L’Oréal reveals ten startup finalists for SAPMENA beauty tech

L'Oréal has revealed the ten startups selected as grand finalists for its 2025 SAPMENA Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme, each set to compete for a commercial pilot and year-long mentorship.

The finalists, who represent a diverse selection from across the South Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa (SAPMENA) region, were chosen following a competitive assessment process by industry experts. Spanning the latest advances in artificial intelligence, biotechnology and circular materials, the ten startups will present their solutions to a judging panel in Singapore on 7 November 2025.

The SAPMENA Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme seeks to connect L'Oréal with emerging ventures driving technology-led answers to key issues in the beauty sector. Participating startups are drawn from a region with rapid growth, a considerable population and significant digital engagement among consumers.

Finalists in detail

The ten grand finalists include:

• Betterdata (Singapore): Specialises in synthetic data generation for privacy-preserving analytics and training of AI models.
• Digital First AI (UAE): Provides a platform for enhancing marketing campaigns and maximising returns using proprietary AI-driven workflows.
• Halo AI (UAE): Offers brands tools to manage content creator collaborations through AI-powered selection and vetting functionalities.
• Heatseeker (Australia): Enables marketers to conduct live, in-market experiments with customers via its AI-based platform, delivering swift quantitative insights.
• Infloso AI (India): Delivers AI tools at the juncture of technology, marketing, advertising and creator economies to help marketers build brands across digital platforms.
• Newera Bio (Australia): Develops bio-based dyes and binders aimed at reducing costs and resource demands in the cosmetic and textile dyeing process while aiming to improve product performance.
• Springboards (Australia): Offers a cloud-based platform with AI-driven tools to facilitate research, ideation, concept validation and campaign development for creative professionals.
• Sravathi AI (India): Utilises a silico chemistry AI platform for the design and development of advanced pharmaceutical products, leveraging AI, molecular modelling, biochemistry and chemical engineering.
• Without (India): Functions as a material science company, turning unrecyclable waste into recyclable materials and products to support a circular economy.
• Wubble.ai (Singapore): Offers an enterprise-grade AI platform allowing businesses to generate royalty-free, personalised music within seconds.

The selected startups will have the chance to secure a pilot with one of L'Oréal's 37 international brands, gain exposure to up to 35 markets across SAPMENA, and receive one year of mentorship from L'Oréal executives and partner organisations such as Google, Meta and Veros Ventures.

Focus on collaboration

"The high quality of entries for the 2025 Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme truly speaks to the exceptional creativity and ingenuity of these innovative startups in beauty tech. At L'Oréal, we know that we cannot innovate alone, and collaborating with these leading startups allows us to explore new ideas, test groundbreaking solutions and push the boundaries of beauty tech to redefine what beauty can be. Congratulations to the teams competing in the Grand Finale and I look forward to seeing their pitches in Singapore this November."

The entries came from a wide geographic footprint, including Australia, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam. The program invited startups to address five challenge themes: Consumer Experience, Content & Media, New Commerce, Tech for Good and Science for Beauty. Regional finals were held across the Middle East, India, Australia and New Zealand, and Southeast Asia before the top teams progressed to the SAPMENA Grand Finale.

Programme objectives

The aim of the initiative is to discover, support and nurture startups capable of amplifying L'Oréal's approach to beauty technology and sustainability. The top three grand finalists will earn a commercial pilot with L'Oréal and mentorship from senior executives at the company and program partners. Teams with successful pilot projects could also gain access to L'Oréal's international network, with the SAPMENA region providing a potential springboard for broader collaboration and market entry.

L'Oréal has underlined its commitment to fostering innovation and supporting startups as part of its long-term growth strategy in the SAPMENA zone. The Group recently appeared in Fast Company's Top 50 2024 Best Workplaces for Innovators list, and was also named the most innovative company in Europe by Fortune magazine in 2025, in a ranking that covered 21 countries and 16 industries across the continent.

The SAPMENA zone represents a major focus for L'Oréal, as home to around 3 billion people and roughly 40 percent of the world's population. Spanning 35 markets from New Zealand to Morocco, the region combines some of the world's most populous, youthful, and fast-growing economies. Through programs such as Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation, the company is aiming to develop product offerings, digital experiences, and sustainable solutions tailored to local needs while leveraging technology and international best practice.