Israeli researchers Dr. Inbal Gat and Dr. Shira Orr have joined businesswoman and model Bar Refaeli and health-tech entrepreneur Eran Orr to launch FACTOR X, a med-tech and cosmetics startup developing a system designed to deliver active ingredients directly into targeted skin cells.
The Tel Aviv-based company announced its launch in July after completing a pre-seed funding round and said it was now raising seed financing to expand research and development. At the center of the venture are Gat’s clinical work in aesthetic and longevity medicine and Shira Orr’s development of the particles that form the basis of the company’s cellular delivery technology.
From left: Dr. Shira Orr (Photo: PR), Dr. Inbal Gat (Photo: Alon Shafransky), Bar Refaeli (Photo: Eyal Nevo)
FACTOR X says its platform draws on longevity research and is intended to deliver active compounds not merely into the skin but to specific structures within selected cells. The technology remains at the proof-of-concept stage and has yet to become a commercially available or clinically approved treatment.
According to the company, many existing cosmetic products rely on micronized or nanoscale ingredients intended to penetrate the skin’s upper layers and influence the surrounding cellular environment. FACTOR X says its particles are instead designed to enter targeted cells and deliver a specific biological signal to an organelle, a specialized structure within a cell responsible for a particular function.
The company says the platform could eventually be used to encourage mature skin cells to produce younger forms of hyaluronic acid, restore pigment to graying hair, stimulate dormant hair follicles, reduce pigmentation and support other forms of skin-cell repair.
Those potential applications remain under development and have not yet been established as approved clinical treatments.
Gat, a co-founder who leads the company’s clinical vision and medical strategy, holds a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree from Tel Aviv University, where she graduated with dean’s honors. She has worked in aesthetic medicine for more than a decade and spent five years researching the biological processes associated with skin aging.
She also completed a longevity medicine program operated by the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine and holds international board certification in functional and longevity medicine.
Gat developed what she describes as a “skin longevity” approach, intended to combine aesthetic medicine with interventions that influence the biological mechanisms of aging rather than treating only their visible effects.
“Our vision at FACTOR X was born from the aspiration to integrate real, profound transformative capability into skincare products, based on proven principles of global longevity science,” Gat said.
“Our breakthrough is not just another routine cosmetic improvement, but a medical-scientific platform that knows how to ‘speak’ directly to the skin cell, protect it and grant it renewed biological vitality.”
Shira Orr, a scientist who completed postdoctoral research at Harvard University, developed the particles designed to carry the company’s biological signals into targeted structures within skin cells.
Her work constitutes the technological core of FACTOR X’s platform and patent strategy. The company says the particles can be programmed to navigate toward specific types of cells while reducing their effect on surrounding tissue.
Refaeli’s role focuses on business development, branding and the venture’s global commercial strategy. The company says her international profile and relationships in the beauty and luxury industries could help it reach cosmetics companies, distributors and consumers worldwide.
Eran Orr brings experience in health technology, medical devices and international fundraising. He is the founder and CEO of XRHealth, a virtual and augmented reality healthcare company that has raised tens of millions of dollars from international investors.
FACTOR X says one of its main technological objectives is to direct its particles specifically toward selected cells, such as fibroblasts, which play a central role in producing collagen and maintaining the skin’s structure.
The company also says its delivery particles are non-toxic and designed to avoid affecting unintended cells. Those claims are based on its current laboratory proof of concept and will require further testing as development progresses.
Beyond its intended biological function, the platform is being designed for relatively simple integration into existing cosmetic products and manufacturing systems. The particles are produced and stabilized in powder form, allowing them, according to the company, to be added to serums, creams and masks without significantly changing the underlying formulation.
The technology is also designed to remain stable at room temperature and does not require refrigerated storage or a cold-chain distribution system. The company says this could reduce manufacturing and logistics costs while allowing established cosmetics brands to incorporate the platform into existing product lines.
That approach would support a business-to-business model under which FACTOR X could license or supply its technology to international cosmetics companies rather than manufacture every final consumer product itself.
The initial proof-of-concept work was conducted at a laboratory in Boston, and the company is now working to establish a laboratory in Israel. FACTOR X said it would use its seed funding to continue development, expand testing and pursue strategic partnerships with global beauty companies.
The founders hope to position the company within the emerging “skin longevity” market, which seeks to address the biological processes associated with skin aging rather than focus only on their visible effects.