contains a more detailed rundown of what is currently known: https://thebulletin.org/2021/05/the-origin-of-covid-did-people-

The linked article by Nicholas Wade contains a more detailed rundown of what is currently known: https://thebulletin.org/2021/05/the-origin-of-covid-did-people-or-nature-open-pandoras-box-at-wuhan/ https://thebulletin.org/2021/05/the-origin-of-covid-did-peop... As he mentions, neither case has been proven - but he does make a fairly compelling argument that the "accidental lab leak" hypothesis best fits the available data, although there could be alternate hypotheses not considered here. In particular, he notes that gain-of-function research on bat coronaviruses was often permitted in BSL2 or 3 facilities, vs. the more stringent BSL4 used for Ebola and Smallpox research, and this makes sense - it would be a gigantic pain in the ass to do any research in a BSL4 facility, and I could see the strong impetus to perform seemingly low-risk research in a less restrictive environment.