Nigerian-Born Harvard Alum Yinka Ogunbiyi Wins The $75,000 Grand Prize At The 2025 Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge With HaloBraid

Yinka Ogunbiyi, a Nigerian-born Harvard graduate, won the top prize at Harvard’s prestigious President’s Innovation Challenge with HaloBraid, an automated braid-assist device engineered to complete braids up to five times faster.

Nigerian-born Harvard alum Yinka Ogunbiyi has won the $75,000 grand prize at the 2025 Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge with her groundbreaking invention HaloBraid an automated braid-assist device designed to revolutionize the hair industry.

HaloBraid is engineered to complete braids up to five times faster than traditional hand braiding, addressing both efficiency for stylists and comfort for clients in the multi-billion dollar Black hair care market.

What Is HaloBraid?

HaloBraid is not just a styling tool, it’s an innovation built from lived experience. Yinka created the device to solve a problem every African woman knows: braiding takes hours, is labor-intensive, and puts physical strain on stylists.

• Innovation: Automated braid-assist technology that maintains tension, precision and speed.
• Impact: Completes braids up to 5x faster, reducing appointment times from hours to minutes.
• Market: Targets the global Black hair care industry valued at over $10 billion, with braiding as a core service.

From Nigeria To Harvard: Yinka’s Journey

Yinka Ogunbiyi represents a new generation of Nigerian innovators blending culture with cutting-edge engineering. A Harvard graduate wearing her Kente stole and braids at graduation, her win at the President’s Innovation Challenge, Harvard’s most prestigious entrepreneurship competition,  places her among the university’s top student founders.

The $75,000 Ingenuity Award will accelerate HaloBraid’s development, prototyping, and go-to-market strategy, with plans to partner with salons across the US, UK and Africa.

Yinka Ogunbiyi & HaloBraid: At A Glance

Why This Matters

Yinka’s win is more than personal success, it’s cultural validation. She took something deeply African, braiding and engineered a solution that Harvard recognized as world-class innovation. Her story aligns with 9JAFINDS’ mission of celebrating excellence, showing how Nigerian creativity is solving global problems and attracting top-tier investment.

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Tags: Yinka Ogunbiyi, HaloBraid, Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge, Harvard University, Nigerian Harvard Alum, Black Hair Innovation, Nigerian Excellence, 9jaFinds, Innovation News