The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) has won the Beauty and Fashion Category award for its Voice-Enabled Makeup Assistant (VMA) in Fast Company’s 2023 Innovation by Design Awards. The US beauty house’s pioneering AI-powered app was also selected as a finalist for the Artificial Intelligence category.
ELC Chief Information Officer Michael Smith said: “The VMA app has been shaped and informed by our collaboration with the low-vision and blind community at every step, to create a tool that’s intuitive and tailored to users’ needs.
“This is one exciting step in an ongoing journey toward ever-greater inclusivity. Future versions of our VMA app will offer expanded services that leverage AI to bring the experience of independently using beauty products to millions of people that are low vision and blind.” 
A first of its kind, VMA is equipped with smart mirror technology powered by ELC’s augmented reality and artificial intelligence capabilities. It was developed using machine learning.
It uses voice instruction technologies to assist the user in applying makeup. It provides audio feedback and tips on whether their lipstick, eyeshadow or foundation is evenly applied.
The app scans the user’s face to assess the uniformity and boundaries of application and coverage.
It detects which parts of the face may need more accurate application and an audio guide describes where touch-ups may be needed.
VMA was rolled out in the UK and Ireland in January and in the US in April.
The company said the app is a product of collaboration between the ELC team and the community. Driven by its “nothing about us, without us” approach, the company has involved people with low vision or blindness in developing what it describes as a truly inclusive and accessible app.
The app’s design and development were informed by user research with people from the community to gain a deeper understanding of their unique needs, pain points, desires and preferences.
The ELC team continues to update features based on community feedback to improve user experience.
The Innovation by Design Awards is featured in the September 2023 issue of Fast Company. Now in its 12th year, it honours the designers and businesses solving today’s most crucial problems and anticipating the pressing issues of tomorrow.
The judges include renowned designers from a variety of disciplines, business leaders from some of the most innovative companies in the world and Fast Company’s own writers and editors.
The criteria for judging include key elements of innovation: functionality, originality, beauty, sustainability, user insight, cultural impact and business impact. ✈
