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15h ago

Silicon Valley Executives Invest in Polygenic Screens to Pick High-IQ Embryos

Privately offered tests costing up to $50,000 have prompted criticism over their modest predictive power, hidden genetic trade-offs, lack of federal oversight

Inside Silicon Valley’s Growing Obsession With Having Smarter Babies
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Overview

  • Wealthy Bay Area parents and tech executives are paying $6,000 to $50,000 per IVF cycle to rank embryos for predicted IQ and health traits through services like Nucleus Genomics and Herasight.
  • One Silicon Valley couple revealed they chose an embryo with reduced cancer and Alzheimer’s risks that also scored in the 99th percentile for polygenic IQ.
  • Geneticists warn that current polygenic scores typically shift expected IQ by only three to four points and may inadvertently increase risks for conditions such as autism due to pleiotropy.
  • Bioethicists including Hank Greely and Sasha Gusev caution that unregulated, market-driven embryo selection could deepen inequality and create a “genetically super caste.”
  • High-end matchmakers report growing demand from tech CEOs prioritizing elite genetic profiles for partners and offspring, and Elon Musk publicly reacted “Cool” to a post about embryo screening.