Microsoft and Estée Lauder transform the beauty industry with AI

Today, Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) and Microsoft unveil their latest initiative: the AI Innovation Lab. This venture builds on their ongoing global partnership, aiming to harness generative AI capabilities from Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Service to revolutionize ELC’s portfolio of over 20 prestige brands.

This collaboration is designed to foster closer consumer relationships and accelerate product launches with a focus on local relevance, highlighting the companies’ commitment to leading the charge in the digital transformation of the beauty industry.

Key innovations from this partnership include an enhanced marketing strategy utilizing a generative AI chatbot developed for internal use. This tool significantly improves global marketing strategies by leveraging ELC’s extensive product database, enabling the brands to quickly adapt to social trends and consumer demands for timely and locally relevant campaigns.

Additionally, the partnership focuses on streamlining product development through the use of generative AI in research and development. This approach allows for quicker responses to emerging trends in ingredients and consumer preferences, enhancing ELC’s product innovation process.

Jane Lauder, EVP of Enterprise Marketing and Chief Data Officer at The Estée Lauder Companies, emphasized the role of technology in enhancing the company’s core strengths. “With Microsoft’s advanced AI tools, we can leverage vast amounts of data to personalize consumer interactions and accelerate our market responsiveness,” Lauder stated.

Shelley Bransten, Microsoft’s Corporate Vice President of Global Industry Solutions, also remarked on the transformative potential of generative AI in beauty. “This technology not only speeds up the product development and customer engagement processes but also increases efficiency and sustainability in the industry,” Bransten said.

The AI Innovation Lab is a continuation of the relationship that began in 2017 between ELC and Microsoft. A notable earlier achievement of this partnership was the launch of a voice-enabled makeup assistant app in early 2023, designed to aid visually impaired users. This app, available on iOS and Android in the US, UK, and Ireland, is set to expand to more markets and languages soon.