Pinterest launches hair pattern search for inclusive beauty results

Pinterest has introduced a hair pattern search, created with Black, Brown, and Latinx Pinners in mind, to empower users to search for hair inspiration across all hair types. 

Through computer vision-powered object detection, hair pattern search enables Pinners to refine hair searches by six different hair patterns: protective, coily, curly, wavy, straight, and shaved/bald.

Over the coming weeks, Pinners can search for a broad hair term like “summer hairstyles”, “glam hair”, or “short hair” and narrow their results by selecting one of the six hair patterns to find hair inspiration that is most relevant to their style and preference.

Pinterest has detected a hair pattern (e.g. coily, curly, protective) in over 500m images on our platform.

Pinterest’s Inclusive Product team, formed to bring cross-functional thinking to fairness in AI and product development, worked with BIPOC creators and Pinners like Editorial Hair Stylist and Global Artistic Director of Amika, Naeemah LaFond to help build and design the product. 

“Our mission on the Inclusive Product team is to help everyone feel like Pinterest is a place for them. As a visual discovery platform, we have an opportunity and responsibility to do a better job of increasing representation in the products we build,” said Head of Inclusive Product at Pinterest, Annie Ta.”Thats why we built hair pattern search using computer vision technology to help identify hair patterns in images. By doing this, we hope were able to use technology for good and make it easier for people, no matter who they are, to find hair inspiration for them on Pinterest.”

Hair pattern search is available in the US, UK, Ireland, Canada,Australia and New Zealand and on iOS and Android and will roll out to international markets over the coming months.