HaloBraid’s robot finishes the braids stylists start, and says it does it faster 🤖💇🏾‍♀️

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Six, eight, sometimes twelve hours in a salon chair just to get braids installed. A startup called HaloBraid thinks it can cut that down. Its robotic device, shown in a public demo in late October 2026, works alongside stylists on individual braids. The pitch: much less time per hairstyle, and much less physical strain on the person doing it.

Behind it is Yinka Ogunbiyi, a Nigerian-American engineer and entrepreneur. She set out to fix a problem that both clients and braiders know well: hours of repetitive motion, repeated all day long.

A robot that works with stylists 💇

Despite the name, HaloBraid is not a machine that braids a full head on its own. It is a robotic assistant that takes over part of what is normally done by hand.

The workflow is a handoff. The stylist sections the hair, sets the size of each parting and shapes the start of every braid. She then feeds the strand into the device. HaloBraid carries on braiding down the length of the hair, and the stylist removes the device and finishes the braid.

The machine reportedly uses airflow to guide hair through its braiding channels. That is said to help it follow the pattern the stylist began and keep the result consistent.

According to the company, the device can finish an individual braid up to five times faster than fully manual braiding. That is a company claim, not an independent test. It targets styles such as box braids and knotless braids, in sizes from fine to thick.

It does not cover everything, though. HaloBraid is not built for cornrows, which require working directly against the scalp.

Cutting the hours in the chair ⏱️

Some salon appointments swallow most of a day. A client who arrives in the morning may not leave until late afternoon or evening, depending on the length and complexity of the style.

The same hours weigh on professionals. Repeating the same motions for hours strains fingers, wrists and arms, and over time that can contribute to pain and repetitive-strain problems.

That is the problem HaloBraid is going after. By automating part of the braiding, the device could let stylists spend less time per client and take more bookings in a day. It could also spare them some of the repetitive effort that comes with the job.

For clients, the goal is just as concrete: less time sitting in the salon, without giving up the protective styles they like.

An idea born from personal frustration 💡

The story goes back to the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020, Ogunbiyi decided to braid her own hair. It took her four days. Faced with the sheer length of the task and the repetition involved, she started thinking about how to mechanize part of the process.

Her background in biomechanical engineering let her treat braiding as an engineering problem. With her partner David Afolabi, she set out to build a machine that could reproduce certain braiding movements while respecting the nature of the hair and the work of professionals.

It did not happen overnight. The device took several years of research and many prototypes. It also drew serious money: in June 2026, the company announced $7 million in funding in a round led by Seven Seven Six, the investment firm founded by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.

Salons first, not your living room 🏪

At launch, HaloBraid is not aimed at people who want to braid their own hair at home. The company plans a gradual rollout to selected salons and professionals.

The business model reportedly spares stylists and salons from buying the machine upfront. Participating professionals would instead pay a fee for each appointment where HaloBraid is used, with detailed pricing shared during onboarding.

So the first phase is a pilot with partners, with wider access to follow. What remains to be seen is how the technology fits into daily salon life, given the range of hair textures, braiding techniques and client expectations.

Would you let a robot handle part of your braiding to spend less time in the chair, or would you rather keep it fully by hand? Tell us in the comments.