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The CIA Is Investing In A Skincare Company

Odd bedfellows: Clearista and the CIA. (Photo: Clearista/Facebook)
Odd bedfellows: Clearista and the CIA. (Photo: Clearista/Facebook)

A $17-an-ounce skin gel promising to retexture the outer layer of skin to physically turn back time has attracted some major attention from a surprising source: the Central Intelligence Agency.

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In-Q-Tel, the venture capital arm of the CIA (who knew?), has provided funding to Skincential Sciences and its patented skin-resurfacing technology, according to the Intercept. That technology, found in the Clearista product line, removes a thin epidermis to reveal unique biomarkers that can be used for diagnostic tests, including DNA collection.

“Our patented and clinically proven formula enables increased hydration and resurfacing upon application. You can expect a reduction in the appearance of unsightly blemishes, roughness, and unevenness to reveal smoother, younger skin,” notes the website for Clearista, which calls the product “your beauty BFF in a bottle.” It adds, “The advanced formulation of Clearista is a complete skin re-texturizing cosmetic solution, which uses advanced biotechnology to specifically target problems at the skin’s surface. Clearista enables lasting benefits with results often thought to be achievable only with lasers, dermabrasion, and chemical peels.”

So why would this attract such interest from the CIA? Something to do with skin altering for folks in the federal witness protection program, perhaps?

Clearista Gel ($52) and Refining Pens ($56). (Photo: Clearista/Facebook)
Clearista Gel ($52) and Refining Pens ($56). (Photo: Clearista/Facebook)

In-Q-Tel, for its part, is not telling. “We respectfully decline this media interview opportunity,” Carrie A. Sessine, vice president of external affairs, wrote in a brief response to Yahoo Beauty’s request for comment, repeating essentially what she told the Intercept.

And Skincential Sciences, apparently, is not so sure.

“Our company is an outlier for In-Q-Tel,” Russ Lebovitz, the chief executive of Skincential Sciences, told the Intercept. “If there’s something beneath the surface, that’s not part of our relationship, and I’m not directly aware. They’re interested here in something that can get easy access to biomarkers.”

Lebovitz said he has limited knowledge of what attracted In-Q-Tel to his firm. “I can’t tell you how everyone works with In-Q-Tel, but they are very interested in doing things that are pure science,” he said. The CIA fund approached his company, he explained, saying there was an interest in looking at DNA extraction using Skincential Sciences’ method. “There’s no better identifier than DNA, and we know we can pull out DNA,” he added, suggesting that perhaps law enforcement could use the biomarker extraction technique for crime-scene identification or for drug tests.

n-Q-Tel was founded in 1999 as a way for the United States to keep up with the rapid innovation in science and technology, according to a Fox Business profile. “Clearly, their point is not to necessarily make a profit, but to find strategic investments that support their mother organization,” Mark Cannice, a professor at the University of San Francisco’s School of Management, told Fox.

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In-Q-Tel’s focus is primarily in two areas, the profile explained: information and communications technologies and physical and biological technologies, the latter having to do with “materials science, advanced genetic analysis, biological technologies used for detection and diagnostics, optics and nuclear detection.” And now, the skin gel that, according to testimonials on Clearista’s website, make skin softer, smoother, and less in need of makeup. Sounds worthy to us!