Can artificial intelligence create perfume even without a sense of smell? Turns out it can examine the various substances that make up perfume and analyze it against databases of sales and demographic reports to create new combinations working alongside master perfumers. Learn more about the first AI-created perfumes.

1. Create Perfumes,
Even Without A
AI Can Now
Sense Of Smell

2. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
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IntroductionIntroduction
Isn't a sense of smell a critical part of creating perfume? While it's not
unimportant, a lot of the groundwork when developing a new fragrance is
done by evaluating data, and that's something artificial intelligence is highly
qualified to do. In a partnership between IBM Research and Symrise, a global
producer of fragrances and flavours based in Germany with clients such as
Estee Lauder, Donna Karan, Avon, Coty and more, the first AI-developed scent
is now available for purchase in Brazil.
Artificial Intelligence Can Now Create Perfumes,
Even Without A Sense Of Smell

3. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Philyra became the artificial intelligence (AI) apprentice IBM created that perfumer
David Apel worked alongside to create two new fragrances for Brazilian cosmetics
company O Boticário in time for the country's Valentine's Day holiday this year.
They were specifically looking for a fragrance to sell to Generation Z and millennials
who they knew would be intrigued by a fragrance created by AI. This collaboration
officially launched AI into the fragrance industry.
Meet Philyra

4. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
There are 1,300 scent building blocks (synthetic fragrances and extracts from
flowers, mosses, spices, and fruits) that are available to a perfumer. Symrise has a
database of 1.7 million formulas made from various combinations of these
substances, and this database was shared with Philyra. Philyra was also given
information about what fragrances sold well among different genders, age groups,
and countries. After analysing the data with a deep-learning algorithm, the AI
system (that’s unencumbered with cultural bias, personal preference, knowledge,
experience or comfort with a substance) found possibilities that hadn’t been
explored previously. From the data, Philyra output perfume formulas that should
perform well for a target group. The perfumer stepped in to refine the AI-generated
formulas. It’s important to understand that Philyra’s deep-learning algorithm allows
it to learn how various ingredients can be combined and is not just acting based on
what a human programmed it to do.
How Does Philyra Work?

5. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
The beauty of the AI analysing the data and suggesting formulas is it results in
formulas that humans had never considered before for whatever reason. Turns out
the sense of smell isn't the most critical aspect of creating a new fragrance; it's
understanding the perfume's composition.
AI algorithms can learn and suggest:
• Novelty of a fragrance by comparing it to commercially available fragrances
• Raw material substitutes and complements to be used in formulas
• Dosing of raw material
• Predict the human response
How Does Philyra Work?

6. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Philyra, with the help of perfumer David Apel, created three different versions for O
Boticário’s Valentine's Day launch—one created entirely by AI, a second where the
perfumer made some adjustments and a third where the AI output was used merely
as a suggestion, but the final product was the perfumer's own formula.
All three were tested, and the “overwhelming majority opted for the 100% AI-
generated perfume.”
How Does Philyra Work?

7. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Philyra’s and Apel’s creations for O Boticário, Egeo ON Me and Egeo ON You, were
released this year in time for Brazil’s Valentine’s Day on June 12.
Egeo ON Me is the feminine fragrance, and ON You is the fragrance more typically
masculine, however, the company wants each individual, no matter what gender, to
select whatever fragrance resonates with them the most. The fragrances combine
notes of fruits, flowers, woods, caramel, and even condensed milk.
Egeo ON Me and Egeo ON You,
AI Fragrances

8. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
As was the case when artificial intelligence was first used in other industries, there
are questions in the fragrance industry about the future of human perfumers. Abel,
for one, sees artificial intelligence as a collaboration between humans and machines
rather than a threat. Free from bias, machines can help humans overcome barriers
to creativity and provide novel ideas. In addition, it typically takes six months to
four years to develop a new fragrance; using AI, the timeline is dramatically
shortened.
The innovation of IBM Research and Symrise may have been the first fragrance
house to use AI to develop new combinations, but it certainly won’t be the last. This
year, flavour and fragrance company Givaudan unveiled CARTO, a system designed
to use the Odours Value Map to maximize olfactory performance in final formulas
of flavours and fragrances.
Turns out creating fragrances is an art and a science. Master perfumers still have
the emotional advantage over AI, so until that changes, AI will augment human
expertise in fragrance development.
Machines Augmenting The Process

9. © 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2018 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website
© 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website

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