Heatseeker Wins L’Oréal’s Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme

Key takeaways

Australian AI startup Heatseeker has secured top honors in L'Oréal's 2025 Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme, positioning itself alongside three other winning companies from a competitive field of over 50,000 startups across the South Asia Pacific, Middle East, and North Africa region.

The Sydney-based company, founded in 2023 by Kate O'Keeffe, Fiona Triaca, and Rutger Coolen, was announced as one of four winners at the competition's Grand Finale in Singapore on November 7.

Heatseeker will now embark on a commercial pilot with one of L'Oréal's 37 international brands and gain potential exposure to 35 markets across the SAPMENA region.

Competition details and winning startups

The Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme, described as the largest open innovation event in beauty technology for the SAPMENA region, attracted applications from startups across Southeast Asia, India, the Middle East, Australia, and New Zealand.

Ten finalists were shortlisted to present their technology solutions to a distinguished judging panel comprising industry experts from L'Oréal, Google, Meta, and Veros Ventures.

Joining Heatseeker as winners are Halo AI from the United Arab Emirates, which helps brands scale content creator collaborations through AI-powered analysis; Sravathi AI from India, which developed a platform for AI-driven pharmaceutical discovery and manufacturing; and Without from India, which converts unrecyclable plastic waste into new materials using a patented chemo-mechanical process.

Wubble AI from Singapore received a special mention for its generative AI solution that enables brands to create royalty-free, personalized music.

Winners will receive mentorship from senior executives at L'Oréal and the programme's partners over the next year, with the potential to access L'Oréal's global network if their pilots prove successful in the SAPMENA region.

How Heatseeker's technology works

Heatseeker's platform allows marketers to conduct live, in-market experiments with real customers, delivering rapid quantitative evidence of product or message effectiveness before major launches.

Using platforms such as Meta and LinkedIn, the company directly measures genuine customer responses through experimental designs, moving away from traditional market research methods that rely on focus groups and surveys.

The technology creates what the company calls a "digital twin" of target market audiences by running live experiments visible to tens of thousands of people.

This approach addresses a fundamental disconnect in conventional market research between what consumers say they want and their actual purchasing behavior.

Heatseeker has attracted major corporate clients, including Salesforce, DoorDash, Tyro, Medibank, and KPMG. The company raised $2.3 million in pre-seed funding in May 2025, led by San Francisco-based Capital F, with participation from Euphemia, Even Capital, and East End Ventures.

Industry response and regional innovation

Vismay Sharma, President of L'Oréal SAPMENA Zone, emphasized the region's growing importance in the startup ecosystem.

"SAPMENA is one of the world's most dynamic regions, with millions of young, digitally-savvy consumers fuelling the rapid rise of digital commerce and brand innovation," Sharma said. "While Silicon Valley often comes to mind for startups, we believe the centre of gravity for innovation is increasingly diversifying and shifting to regions like SAPMENA where market demand is shaping ideas to impact. The pitches at the Grand Finale are a testament to this and reaffirm the opportunities for open innovation here. By partnering with these next-gen innovators, we can accelerate the pace of beauty tech transformation and amplify the impact of new ideas across the beauty ecosystem."

Georgia Hack, Chief Digital and Marketing Officer for L'Oréal Groupe Australia & New Zealand, highlighted Australia's role in the competition.

"We're very proud to see Australian startup Heatseeker take out one of the top honours in this year's competition, showcasing the depth of talent and innovation coming out of the local Australian market," Hack said. "Heatseeker's success reinforces the key role Australia plays as a hub for digital innovation and beauty tech on the world stage and demonstrates how home-grown ideas can inspire and shape the future of beauty experiences globally."

Benjamin Joe, Vice President Asia Pacific at Meta, said: "Meta is excited to support the Big Bang Beauty Tech Innovation Programme. L'Oréal continues to set the pace for digital transformation in beauty, embracing new ways for people to discover, experience, and express themselves online. As beauty increasingly intersects with technology through virtual try-ons, social discovery, and personalised experiences, this initiative provides a powerful platform for startups to shape the future of beauty in the digital world. We look forward to seeing the innovative solutions that will emerge and redefine how people connect with beauty online."

Sanjay Gupta, President of Google Asia-Pacific, added: "We are pleased to continue our partnership with L'Oréal, driving innovation through this programme. As a region of tech-optimists and early adopters, the Asia Pacific region can deliver new ideas and transformative solutions for the world. The quality of submissions highlights the strong talent in this region. Congratulations to all participants and to the winners who will now bring their solutions to life at scale."

The SAPMENA zone, home to approximately 3 billion people and roughly 40 percent of the world's population, has emerged as a focal point for technology-driven innovation.

The region's large, digitally-savvy youth population and rapid adoption of e-commerce continue to drive opportunities for startups developing solutions across various sectors, including beauty technology.

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