At some point, the M.B.A. specialist Lobe heard about Sublime's ideal of the Third Species: Baseline humans becoming mutants without being born with a X-Gene. He admired the U-Men, but was unwilling to participate in their religious rituals and the modus operandi of their transformation (harvesting and implanting mutant organs).

With John Sublime gone, Lobe founded a society, the Sublime Corporation, intending to make a reality of Sublime's ideal, and profit from it. Lobe recruited four associates: Verre, Thug, Burst, and Bouncing Betty.^[1]

He purchased the remaining Predators X from the astounding Facility and infused them with nanomachine spies. He then led his team to capture Scalphunter and forced him to fly a jet containing the Predators X to Utopia. After the X-Men defeated the Predators, the nanomachines were released from the bodies and spied on all the mutants, analyzing their fighting styles, powers, and DNA. The nanobots then transmitted to Lobe, who was able to use it to enhance his team's capabilities, and give himself Wolverine's healing factor, with the ultimate goal being to replicate their powers for everybody on Earth.^[2][3]

The X-Men Wolverine, Psylocke, and Colossus, helped by Fantomex, assaulted Lobe's building in New York City. Once Fantomex destroyed Lobe's central computer, his team lost their fighting edge and were defeated. Lobe then released HX-N1, the influenza-based mutant plague and also a mutant powers suppressant, revealing that he was working using John Sublime's works and ideals. He and his team escaped, and his base exploded. The explosion was green like the plague gas, and was released high above the streets of Manhattan from a skyscraper, but that didn't seem to worry the X-Men at the time. The plague quickly infected numerous Utopian mutants.^{[citation needed]}

At this time, Lobe also debuted his imitation New X-Men in San Francisco, five humans who were given copies of the original X-Men's powers using a genetically tailored drug. Lobe then contacted Cyclops and offered him the cure for the mutant plague in exchange for sole commercial rights to the mutant genome, in order to use it to legally sell his mutant power-inducing drug, the Xperience.^{[citation needed]}

While Lobe was showcasing an inhaler that could give an ordinary human mutant powers to shareholders, planning on commercializing mutant powers, the X-Men decided to break quarantine and confront Lobe in order to save the small uninfected team of X-Men battling against a crowd of powered potential buyers of the products. Lobe tried to subdue the X-Men with his virus, only to discover that anyone who breathed in his inhalant was also susceptible. Therefore, he was forced to release his cure. Cyclops then promised Lobe that they would sue him for everything.^[4]

Lobe is augmented with cybernetic enhancement from John Sublime to mimic the powers of a mutant.^{[citation needed]}

• Hypercognitive^{[citation needed]}

• Precognition^{[citation needed]}

• Regeneration: He used nanobots to replicate Wolverine's healing factor for himself.^{[citation needed]}

• Cybernetic Enhancement: Lobe was able to download battle data on the X-Men into his team's "virtual cortex", enabling them to fight better against them. This means he is a cyborg or nanite-enhanced. He has cybernetic implants that let him mentally interface with his computers.^{[citation needed]}

• Optic Blasts: Using the Xperience drug, he used one time the powers of Scott Summers.^{[citation needed]}

Temporary Powers: His Cyclops' powers come from a drug consumed in dose-to-dose basis, his powers are temporary. After a unknown amount of time, they disappear, rendering him a normal human again.^{[citation needed]}

Ruby-Quartz Sunglasses when using Cyclops' patterned Xperience.^{[citation needed]}