Life originated when physical chemistry ``discovered'' Survival of the Fittest dynamics

What was the origin of life? Nobody knows. Some research has sought the answer in the chicken-and-egg question: Which type of molecules came first? Instead, we believe the answer lies in finding the physico-chemical process(es) that preceded today's Survival of the Fittest (SoF) dynamics. SoF dynamics is unique. It is not just positive-feedback autocatalysis. SoF dynamics entails an autocatalytic coupling of rate processes with population changes. We have developed a dynamical model that shows that simple random peptide syntheses could have led to peptide chains that elongate, collapse and sometimes fold and catalyze. These protein processes have the right dynamics as a molecular precursor of Tilman-like ecological Survival of the Fittest. The model shows how prebiotic catalysts could have become mobile and programmable, generating bio-like diversity of functionalities, taking a step towards living systems.