AI in beauty: L’Oréal, Sephora and others leading the AI movement in the beauty industry
AI is revolutionising every industry imaginable—and beauty is no exception. From the moment you wake up to your evening skincare routine, artificial intelligence is quietly transforming how we discover, create and experience beauty products.
The beauty industry’s AI renaissance isn’t just about flashy tech—it’s about solving real problems. Imagine having a personal beauty consultant available 24/7, one that can analyse your skin tone, recommend the perfect foundation shade or even create custom formulations tailored specifically to your needs. That’s exactly what AI in beauty can offer.
The possibilities are as endless as your skincare wishlist. Using AI in beauty, one can generate bespoke products, perform detailed skin analysis and engage with customers in ways that feel surprisingly personal and intuitive. Leading players are pioneering this AI beauty revolution—from YSL Beauty and Sephora to Charlotte Tilbury and L’Oréal.
Tatler shares seven leaders in the industry that are ushering in the age of AI in beauty.
Also read: 5 long-wearing foundations makeup artists swear by
L'Oréal
L'Oréal collaborated with NVIDIA in June 2025 (Photo: courtesy of L'Oréal)
This year, leading beauty brand L'Oréal has partnered with IBM and NVIDIA to launch generative AI for cosmetics innovation and to create a more personalised shopping experience.
In January, L’Oréal and IBM joined forces to leverage generative AI in beauty to uncover new insights in cosmetics formulation data. This initiative aims to facilitate L’Oréal’s use of sustainable raw materials and reduce both energy and material waste. The partnership focuses on developing customised AI models that will help L’Oréal achieve greater sustainability in its material choices.
In June, L’Oréal also partnered with NVIDIA, using its technology to create 3D product images, enhance personalised shopping experiences and generate marketing content. These AI tools enable the creation of realistic 3D images of beauty products for advertisements and can recommend products tailored to individual skin needs, drawing from data collected from over a million skin samples, creating a personalised shopping experience for customers with AI’s help.
YSL Beauty
‘Rouge Sur Mesure’, an AI-powered smart lip colour mixer (Photo: courtesy of YSL Beauty)
In 2021, YSL Beauty launched Rouge Sur Mesure, an AI-powered smart lip colour mixer that allows shoppers to create their ideal lipstick shade from the comfort of home, ushering in a new era of customised beauty.
Powered by patented Perso technology, Rouge Sur Mesure uses custom colour cartridges and AI to generate and recommend over 7,000 unique lip colours, based on four classic lipstick families: red, nude, orange, and pink. With the Rouge Sur Mesure app, you can select your preferred shade using a shade wheel, AI shade matching or by uploading styling photos for personalised suggestions. The device then mixes a single-use portion of the chosen colour, making bespoke beauty effortless and accessible.
Estée Lauder
Estée Lauder Voice-enabled Makeup Assistant (Photo: courtesy of Estée Lauder)
In addition to online make-up trials, Estée Lauder has expanded its use of AI to promote accessibility. In 2023, the brand introduced the Voice-enabled Makeup Assistant, an AI-powered app designed for the blind and visually impaired. This innovative tool provides audio feedback on foundation, eyeshadow, and lipstick application, making the beauty experience more accessible.
After the user applies make-up, the app uses the phone’s camera to scan the face. Leveraging AI, it identifies the products applied to the face, eyes and lips, and assesses both the evenness and boundaries of the application. If touch-ups are needed, the app pinpoints specific areas and offers audible recommendations, enabling the user to make adjustments. After any corrections, the app performs another scan and gives further feedback on the accuracy of the application.
This AI app represents a significant step toward greater accessibility in the beauty industry, helping to ensure that all consumers can feel confident and beautiful.
Charlotte Tilbury Beauty
Charlotte Tilbury introduced the ‘Charlotte Tilbury: Easy Beauty For You’ mobile app (Photo: courtesy of Charlotte Tilbury)
Charlotte Tilbury Beauty is no stranger to AI. In 2020, the brand launched an AI-powered virtual make-up trial service on its website, offering beauty advice and allowing users to try on every shade from all collections online, anytime and anywhere. In 2023, it introduced the ‘Charlotte Tilbury: Easy Beauty For You’ mobile app, which leverages AI deep learning to deliver personalised beauty recommendations.
The app, partnered with AI, offers how-to make-up tutorials, personalised shade matching, and skin analysis tools. With the help of AI, users can receive tailored make-up suggestions on their phone and assess their skin condition online, making shopping faster and more convenient than ever.
Don't miss: From Rhode to Fenty: 9 unforgettable beauty marketing wins from the last decade
BoldHue
No more guessing your foundation shade—AI ensures BoldHue always gets it right. The brand launched the BoldHue Starter Kit, an AI-driven smart device that creates a custom foundation at the touch of a button, mixing colourants to achieve your ideal match.
To begin, use the wand to scan your face for a personalised analysis. After AI evaluates your skin tone, the BoldHue jar thoroughly blends base and pigment colours, including yellow, blue, red, black, white and grey, to craft your perfect foundation shade. With this innovative machine, finding a unique, flawless match for your skin is effortless.
Kiehl’s
Eve is a digital ambassador at Kiehl’s (Photo: courtesy of UneeQ)
In addition to AI-powered skincare analysis, Kiehl’s partnered with UneeQ Digital Humans in 2023 to introduce Eve, an AI chatbot and digital human ambassador for the brand. Available at in-store kiosks, Eve interacts with shoppers via a tablet, answering questions and offering guidance on Kiehl’s range of cosmetic products through natural, conversational exchanges.
Powered by advanced AI, Eve can also assess a customer’s skin type by scanning their skin, then recommend products tailored to their needs, helping each shopper build a personalised and effective skincare routine.
Lancôme
In 2023, Lancôme introduced Hapta, a smart AI-powered make-up applicator designed to improve accessibility for people with limited hand and arm mobility. Touted as the world’s first handheld AI-assisted make-up applicator, Hapta makes lipstick application easier and more precise.
To use Hapta, snap the lipstick into the universal adapter, and the applicator will automatically power on. The adapter can then be adjusted to the optimal position, allowing for effortless and precise application. With this innovative AI tool, Lancôme is advancing accessibility in beauty, empowering customers with mobility challenges to apply make-up with greater ease and confidence.
NOW READ
Beyond basic: Dior’s radiant take on summer beauty
7 travel-sized beauty products: Pocket-perfect beauty for every adventure
From clinics to vanity tables: the salmon DNA craze transforming Korean skincare