After raising $5 million in funding, Parfait is on its way to disrupting the wig industry with the help of technology.

The women-led startup is said to be the first to integrate facial recognition and artificial intelligence to provide buyers with customizable wig products. According to a press release sent to AfroTech, the seed round was spearheaded by Upfront Ventures and Serena Ventures. Ulu Ventures, Unshackled Ventures, Contrary Capital, Visible Hands, TRUE Capital’s Culture Fund, Omar Johnson, Chamillionaire, Tristan Walker, and Upland Workshop participated in the round.

“Parfait’s mission to leverage Al to solve core issues for both the tech industry and communities of color is something we, at Serena Ventures, have believed in since the beginning,” said Serena Williams, Managing Partner at Serena Ventures, in a statement. “She went on to say “It’s been inspiring to witness their incredible achievements so far, and we’re proud to invest in this next phase of Parfait’s growth.”

This new funding will bolster Parfait’s production capacity. It will also automate its supply chain capabilities to enter new markets domestically and internationally. In addition, Parfait’s mission to place inclusion at the forefront will be further supported so that all women and communities can have a beauty experience that meets their hair goals.

“It’s widely understood that facial recognition systems perform less well for women and people of color. Training models used in facial recognition technology are largely unbalanced, often relying on training datasets that are similar in makeup, and do not represent the visual composition of faces worldwide. This often results in poor performance for users who do not fit into that dataset, often represented by white faces and male features,” said Parfait founder and former Target and Amazon executive Isoken Igbinedion.

She continued: “Parfait seeks to be the first to make major progress in improving product and service outcomes for marginalized communities, starting by building technology designed to serve women and people of color. “

Isoken Igbinedion

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