By Shubhangi Chowdhury
With artificial intelligence continues to revolutionize industries like technology, hospitality, and healthcare, it’s now making its mark in the world of tattoos. AI has inked its way into the tattoo industry, blending creativity, precision, and personalization like never before. Today, an AI-driven tattoo device will be looking after its customers.
Walk into Bang Bang’s iconic Manhattan studio and you’ll now come across an AI-powered machine called A.E.R.O. Built by Austin-based startup Blackdot, Artist Enabled Robotic Operator is slowly but surely reshaping the tattoo world, combining precision tech with artistic expression.
The machine uses lasers and tiny cameras to scan and understand the skin, then relies on AI to turn digital designs into thousands of tiny guide points. Once that’s done, the robot carefully inks the design using a needle with precision.
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Blackdot’s Chief Technology Officer Yan Azdoud demonstrated A.E.R.O. in action by tattooing a fellow employee with the word “XADEN,” name of a heavily tattooed character from Rebecca Yarros’s popular romantic-fantasy novel Fourth Wing, according to The Wall Street Journal. Since being installed in late April, the device has completed around 30 tattoos on volunteers, mostly Blackdot team members. However, its first official session with a paying customer is still a few weeks away, said Joel Pennington, the company’s founder and CEO.
Azdoud says they’re already working on future versions of the tattoo device that will be even quieter and smarter. The goal is for the AI to better sense how close the needle is to the skin and adjust accordingly. They also want to turn all kinds of visual art into tattoo-ready designs, making sure lines and shapes have the right spacing so they look good and hold up well on skin.
According to Blackdot, their needle causes less pain than a traditional tattoo needle because it only goes into the upper layers of the skin, staying above the deeper nerve endings that usually trigger discomfort.
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Meanwhile Pennington made it clear that he’s not trying to replace tattoo artists or push everyone to get inked by an almost fully automated machine. Instead, his aim is to create a new space for precise, high-tech tattooing especially for people who might be put off by the traditional tattoo shop vibe. He also wants to make the process less painful and more comfortable. It’s a “device,” not a “robot,” he emphasized, underlining that this tech is meant to support the art, not take it over.
Blackdot initially set out to offer AI-powered tattoos directly to customers, building an online waitlist of a few hundred eager clients. But in 2024, the company shifted its focus. Instead of selling directly, it began leasing its precision-focused tattoo device to studios interested in fine line work, clean lettering, and highly detailed designs.
Backed by around $7 million in funding from a mix of angel investors, crowdfunding, and venture capital, Blackdot aims to reshape the tattoo world.