Founder Chisom Okwor wants to build technologies that improve the lives of the Black community.
Okwor, who currently works as a Google software engineer, signed up for a hair-braiding apprenticeship during a gap year after graduating high school in Nigeria. She then moved to the U.S. to obtain a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Fisk University on a full-ride scholarship. She was braiding hair on campus as a side hustle, and the money funded her living expenses and travel. It was through her experience that she began to consider technology as a solution to relieving pain points for hair braiders.
“I started to realize, as a Black woman, we all know the struggles with hair. Hair braiding takes time. We do it very often, and there’s no technology in that space … In the U.S., hair braiding is also not accessible. If you walk into any salon here in Nairobi, any salon, your hair can be done. That’s not the case in the U.S. There are very specific salons that cater to textured hair and textured hair needs. This is an interesting opportunity. This is a huge market,” she told AFROTECH™.
“You see people spend upwards of $600, $1,000 getting braids done, and the experience a lot of times can be subpar, takes hours, and people try to get their hair done themselves. It takes them two days, three. And I was like, this is something that can definitely be automated with technology,” Okwor continued.
Braidiant
Okwor decided to pursue a hair-braiding solution that integrated her skills in engineering and computer-aided design hardware. At the time, she had four 3D printers in her possession, which helped her build prototypes.
In 2022, she developed a prototype that she said was “working well” by the time she formed Braidiant in 2024. The company was created to launch automated braiding solutions, according to information on its LinkedIn. To inform future iterations of the product, Okwor purchased nearly every braiding device on the market at the time, though many didn’t cater to coily or kinky hair.
This process helped Braidiant improve its automated handheld braiding device, which can be used to braid hair with extensions and with different textures. However, it is not currently equipped for cornrows or for more intricate styles.
“The art form of hair braiding is always going to be there,” Okwor explained. “There’s so many elaborate styles that a device cannot replicate. I think it’s good we keep that. Sometimes I just want a crazy style for an event. But that’s different from wanting to get a protective style done to go about my day.”
The initial launch of the device will target hairstylists and offer health and financial benefits for those professionals, including “reducing the amount of pain, giving people the convenience tools to have healthier hair, helping stylists prevent injuries, helping stylists double their income, preventing talent loss, and increasing economic mobility in the African community,” Okwor noted.
The device can help alleviate physical stress on stylists’ hands and wrists, which could prevent carpal tunnel, tendonitis, or arthritis from the manual labor of braids and twists.
Funding
Okwor has received funding to support the product, including $20,000 from Pharrell Williams’ Black Ambition Prize, as well as additional funding from pitch competitions at The University of Texas at Austin, including $6,000 from Texas Venture Lab. She is currently enrolled at the university, where she is pursuing a master’s degree in artificial intelligence and expects to graduate in December 2026.
Waitlist
As the company prepares for manufacturing, Okwor is considering launching a crowdfunding campaign. Interested customers can sign up for the product’s waitlist.
