Beauty Industry

ELC’s Voice-Enabled Makeup Assistant Wins World 50 Impact Innovation Award 2025

The VMA is a first-of-its-kind, AI-powered mobile app to help visually impaired users apply makeup more easily and confidently.

March 21, 2025

By: Rachel Klemovitch

Assistant Editor

The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC) was honored with the Innovation Award at the 2025 World 50 Impact Awards for its Voice-enabled Makeup Assistant (VMA), a first-of-its-kind, artificial intelligence-powered mobile app to help visually impaired users more easily and confidently apply makeup.

VMA uses voice instruction technologies to assist the user in makeup application; users receive audio feedback and tips on whether their lipstick, eyeshadow, or foundation is evenly applied.

Lynda Pak, Interim CIO, The Estée Lauder Companies, said,

“ELC identified a significant gap in the beauty industry—the lack of accessible solutions for visually impaired makeup wearers. The team worked directly with this community to ensure this was a truly co-created experience and that their voices were heard. Thank you to World 50 for acknowledging the important work to make the industry more inclusive for all.”

The World 50 Impact Awards recognize and celebrate organizations advancing workplace belonging and community excellence.

VMA’s smart mirror technology is driven by ELC’s Augmented Reality and Artificial Intelligence capabilities and was developed using machine learning.

VMA was first launched in the UK and Ireland in January 2023, in the United States in April 2023, and in Mexico in May 2024.

The Innovation Award specifically showcases companies that have developed technology to improve inclusion and belonging efforts, setting new standards for how organizations can leverage new solutions to create more inclusive environments.

With a guiding principle of building with, and not simply for, people with low vision or blindness, ELC has taken a “nothing about us, without us” approach to co-creating a truly inclusive and accessible app.

World 50 Group—the global community of business leaders from the most respected and influential companies—announced the winners on Wednesday, March 12, during the Impact Awards ceremony in Miami.