AI Makeup Assistant 'Iron Bestie' Wins Hong Kong Hackathon
During Hong Kong's inaugural physical artificial intelligence hackathon, a duo clinched the Grand MVP award for their creation, 'Iron Bestie', a customized makeup assistant. This AI-driven robotic arm can recognize makeup, choose products according to a user's schedule, and apply lipstick. It triumphed over more than 160 international contenders in a 48-hour hardware-software challenge. The team comprised Luo Yuqing, a business information systems graduate from City University of Hong Kong lacking formal coding experience, and Zeng Yitao, a senior algorithm developer from Shenzhen's Southern University of Science and Technology. Utilizing vision-language models and voice recognition, the device ensures user data privacy through local redaction middleware. Luo, who started her AI journey just a year prior, described the experience as life-changing, likening the robotic hand's touch to holding hands with someone special. This event underscores the increasing convergence of AI and personal care technology.
Key facts
- Hong Kong's first physical AI hackathon took place this week.
- The winning project, 'Iron Bestie', is a personalized makeup assistant.
- It beat more than 160 global competitors in a 48-hour sprint.
- The team comprised Luo Yuqing (City University of Hong Kong) and Zeng Yitao (Southern University of Science and Technology).
- Luo had no formal coding background and started AI tinkering a year ago.
- The AI arm uses vision-language models and voice recognition.
- Local redaction middleware ensures user data privacy.
- Luo described the robotic hand's touch as like holding hands with someone she likes.
Entities
Artists
- Luo Yuqing
- Zeng Yitao
Institutions
- City University of Hong Kong
- Southern University of Science and Technology
Locations
- Hong Kong
- Shenzhen