Nigerian Entrepreneur Raises $7m to Launch Hair-Braiding Robotics

Nigerian-American entrepreneur Yinka Ogunbiyi has closed a $7 million seed round to commercialise HaloBraid, billed as the first patented braid-assist mechanical technology of its kind.

The round was led by Seven Seven Six, the venture firm founded by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, with further backing from AlleyCorp and Bling Capital. The startup enters its commercial phase with a pre-order waiting list of more than 7,000 professional salons.

Ogunbiyi, who holds joint MS and MBA degrees from Harvard, developed the concept with co-founder David Afolabi after spending four days installing her own knotless braids during the pandemic. Rather than replacing stylists, the device handles the repetitive mid-shaft weaving that takes up roughly 80 per cent of a salon session, with the stylist still parting, sectioning, anchoring and finishing the style by hand — cutting appointment times by about half.

Source: The Guardian