Michael Polansky, known for his background with Sean Parker and as Lady Gaga’s partner, has been quietly developing Outer Biosciences, an AI-driven startup focused on keeping living human skin tissue viable outside the body for extended periods. The company sources human skin discarded from surgeries, maintaining its vitality for up to a month—far beyond the typical few days—which allows detailed study of biological processes like inflammation and repair. This breakthrough enables Outer Biosciences to test skincare compounds more effectively by observing real skin responses over weeks rather than relying on imperfect models like synthetic tissues or animals.

Outer Biosciences integrates this living tissue platform with an AI model that iteratively predicts which chemical compounds might benefit specific skin functions. The model’s predictions are tested on the living tissue, and results are fed back to refine further predictions. This closed-loop system accelerates discovery, producing new candidate ingredients roughly every six weeks. Outer Biosciences aims not to create consumer products directly but to license ingredients to cosmetic and pharmaceutical companies, with several of its current leads on track for commercialization.

Polansky's journey to biotechnology was unconventional, emerging from years working alongside Sean Parker on cancer immunotherapy initiatives. The founding team behind Outer Biosciences launched the company in 2022, combining expertise in AI, biology, and entrepreneurship. The firm has raised about $23 million from investors including Wing Ventures and Initialized Capital, and it collaborates with partners studying drug side effects and beauty brands validating its data. Polansky emphasizes the company’s focus on privacy and on-premise AI processing to protect sensitive biological data.

While other startups pursue lab-grown organ tissues or organ-on-a-chip technologies for testing, Outer Biosciences distinguishes itself through its use of real, living human skin and a proprietary nutrient system that sustains it. Polansky envisions a future where predictive AI models reduce the need for extensive physical experiments, speeding dermatological innovation. The company is now preparing to expand development teams to take promising compounds through the stages of formulation, manufacturing, and safety testing to deliver new ingredients to market.