Robotic manicure start-up gains US$23.5M for automated nail care

10Beauty, a robotic manicure start-up, has raised US$23.5 million in funding from venture capital firm Story Ventures. The Boston, US-based company says it will use the financial boost to roll out its automated nail care machines across retail locations, hotels, gyms, and salons. 

10Beauty recently launched its five-step robotic manicure machine at an Ulta Beauty store in Boston, and it now has agreements to deploy a further 850 machines to more Ulta locations and selected Nordstrom locations.

The machines take 25–45 minutes to do a single-session manicure, with prices around US$30. The new funding will go toward further technological developments and updates to the machine, operational build-out, and the initial installation costs of the roll-out to come.

10Beauty positions its product as a major shift in beauty services. The company’s co-founder says its goal is to make manicures as easily accessible as a cup of coffee. 

Under that vision, 10Beauty’s next phase of scaling its machines relies on getting large retail and hospitality partners to host the machines.

Nail care is emerging as a key area for technological innovation in personal care.Nail tech advancements

The beauty industry has been undergoing a technological makeover spanning hardware to software, and nail tech is emerging as a key area for innovation. 

At the Consumer Electronics Show 2026 (CES 2026), the world’s biggest tech event, iPolish unveiled a digital press-on nail that can change colors via a connected app.

“When you wake up in the morning, and you have a beige outfit for work, you change the color of your nails to beige,” Lance Littell, iPolish’s senior VP of Business Development, told Reuters. 

“At night, you go out on a date, you have a red dress on, you change the color of your nails to red. You can do that thousands of times over and over on demand whenever you want.”

Amorepacific also debuted a wearable skin patch at CES 2026, which monitors real-time indicators of skin aging. A company spokesperson told us that, as technological capabilities improve, it is possible the beauty industry will become increasingly automated.

“Advances in semiconductors, sensors, and AI are rapidly creating an environment where highly personalized solutions can be delivered to individuals,” they said.

Earlier this year, Personal Care Insights spoke with leading technology firms that have beauty partnerships about the push toward making personal care a high-tech industry.