HaloBraid, a startup developing robotic technology for the haircare industry, has secured $7 million in seed funding to accelerate the development of its AI-powered braiding assistant designed for professional hairstylists.
The funding round was led by Seven Seven Six, the venture capital firm founded by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, with participation from AlleyCorp and Bling Capital.
Founded by engineer and entrepreneur Yinka Ogunbiyi, HaloBraid is tackling one of the beauty industry’s longstanding challenges: the amount of time required to create braided hairstyles. Depending on the style, many braiding sessions can last for several hours, with some stretching to an entire day.
The company’s first product is a robotic assistant that works alongside professional stylists. A stylist begins the braid and then hands it over to the device, which can complete the remaining process in seconds. The technology is designed to assist with popular styles such as knotless and box braids while being gentle on natural hair.
According to HaloBraid’s research, people collectively spend billions of hours every year getting their hair braided. The startup also found that most consumers would braid their hair more frequently if the process took less time. At the same time, hairstylists often face physical strain from long working hours, including repetitive stress injuries.
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Speaking on the investment, Alexis Ohanian highlighted the massive market opportunity in textured haircare, noting that innovation in the sector has remained largely untapped despite strong consumer demand.
The fresh capital will be used to advance product development, expand manufacturing capabilities, and establish partnerships with hair salons ahead of the device’s commercial launch later this year.
Beyond its first product, HaloBraid says its long-term vision is to develop breakthrough technologies that make textured haircare faster, easier, and more accessible. The company is already exploring additional products, including devices that could help remove braids, another time-consuming process for both stylists and customers.
With the new funding, HaloBraid joins a growing number of startups applying robotics and artificial intelligence to industries that have traditionally relied entirely on manual labour, potentially ushering in a new era for the global haircare market.
