Coty launches Digital Accelerator start-up program

By

Cassidy Mantor

Published
Feb 21, 2018

Coty has announced a start-up Digital Accelerator program for tech companies looking to pitch their work in artificial intelligence and partner with one of Coty's 70 existing brands.

For the inaugural Digital Accelerator program, Coty will select eight tech start-ups to present their AI pitches at Coty's Digital Accelerator Summit in New York and London next month. Winning start-ups will receive up to $100,000, with prizes of $10k - $50k awarded based on brand alignment, growth impact, and scalability.

Jason Forbes, Coty’s Chief Digital and Media Officer, said Coty is focused on transforming digital across the organization. The launch of Coty's Digital Accelerator is the company's next step in expanding in the digital realm. "We’re excited about fostering deeper commercial relationships with start-ups aligned with our key priorities. AI is a foundational example of this.”

The Digital Accelerator program is Coty's new strategy to expand its digital presence. In addition to artificial intelligence, themes Coty intends to explore in the future include 3D printing, augmented reality and voice technology.

Fred Gerantabee, Coty’s VP of Digital Innovation cited two emerging companies which Coty partnered with to launch the first free AR app for Covergirl, as indicative of how "we’d like to bring disruptive new approaches to the market in partnership with unique new players in AI, AR, voice and other rapidly growing technologies."

Gerantabee added that Coty "intend[s] to foster these relationships and look forward to more examples like this coming out of our Digital Accelerator summits.”

The March Coty Digital Accelerator Summit will take place March 27 and 28th. It will be the first part in a series of forums connecting digital start-ups with Coty's executives and brands. To apply, start-ups can submit their pitches via e-mail up to two weeks before the Summit.