Inside the 'Superbaby Factory': Controversial startup is charging parents-to-be up to $50,000 to screen their embryos for higher IQ, investigation reveals
A controversial company is charging parents-to-be between $4,000 to $50,000 (£3,150-£38,500) to screen their embryos for intelligence, an investigation has revealed.
PolygenX, a screening service provided by US-based startup Heliospect Genomics LLC, uses controversial genetic techniques to analyse embryos for traits like height and intelligence.
According to a report from Hope Not Hate, this 'Superbaby Factory' claims to help parents undergoing IVF select embryos that will have the highest IQ.
Heliospect Genomics counts prominent pro-natalists Malcolm and Simone Collins as clients and has even gained the support of the billionaire SpaceX founder Elon Musk.
Only accepting vetted clients from referrals, the company stealthily caters to the demand for 'designer babies' among the wealthiest parents.
However, Heliospect Genomics has come under fire for its dubious methods.
The company's techniques, which are not legal in the UK, have been branded by critics as a form of eugenics - the belief that the human race can be improved by selective breeding.
The company claims to use a technique called preimplantation genetic testing for polygenic risk (PGT-P) to screen for traits ranging from intelligence and self-control to risk of obesity or ADHD.
A secretive company is offering wealthy parents-to-be undergoing IVF (pictured) the option to screen their embryos for intelligence, height, and gender
The company claims to allow parents undergoing IVF the option to choose which embryo to implant based on a prediction of IQ scores (file photo)
US-based startup Helisopect Genomics LLC claims their PolygenX screening service can predict the IQ, height, self-control, and risk of ADHD and obesity of their embryos
This method analyses the genetic code of embryos to predict the probability that they will develop complex traits involving multiple genes.
In the UK genetic testing can only be used to screen for life-threatening illnesses such as cystic fibrosis and it is not legal to use PGT-P to select traits like intelligence, gender, or height.
However, in the US and other countries, the rules are far more relaxed and several companies have sprung up to offer PGT-P services.
But what makes PolygenX unique is that it specifically focuses on intelligence and IQ as a target for selection.
Over a year-long period, an undercover reporter for Hope Not Hate infiltrated the company by posing as a potential parent seeking IVF.
The reporter received their referral to the company from Simone Collins, a prominent pronatalist and advocate for selecting children based on their IQ.
During a meeting, Ms Collins showed a PolygenX website on which her frozen embryos' intelligence was ranked on a bell curve.
In a video of the meeting, Ms Collins explains how she is planning on selecting one of the embryos with the highest IQ to be implanted.
Parents can choose the embryos with the highest predicted IQ score to be implanted in a technique which is not legal in the UK
Undercover footage taken by Hope Not Hate recorded prominent pro-natalist Simone Collins showing her frozen embryos' IQ ratings
During meetings with company executives, Heliospect Genomics also explained the steps their PolygenX customers take to get their designer babies.
First, a British parent would need to approach an IVF clinic in a country with less strict regulation, such as the US.
They then undergo normal IVF treatment which involves combining sperm and eggs before freezing the resulting embryos.
The parent would then request the genetic data of these embryos and send this to Heliospect Genomics.
After analysing the data, Heliospect Genomics will rank each of the embryos according to traits such as IQ, risk of ADHD or bipolar disorder, biological sex and different forms of cancer.
Finally, the parent would return to the IVF clinic and request to have their chosen embryo implanted.
Using the PolygenX dashboard, parents can also calculate how many IQ points their child could expect to gain based on how many embryos they screen.
The UK's Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) prohibits any use of PGT-P that does not meet the strict criteria for genetic testing and is not backed by scientific evidence.
To undergo the treatment, parents would follow the normal IVF process. But, before implanting the embryo, PolygenX uses a technique called preimplantation genetic testing for polygenic risk (PGT-P) to predict which embryo will have the highest IQ
HFEA chief executive Peter Thompson told MailOnline: 'Current evidence suggests that polygenic risk scores, which claim to estimate your genetic risk for certain diseases or traits like IQ or height, can be interpreted too rigidly and are not currently backed up by evidence from scientific studies.'
Additionally, there mixed evidence as to whether traits such as intelligence are as strongly determined by genetics as Heliospect Genomics claims.
Mr Thompson adds: 'It’s also worth bearing in mind that making healthy lifestyle choices is likely to have a bigger impact on preventing disease than relying on these genetic scores.'
This means that many viable embryos are discarded because of diseases the baby would never develop.
Ultimately, that means a lower chance of a healthy baby being born and many more unnecessary rounds of IVF.
Many critics also dispute the ethics of allowing babies to be engineered for traits which aren't linked to their health.
These concerns are heightened by the fact that these services are so expensive that they will only be available to the super-rich.
This has sparked worries that genetic advantages may become divided by class and wealth.
In the UK it is not legal to use PGT-P to test for anything other than life-threatening conditions. However, PolygenX claims to use this controversial technique to boost children's IQ
Currently, five parents have undergone this treatment but the company's client list is understandably kept confidential.
However, speaking to an undercover reporter Mr Anomaly said that he had secured a meeting with Elon Musk to discuss the company.
Mr Anomaly said that 'he thinks it’s cool' and added: 'I know he supports us.'
Additionally, Hope Not Hate alleges that this analysis is only possible thanks to data provided by the UK Biobank, a scientific database holding the genetic data and medical records of 500,000 people.
PolygenX’s name does not appear on the UK Biobank’s website but, in 2023, according to Hope not Hate a man identified as the principal investigator of a project for Heliospect Genomics made a request for biobank information in order to test 'advanced techniques on new genetic data'.
While the PolygenX service does not directly use UK Biobank data, Hope Not Hate claims that it has been able to gain access to data through the company Heliospect Genomics.
Speaking to an undercover reporter Mr Anomaly said: 'The UK Biobank is a godsend. That’s basically the best thing that's ever happened for this field.'
PolygenX's founder Jonathan Anomaly claims to have had a meeting with Elon Musk (pictured) and says the billionaire 'supports us'
In their report, Hope Not Hate argues that there are 'ethical concerns' over a company using British volunteers' data to carry out procedures that are not legal in the UK.
PGT-P screening itself has been described as a form of eugenics.
Coercive eugenics was a scientific idea championed by the Nazi party and used to justify racial purges of 'inferior' genes.
The company's co-founder, Jonathan Anomaly, has been an outspoken advocate of PGT-P screening and voluntary eugenics
Mr Anomaly has been a frequent defender of eugenics - the belief that the human race can be enhanced by deliberate genetic selection. Pictured: Mr Anomaly defends the term 'eugenics' on a podcast
On his substack and on various podcasts, Mr Anomaly has claimed it was not fair that eugenics has become a 'dirty word'.
Instead, Mr Anomaly has advocated for giving parents the choice whether they want to enhance their children's genes.
Mr Anomaly also describes himself as a 'race realist', referring to the belief that there are scientifically demonstratable racial differences.
Heliospect Genomics LLC, and Mr Anomaly strongly dispute Hope Not Hate's characterisation and reject any association between the company and the alt-right.
What are designer babies and why are they illegal?
Designer babies are born when parents select certain embryos based on their potential traits.
While undergoing IVF parents can screen the genetic attributes of their embryos to make predictions about complex attributes controlled by many different genes.
Some claim that this technique, called preimplantation genetic testing for polygenic risk (PGT-P), can be used to select embryos based on traits like height, eye colour, gender, or even intelligence.
Are designer babies legal?
PGT-P is unlawful for use in the UK, as it does not meet the criteria set out in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act for genetic testing which state that it can only be used to prevent life-theatening conditions.
It is not legal to use PGT-P to screen for anything not covered by this definition or not supported by rigorous scientific evidence.
This means that designer babies are only legal in the sense that parents can choose to avoid embryos with certain congenital health risks.
It is not legal to screen embryos for intelligence or height.
In the US, however, the rules are more relaxed and there are no federal or state laws governing the use of PGT-P screening.
That means designer babies can be selected for any set of traits.
In the UK, it is not legal to screen for traits other than those linked to life-threatening diseases. This makes designer babies chosen for their intelligence, height, or hair colour illegal (stock image)
What do the advocates say?
Advocates of designer babies argue that they are giving their children the best chance in life.
Some prominent pronatatalists claim that this process will trigger the general improvement of humanity.
A few have gone so far as to suggest that PGT-P screening for intelligence should be offered for free as a means of improving social mobility.
More modest proponents argue that, if screening should be allowed for health, it should also be allowed for conditions that improve their children's lives.
Studies have shown that intelligence is linked to a lower mortality rate and longer life expectancy.
Therefore, some claim that screening for intelligence is no different from looking at health conditions.
What do the critics say?
The HFEA warns that so-called 'polygenic' traits are extremely complex and poorly understood.
There is very little evidence that trying to select for intelligence or height will actually lead to smarter or taller children.
All PGT-P predictions are statistical, which means there is no guarantee of success.
Even if it did work there is a risk that by selecting for positive traits parents may also enhance the risk of negative traits.
For example, the genes associated with intelligence are also linked to higher rates of anorexia.
Ethically, many argue that it is immoral to select children based on superficial characteristics like eye or hair colour.
Other critics point out that designer babies are a form of eugenics, a belief that the human race can be improved by selective breeding.
The views of eugenics are often used to promote racist ideologies about the superiority of certain races.
Due to the prohibitive cost of these treatments, some critics also fear that the growing use of PGT-P screening will concentrate genetic advantages among the rich and powerful.
