(The New Atlantis) – Embryo screening startups like Herasight pressure parents to help kids compete from the very first moments of life.

Nucleus is one of a wave of fertility startups making headline-grabbing promises about the insights they can glean from the genetic testing of embryos. A scientist at Herasight proclaimed last year that customers could boost their children’s IQ by up to 9 points. Marketing copy for Orchid Health asks you to contact them to “take the first step towards having healthy kids.”

The claims these companies make are largely underwritten by recent advances in genetic testing undertaken as part of the in vitro fertilization (IVF) process, where embryos are being selected in the lab for implantation into the womb on the basis of certain parental preferences. (Read More)