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| Company type | Privately heldnot-for-profit corporation (501(c)(3)) |
|---|---|
| Genre | Technology research, Government (taxpayer) funded Venture capital firm |
| Predecessor | Peleus |
| Founded | September 29, 1999; 26 years ago (1999-09-29) (as Peleus) |
| Founders | Norm Augustine[1] Gilman Louie[2] |
| Headquarters | Arlington,Virginia,U.S.[3] |
Key people | Steve Bowsher (President and CEO)[4] |
| Services | Investment in information technology supporting U.S. intelligence capability |
| Revenue | 108,260,393USD (2024) |
| Owner | Central Intelligence Agency |
| Website | www |
| Footnotes / references [5] | |
In-Q-Tel (IQT), formerlyPeleus andIn-Q-It, is an American not-for-profitventure capital firm based inArlington, Virginia. It invests in companies to keep theCentral Intelligence Agency, and other intelligence agencies, equipped with the latest ininformation technology in support ofUnited Statesintelligence capability.[2] The name "In-Q-Tel" is an intentional reference toQ, the fictional inventor who supplies technology toJames Bond.[6]
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Originally named Peleus and known as In-Q-It, In-Q-Tel was "the brainchild" of former Director of Central IntelligenceGeorge Tenet.[7]Gilman Louie was In-Q-Tel's first CEO[2][6] andNorm Augustine, a former CEO ofLockheed Martin, led the board of directors.[8] In-Q-Tel's mission is to identify and invest in companies developing cutting-edge technologies that serve United Statesnational security interests. Congress approved funding for In-Q-Tel, which was increased in later years.[9] Origins of the corporation can also be traced toRuth A. David, who headed theCentral Intelligence Agency's Directorate of Science & Technology in the 1990s and promoted the importance of rapidly advancing information technology for the CIA.[6]
In-Q-Tel now engages withentrepreneurs, growth companies, researchers, and venture capitalists to deliver technologies that provide superior capabilities for theCIA,DIA,NGA, and the widerintelligence community.[10] In-Q-Tel concentrates on three broad commercial technology areas:software,infrastructure andmaterials sciences.
Former CIA directorGeorge Tenet said,
We [the CIA] decided to use our limited dollars to leverage technology developed elsewhere. In 1999 we chartered ... In-Q-Tel. ... While we pay the bills, In-Q-Tel is independent of CIA. CIA identifies pressing problems, and In-Q-Tel provides the technology to address them. The In-Q-Tel alliance has put the Agency back at the leading edge of technology ... This ... collaboration ... enabled CIA to take advantage of the technology that Las Vegas uses to identify corrupt card players and apply it tolink analysis for terrorists [cf. the paralleldata-mining effort by theSOCOM-DIA operationAble Danger], and to adapt the technology that online booksellers use and convert it to scour millions of pages of documents looking for unexpected results.[11]
In-Q-Tel sold 5,636 shares ofGoogle, worth over US$2.2 million, on November 15, 2005.[12] The share transfer was a result of Google's acquisition ofKeyhole, Inc, the CIA-funded satellite mapping software now known asGoogle Earth.[13]
In August 2006, In-Q-Tel reviewed more than 5,800 business plans and invested approximately $150M in more than 90 companies.[2][14]
As of 2016, In-Q-Tel listed 325 investments, but more than 100 were secret, according to theWashington Post.[9]
In-Q-Tel is a Virginia-registered corporation,[15] legally independent of the CIA or any other government agency. The corporation is bound by its Charter agreement and annual contract with theCIA, which set out the relationship between the two organizations. In-Q-Tel's mission (to support the Intelligence Community's technical needs) is promoted by the In-Q-Tel Interface Center (QIC), an office within the CIA that facilitates communication and relationships between In-Q-Tel and government intelligence organizations.[16] While In-Q-Tel is a nonprofit corporation, it differs fromIARPA and other models in that its employees and trustees can profit from its investments. AWall Street Journal investigation found that in 2016, nearly half of In-Q-Tel's trustees had a financial connection with a company the corporation had funded.[9]
In-Q-Tel's current president and CEO is Steve Bowsher.
Original members of the board include Lee A. Ault, III,Norman R. Augustine,John Seely Brown,Stephen Friedman,Paul G. Kaminski,Jeong H. Kim,Alex J. Mandl,John N. McMahon, andWilliam J. Perry.[17]
The chairman of the board isMichael M. Crow.[18]
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The company lists the majority of its investments on its website page.[19]
In-Q-Tel functions partially in public; however, what products it has and how they are used is strictly secret.[20] According toThe Washington Post, "virtually any U.S. entrepreneur, inventor or research scientist working on ways to analyze data has probably received a phone call from In-Q-Tel or at least been Googled by its staff of technology-watchers."[20]
IQT is focused on new and emerging commercial technologies that have the potential to give the CIA and broader U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) mission-advantage today and in the future. As a strategic partner, we work with the IC ...
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