Category Archives: Robotic Hair Transplant

HAIRO, Robotic Hair Transplant

HAIRO Hair Transplant Robot from China

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In 2014, I wrote two posts about the US-made ARTAS hair transplant robot after its manufacturer announced the sale of its 100th unit. ARTAS is used for follicular unit extraction (FUE) during hair restoration procedures. It was first approved by the US FDA in 2011, and has since monopolized the global robotic hair transplant market.

However, it now seems like ARTAS will finally face competition from China’s new and much cheaper HAIRO hair transplant robot. In less than a year, 30 HAIRO units have been sold in China, at a per unit price of just one-quarter of ARTAS.

HAIRO Hair Transplant Robot
HAIRO hair transplant robot, with a 20-megapixel binocular camera and a 0.8-1.0 millimeter ultraminiature extraction needle.

HAIRO Hair Transplant Robot from China

The HAIRO AI-powered hair transplant robot is made by China’s Puncture Robotic and it came out in January 2025. Per a recent article covering this device, Puncture Robotic has already sold around 30 units of HAIRO in China. Sales expanded after the device received the medical device usage green light from China’s National Medical Products Administration.

Using 3D imaging and AI, the HAIRO hair transplant robot can extract up to 1,800 hair follicle units per hour. Ultimately, this precision driven robot will cause less extraction related skin trauma compared to regular human graft extraction. Especially if the human extractors are not very experienced, well trained or just having a bad “human” day. Quote:

“Compared to traditional manual hair transplants, the first-generation hair transplant robot achieves a 95 percent accuracy rate in automatic follicle extraction, with each follicle taking less than 2 seconds to extract, and extraction precision reaching 0.01 millimeters, and depth precision at 0.05 millimeters.”

HAIRO’s AI also prioritizes the extraction of multi-stranded follicles (i.e., grafts containing more than one hair). When transplanted, such grafts create a denser look. HAIRO can achieve a maximum multi-follicle extraction rate of 95 percent, versus an average 65% manual multi-follicle extraction rate.

Also of interest, scientists from Thailand published an insanely detailed paper in February 2025 where they outlined how to develop an integrated image-guided robotic system for hair transplant surgery. Well worth a full read for those who are interested in this kind of technology.

HAIRO Cost

According to Puncture Robotic co-founder He Yundi, ARTAS was priced at between 6 million to 8 million yuan in China (equal to around $840,000 to $1.1 million). In contrast, the HAIRO hair transplant robot costs only about a quarter of this total (i.e., $210,000 to $280,000). Mr. He claims that this is the key factor that led ARTAS to exit the Chinese market.

China’s Hair Transplant Market

I constantly read new articles that mention an ever increasing number of people are losing their hair in China and India, the two world’s most populated countries. In the past, I even used to collect these links and add them in my post titled: “Are men losing their hair at earlier ages than in past generations?“.

In the latest article about HAIRO that I linked to earlier, it is mentioned that the number of new hair transplant clinics that opened in China rose from 15 in 2012 to 119 in 2021. This number then dropped to 89 in 2022, but the overall growth is still spectacular. However, China is still no match for Turkey, where the number of existing hair transplant clinics is though to exceed 5,000. Albeit many of these are substandard and often un-authorized black market entities.

A report by MRFR on China’s hair transplant sector put the market’s value at $367.5 million in 2024, and projected that it would hit $1.2 billion in a decade. The mraket for robotic hair transplants in China will rise from $90 million in 2024 to $216 million in 2035.

ARTAS, Restoration Robotics, Robotic Hair Transplant

ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant Advancements

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ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant.
ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant.

I originally wrote this post in 2013 and it was only two paragraphs long.

At the time, the pioneering ARTAS® hair transplant robot from Restoration Robotics was all the rage. It was FDA-approved for robotic hair transplant surgery in 2011.

I forgot about this subject in recent years till I read a February 2023 article on “lunchtime” robotic hair transplants.

Note that Restoration Robotics undertook an IPO in 2017 (ticker “HAIR”), but then merged with Venus Concept (ticker “VERO”) in 2019. Venus Concept also makes the Neograft® hair restoration system.

Update: June 2025 — Vensus Concept is selling its Venus Hair Business to MHG Co. Ltd (“Meta Healthcare Group”) of South Korea for $20 million. The sale includes intellectual property rights related to ARTAS and NeoGraft.

ARTAS Graft Excision and Implantation

When I first covered this subject in 2013, I became convinced that automation was the future of follicular unit extraction (FUE) hair transplant procedures. At least when it came to AI- and algorithm-driven faster, more precise and higher quality graft excisions and extractions. And not susceptible to human technician error from fatigue or insufficient training.

Moreover, I wrote another post in 2014 about the future potential for ARTAS recipient site creation and even implantation. This was further confirmed by the highly regarded Dr. Robert Bernstein’s support and testing of this previously unimaginable concept. In 2018, he introduced robotic implantation of follicular unit grafts at the ISHRS 26th World Congress. Key quote:

“With implantation, three of the four aspects of a hair transplant (excision, site creation, implantation) have now been successfully automated. Only graft extraction is left as the remaining step.”

Note that the terminology of “excision” versus “extraction” is confusing for me, especially since I rarely cover hair transplants on this blog, Having said that, even the pros have issues in deciding on whether the “E” in FUE stands for extraction or excision.

Dr. Bernstein is currently using the latest ARTAS® iX Robotic System per his site. On there, he states that this robot automates two key steps in an FUE hair transplant: follicular unit graft harvesting and recipient site creation.

The ARTAS Robotic System allows surgeons to place new hair in the areas of the scalp that are currently thinning, while protecting the existing healthy hair in those regions. It does this via the use of advanced image-guided technology.

Update: In a March 2023 article on robotic hair transplant surgery, Dr. Jon Mendelson says something interesting about his new ARTAS:

“It’s really in the past year or so where the software upgrades, the algorithms, can measure the length of the hair, the depth of the hair, the orientation, and the angle of the hair and can harvest it, extract it and even implant it.”

Robotic Hair Transplant Popularity in 2023

I also wrote another ARTAS related post in 2014 when the company made its 100th robotic system sale. Quite an impressive accomplishment when considering that the ISHRS has around 1,000 surgeon members from around the world. And the more selective IAHRS currently has just 60 members. I would guess that over 300 hair restoration surgeons around the world must be using ARTAS by now.

Robotic hair transplantation technology still has some issues that prevent its widespread adoption. Some of the decisions on how to use ARTAS must be made by the surgeon on a real-time basis.

Patients must shave their heads before the donor area hair follicles are harvested. This is required in order to overcome problems in those with curly hair. For African hair types that curl below the skin surface, a slightly larger punch needs to be used. If you have grey, white or blonde scalp hair, it must be dyed for the robot to visualize it correctly.

ARTAS graft extraction is also limited to the clearly defined permanent donor zone. In contrast, human surgeons can expand the donor area slightly when suitable. They can even use body hair from the nape of the neck, beard, chest and other regions.

Moreover, many patients refuse to be treated by a robotic system, and many surgeons still remain skeptical about its benefits. And some just prefer not spending a large amount of money on such technology.

So in summary, humans (both surgeons and technicians) are still crucial during a hair transplant procedure in 2023. In fact, experienced hair transplant technicians are in very short supply and can make a great living in this industry.

Cost

Unfortunately, the advent of robotics and automation in the hair restoration field does not seem to have reduced the price of a hair transplant. An ARTAS hair transplant will still cost most people at least $10,000 in the US. Many patients would probably become converts if the price of a robotic hair transplant was half that of a regular FUE hair transplant.