Regardless of the industry, many of us are focused on the power of artificial intelligence. Our conversations center around how we could be using the tool to become more efficient. Well, one of the least efficient processes that I am engaged in personally is the hunt for my favorite scent. I have spent years, money, and time evaluating different fragrances to nail down my preferences. It’s been over five years, and I am still looking. What if AI could, using an algorithm, spit me out an answer instantaneously, and send me home with a sample? That’s a possibility with Algorithmic Perfumery by EveryHuman.
The project is exactly what you might expect if you pair up a technologist (Frederik Duerinck) and a perfumer (Anahita Mekanik). The Dutch duo originally developed Algorithmic Perfumery as an installation, calling people to consider the interplay between humanity and machine. It asked the question, “What if every human could develop their own scent?” What if you, without the years of education and training possessed by the limited number of perfumers in the world, could develop your own fragrance? And what if machine learning could help you get to that point?
Speaking to Elle in 2020, Mekanik claims that the goal isn’t to develop anyone’s “perfect” scent but to allow people to continue to learn. It is about discovering your own preferences and finding what it is that we all share in common. Rather than replacing the human touch, this AI might connect humanity through scent, one question, one calculation at a time.
If you are also curious about this technology, there is permanent location at their Breda Living Lab in the Netherlands with additional rotations throughout the world. You can learn more by visiting their website.
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