Estée Lauder Companies and Microsoft Collaborate to Establish AI Innovation Lab

Estée Lauder Companies and Microsoft Collaborate to Establish AI Innovation Lab

Image used for illustrative purposes only

The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) and Microsoft Corp. have announced the creation of an AI Innovation Lab, a significant expansion of their global strategic partnership. This new initiative will leverage generative AI capabilities within the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service to develop cutting-edge solutions aimed at enhancing ELC’s prestige beauty brands, particularly by accelerating their speed to market.

Since first partnering in 2017, ELC and Microsoft have worked closely together, and this expanded collaboration will explore impactful generative AI use cases across ELC’s business. This enhanced relationship is expected to enable faster responses to social trends and consumer demands, as well as more efficient production innovations.

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A notable development from this partnership is the Voice-Enabled Makeup Assistant (VMA), an app designed to help visually impaired users apply makeup with confidence. Launched in early 2023 and available on iOS and Android platforms in the USA , UK and Ireland, the app uses Microsoft Azure AI as its foundation. Plans are in place to expand the app to additional markets and languages in the near future.

In the realm of research and development, ELC and Microsoft are utilizing generative AI tools to speed up product development processes. These tools allow scientists and product development specialists to quickly respond to emerging product and ingredient trends, ensuring agile innovation within the beauty industry.

Additionally, ELC and Microsoft have collaborated on an internal generative AI chatbot to enhance global marketing effectiveness. This advanced conversational AI technology navigates ELC’s extensive product and claim data, helping brands to launch locally relevant campaigns more efficiently.

Jane Lauder, EVP of enterprise marketing and chief data officer at The Estée Lauder Companies, expressed excitement about the collaboration: “At ELC, technology supports our strengths of high-quality products and high-touch consumer experiences. With Microsoft’s generative AI tools and expertise, we can leverage our data to create more personalized consumer experiences and faster insights to action, resulting in increased speed to market and stronger local relevancy.”

Shelley Bransten, corporate vice president of global industry solutions at Microsoft, highlighted the transformative potential of generative AI in the beauty industry: “Generative AI represents a significant opportunity for the beauty industry—creating more engaging customer experiences, getting products to consumers faster, developing new products more efficiently and sustainably, and much more. We’re proud to collaborate with The Estée Lauder Companies to provide a platform for AI innovation and to bring these new innovations to life.”

The partnership between The Estée Lauder Companies and Microsoft exemplifies the innovative potential of generative AI in revolutionizing the beauty industry, promising faster, more efficient, and sustainable advancements.

Sheela Iyer

Author : Sheela Iyer

sheela@cosmetech.co.in

Sheela Iyer is an observer of the Indian Cosmetics & personal care industry and the editor of ‘Cosmetech’. She regularly video interviews industry experts on Cosmetech TV and has her fortnightly podcast ‘Cosmetics Today’

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