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Oddity, the parent company of U.S. beauty brands Il Makiage and Spoiled Child, has agreed to acquire AI-based biotech firm Revela for $76 million and will invest another $25 million to build an R&D center in Boston. , the company announced on Thursday. The move comes as the beauty and wellness platform seeks to step up its science-backed product development and bring “pharmaceutical-grade technology” to market.
Oddity will establish a biotechnology R&D center named Oddity Labs to drive product innovation “through the discovery and development of molecules, probiotics, peptides and other biological modalities.” With the acquisition of Revela, Oddity is betting on patented technologies such as AI-based molecular discovery tools, a multi-step screening process that allows Revela to identify and test molecules to bring new ingredients to market. Revela’s current ingredients include ProCelinyl, a molecule that supports hair growth, and Fibroquin, another molecule that promotes skin elasticity and plumpness.
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The new R&D center will be led by Revela’s founding team, which includes Co-Founder and CEO Dr. Evan Zhao, who will assume the position of Chief Scientific Officer. Oran Holtzman, co-founder and CEO of Oddity, said: “Competitors are stuck in the past, but the addition of Revela allows us to build the future of research and development in this space.”
Many beauty giants such as Unilever, Estée Lauder and L’Oréal are already experimenting with AI technology. Unilever is using AI to “help identify alternative ingredients that can strengthen the resilience of his supply chain and make formulations more sustainable and cost-effective,” the company said. I read blog posts. Other companies, such as Mac Cosmetics, have been working with photo-editing app YouCam since 2017 to introduce virtual makeup try-on, allowing users to test out products on different skin tones and textures.
Zhao, current CEO of Revela, said: “Already widely used in the pharmaceutical industry for drug discovery, this technology creates highly effective products that are targeted across an infinite range of consumer needs, providing the industry with the best We believe we can do it with unprecedented speed and efficiency.” The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023.
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