Aja Labs

Aja Labs is a materials and fiber science company that engineers plant-based alternatives to conventional synthetic hair extensions. Its core product, Nourie, is a bioengineered braiding fiber made from plant-derived materials and designed to behave like conventional braiding hair — braiding, washing and styling in the same way — while addressing scalp health. The company frames the problem as one of material chemistry: most braiding hair is industrial fiber originally developed for textiles and other industrial uses, worn against the scalp for weeks at a time and never re-evaluated for skin contact. Aja Labs positions the extended wear window as a delivery opportunity, describing Nourie as a leave-on format with a contact time measured in weeks that can carry chosen ingredients rather than contaminants. Earlier descriptions of the company's approach emphasize green chemistry, polymer science and materials engineering, the use of agricultural waste as feedstock, and biodegradable or reclaimable product design intended to bring circular-economy principles to the false hair industry.

The company's first fiber was developed in conjunction with North Carolina State University and is described as patent-pending, with a nutrient complex embedded in each fiber strand that time-releases oils into the hair and scalp. Aja Labs cites domestic sourcing and manufacturing, FDA GRAS-listed materials and production in FDA-registered facilities in the United States. Company-reported testing includes an IRB-approved repeat-exposure tolerance study in 2024 with 58 participants and zero adverse events, a double-blind split-head comfort trial against a leading PVC fiber in which participants preferred Nourie two to one, and an SGS leachables panel in June 2026 covering 75 analytes — volatile organic compounds and heavy metals including lead, cadmium, mercury, arsenic and antimony — with none detected and passing California Proposition 65 for lead and cadmium. The company references Consumer Reports testing of braiding hair products in February 2025 and February 2026, in which all 40 products tested positive for at least one carcinogen, heavy metal or VOC.

Aja Labs is a Black-owned company with a team of Black scientists and innovators. It is led by co-founder and CEO Osahon Ojeaga, who previously worked at fintech and SaaS startups in Silicon Valley; co-founders listed across sources include Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Mary Moore, a materials and polymer engineer, and Suna Lumeh.

Founding story

Founded in 2020 (Greentown Labs lists 2019) by CEO Osahon Ojeaga, who began her career at Silicon Valley fintech and SaaS startups, together with Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Mary Moore, a materials and polymer engineer; Suna Lumeh is also listed as a co-founder. Ojeaga has framed the company's motivation around the low quality of materials used in beauty products marketed to Black women and the labor conditions behind the human hair extension supply chain, noting that women and girls as young as eight are paid $11-25 for their hair.

Business model

Aja Labs manufactures the Nourie fiber and supplies it to hair brands and professionals on an ingredient-brand basis: partner brands sell under their own names while the fiber and its supporting test data come from Aja Labs. At the time of its 2022 seed round, the company planned to launch Nourie as its own direct-to-consumer brand, with a 36-inch jet-black braiding hair bundle as the first product to market in early 2023.

Sale of engineered braiding fiber to brands and professionals; earlier plans included direct-to-consumer sales of Nourie-branded braiding hair bundles.

Traction

Raised a $2.5M seed round in November 2022 ahead of commercialization. Company-reported study results include 58 participants with zero adverse events in a 2024 IRB-approved tolerance study and a 2-to-1 comfort preference over a leading PVC fiber in a double-blind split-head trial. Press coverage includes The Root (December 2022), Insider (December 2022), FinSMEs (December 2022) and Bustle (February 2024).

Latest developments

An SGS leachables panel dated June 2026 reported none of 75 analytes detected, including VOCs and heavy metals, and compliance with California Proposition 65 for lead and cadmium. The website presents Nourie as a fiber supplied to brands and professionals rather than solely as a direct-to-consumer product.