Beiersdorf partners with artificial intelligence company

Last year, BD reported that Beiersdorf, the maker of Nivea and La Prairie products, had taken a stake in popular and rapidly growing beauty and tech start-up, Lycl Inc.

Now, the company has announced it is partnering with Insilico Medicine, a biotech company that uses artificial intelligence for ageing research and drug discovery to find "novel, safe bioactive ingredients," to use as a basis for eventual skincare product development.

“As part of our open innovation culture, we are always looking for new technologies and partners with strengths that complement ours,” Beiersdorf senior corporate vice president for research and development, May Shana'a, said. “We are able to evaluate new active ingredients significantly more quickly and more efficiently by simulating biologic effects in silico. This enables us to cater even better to the consumers’ as-yet unmet skincare needs.”

Insilico Medicine currently has offices in six different countries and regions. It recently acquired US$37 million in Series B funding, and it generated sales of 7.23 billion euros in 2018.