Neandertal is™ and was™: (Symrise Philyra 2.0 AI or Isaac Sinclair, Fanny Grau and Nikolaj Koralevich) 2025 +A Conundrum Giveaway

Neanderthal is™ and was™

J’s image of Neandertal is™ and was™

Neandertal is™ and was™ offers us a conundrum of composition while creating a conversation between differing forms of intelligence and learning, one based in perfumery traditions and the other machine learning through data analysis. Artist Kentaro Yamada, Neandertal’s creative director, gives us food for thought along with two beautiful perfumes to baffle our noses with trying to decipher which was composed by living perfumers and which was composed by AI. Each were given the same brief, but here’s the twist– we don’t know what that was or who did what. Even the names could be a double bluff one speaking to the traditional past while the other the endless now. There definitely is a continuity from the brand with Neandertal’s with is™ feeling like the light and was™ the dark.

Artist Kentaro Yamada, Neandertal’s creative director

Artist Kentaro Yamada, Neandertal creative director courtesy of Neandertal

Poetry and sculpture feel similar to me, both are a refining of materials, shaping them to form the artist desires. I’ve yet to see AI make worthwhile art, it’s been best used as a tool and the art here is definitely in sculptor Kentaro Yamada’s concept. It does like all my favourite artworks do, moving from being an object to admire, yes both Neandertal is™ and was™ are housed in beautiful stone spear like flacons the art has to get your attention first, to something that makes you question the world differently. Yes I’m dying to know what the brief was. I’ve been wearing both separately and together, one on each side while making notes and thinking about this clever concept.

Neandertal is™

Neandertal is™ courtesy of Neandertal.

A plume of aromas blooms from your skin as is™ hits it. Bitter herbal greens grow like powdery vines with dusty spices forming glowing buds that soon burst with sweet alien flowers. Chocolate and fig give is™ a delicious richness that plays in lovely contrast to the metallic shimmering neon like greens that wrap around you feeling expansive and airy. is™ glistens as if it’s composed in transparent layers with the slight darkness coming from rich chocolate and resins, who quietly making themselves known. Violet gives is™ an abstracted floral feel, it’s modulated and manipulated by musks adding a fuzzy flicked texture to the shimmering sheen. Vetiver’s rooty warmth is felt but its scent gives body to the perfumes invisible form.

Neandertal is™

Neandertal is™ courtesy of Neandertal.

is™ softens into a softly smoky woods in its dry down. There’s a cosy warmth from vetiver still joined by sandalwood and resins with a lovely myrrh like sweetness as the fig and chocolate notes blur into abstraction. Both is™ and was™ share this resinous myrrh like sweetness with varying intensities, with was™ feeling like the darkness to is™’s light. Gentle suede like textures and clean musks continue the minimal futurist feel of is™, as its openings shimmer is dulled slightly. It still has that contemporary architectural feel of sleekness shaped from modern materials. Feeling futuristic, clean like some strange flower that doesn’t exist, sculpted by a 3D model maker and dusted with a fine layer of powder, leaving you with this powdery smokiness incense with a kaleidoscope of toned down colours like light is shining through muslin.

Neandertal was™

Neandertal was™ courtesy of Neandertal.

Neanderthal’s was™ opens with an array of spicy notes, it’s woody and warm with clove and nutmeg giving a dry spice to the cedar woods. Its contrasted by cardamom bring a cool airy spiciness that merges with bergamot while quietly foreshadowing the rather stunning powdery iris that forms a veil over was™. Geranium adds green tinges to the spices while bringing out more rosy floral facets to the iris, Symrise’s Diviniris in this case giving a very orris powderiness feeling like velvet warmed by skin. Cedar teases out more of its powderiness while more body from its woody side. This combination softens the edge of the labdanum and cistus making was™ into a stunning darkly smooth incense. It’s slightly mineralic, as if the sparks from flint have joined the scent of the incense smoke rich with earthy patchouli and spices.

Neandertal was perfume

Neandertal was™ courtesy of Neandertal.

was™’s dry down softens into more familiar territory with resinous woody spices turning ambery with a tender softness lingering from the powdery Diviniris as it merges with sandalwood giving was™ a more human feel. There’s a beautiful purr to the dry down on my skin, with the myrrh’s sweetness giving it an allure. It’s smooth yet that bite of amber gives was™ a lovely dark feel with bitter Yerba matè tea giving a subtle bitter facet. Its use of textural contrasts is lovely to experience throughout the wear, with a subtle ember of clove burning at its heart. A smouldering smoky woody amber.

Neandertal is™ and was™

courtesy of Neandertal.

Neanderthal’s is™ and was™ duo feel like the yin and yang of each other. was™’s darkness from the more raw resinous earth feels like incense smouldering with a dark smoke veil. While in comparison the soft shimmering white incense smoke plume of is™ flickers with sweeter tones like a digital dust in the air feeling pure yet full of complex light. The darkness of earth expanding into the digital light. Neither scent gives us a clue was to which is composed by AI or by perfumers Isaac Sinclair, Fanny Grau and Nikolaj Koralevich of Symrise.

Neandertal is™ and was™ perfumers Nikolaj Koralevich, Fanny Grau Isaac Sinclair and Symrise Philyra 2.0 AI.

Neandertal is™ and was™ perfumers Nikolaj Koralevich, Fanny Grau Isaac Sinclair and Symrise’s Philyra 2.0 AI.

AI is something I’ve been thinking about for a long time, it’s sold as an invisible entity, but in reality it’s an embodied machine sensing network with a physicality that can be at the scale of a city. It’s yet to “think” rather it’s a data cruncher that offers endless possibilities yet it breathes too, cooling fans blowing out hot air, as circuit boards warm like our bodies. It’s tactical and noisy with a face that’s greedy for input through images, sounds and texts. And it’s these possible texts and images from the briefs that have allowed Symrise’s Philyra 2.0 to composed one of these two perfumes. There is also the thought that Philyra 2.0 is like a hyper version of a perfumery student, one that learns in seconds what usually takes years. What might be missing are those beautiful flaws that make us human, happy accidents and odd pairings from our limited knowledge making magic, rather than AI’s expanded database. AI is all about input, a good data set will yield good results where as a bad data set can lead down rabbit holes of conspiracy theories and fake news. Kind of like the world we live in currently where facts are ruptured by fiction blurring us into questioning everything. Kentaro Yamada understands all these conceptual folds using it brilliantly to question what is human after all…

Both is™ and was™ are beautiful easy to wear perfumes, that compliment each other in lovely ways, although it’s Kentaro Yamada’s concept that elevates them to art. I still have no idea which was composed by AI but if you twist my arm I’d hedge my bets it’s was™ . Could the Yerba Matè be a quite nod to the programmer’s choice of drink, Club Matè? is™ is my favourite of the two as I love the powdery futuristic meditative floral feel but both are amazing to wear. This is definitely the best use of AI in perfumery I’ve experienced and I’m excited to see what Kentaro Yamada does next!

Notes is™: Nutmeg, Myrtle, Galbanum, Bergamot, Fig, Metallic notes, Violet, Dark chocolate, Suede, Vetiver, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Musk, Peru balsam, Vanilla.

Notes was™: Yerba mate, Bergamot, Cardamom, Nutmeg, Geranium, Clove, Cistus, Diviniris©, Vanilla, Cedarwood, Vetiver, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Styrax, Amber, Musk.

J Wearescentient, Senior Editor, artist & olfactive writer.

Disclosure: Neandertal is™ and was™ were sent for J for review, thoughts and nose are his own.

Neandertal is™ and was™

J’s images of Neandertal is™ and was™

Thanks to the generosity of Neandertal we have a choice of a bottle of either Neandertal is™ or was™ for one registered reader from EU, US or UK. Following Neandertal Perfume on Instagram will give you a second entry, PLEASE SAY SO IN YOUR COMMENT. You must register or your entry will not count. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on J’s review, which you choose and where you live. Draw closes 12/19/2025

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49 comments

  • olgAPOISON says:

    Super cool concept and actaully interesting use of AI in perfumery. Notes look super interesting nutmeg and chocolate and Patchouli and mate.Interesting exerice slash conundrum. I am following them on instagram from @UsaftanaSapfa. I am from eu

  • AromaAdventurer says:

    J’s review got me hooked on the concept more than anything. That whole “human vs AI” mystery feels like a puzzle I want to solve with my nose. I’m leaning towards was™ being the AI creation. Something about that “digital dust” and “mineralic, flint-spark” quality J mentioned feels almost too precisely textured, like it was assembled from data points of what makes a compelling dark fragrance. The Yerba matè as a potential nod to Club Matè? That’s the kind of in-joke a programmer might slip in. I want to smell the mind of a machine.
    EU

  • Nuvare Aenra says:

    the notes for is™ sound like my personal paradise: fig, dark chocolate, violet, and that metallic green shimmer. But what really sparks my interest after reading this is the idea of wearing them together. J mentioned applying one on each wrist, and the idea of creating my own “conversation” between the light, futuristic is™ and the dark, smouldering was™ is incredibly tempting. It’s not about choosing a side; it’s about experiencing the dialogue Yamada set up. Although, let’s be real, I’d probably slather myself in is™.
    I am from the EU

  • LindenNoir says:

    My interest is 100% piqued by the mention of Diviniris in „was“. A „velvet warmed by skin“ powdery iris paired with dark, raw resins and smoky woods? That’s a contrast I can feel just reading about it. was sounds like it has this incredible tension, between soft and hard, powder and ember, earth and… maybe code? I’m usually a luminous, clean scent person, but J’s description of its “beautiful purr” in the drydown makes me think this could be the dark, intellectual fragrance that actually feels wearable and intimate, not just intimidating. EU based

  • Lastochka says:

    Kentaro Yamada turning a fragrance launch into a philosophical question about intelligence, art, and is the kind of thing that makes this hobby more than just smelling nice. I’m less interested in guessing which is AI (though my gut says is that bit feels like an AI’s interpretation of ), and more in experiencing the artwork as a whole: the scent, the stone vessel, the idea. It makes you an active participant, not just a consumer. EU

  • FragranceFrenzyS says:

    The fig and chocolate in is™ are calling my name, but J’s description of was™ as a “stunning darkly smooth incense” with clove and bitter Yerba matè is the one that haunts me. It sounds complex, dry, and moreish, like a mysterious, ancient library that also houses a chic espresso bar. There’s a warmth and a bite to it that feels more humanly intriguing to me, even if it might be the AI one. Sometimes the most compelling art makes you question what “human” even means.

    EU, Germany

  • R2D2 says:

    That opening of „is“, „bitter herbal greens grow like powdery vines with dusty spices“ is what did it for me. I live for challenging, atmospheric greens. The idea of that morphing into something with a „metallic shimmering neon“ quality and a „fuzzy flicked texture“ sounds utterly bizarre and revolutionary. It makes me think of a moss-covered cyberpunk city. While „was“ sounds beautiful, it feels more like a refinement of a known (lovely) genre. „is“ sounds like it’s trying to build a new one from the ground up, and I desperately want to experience that. EU

  • GPGod says:

    What really grabs me about this piece is the whole question mark hanging over Neandertal is and was and who the “author” really is. The idea of Symrise’s Philyra 2.0 sitting in the mix with Isaac Sinclair, Fanny Grau and Nikolaj Koralevich makes it feel less like a simple AI gimmick and more like a serious test of how far you can push collaboration between code and human instinct.
    I like that the Neandertal concept already has this primitive, mineral, abstract vibe, so putting something as futuristic as AI into that equation makes the whole project feel like a real conundrum worth thinking about, not just a marketing trick. As someone already following Sinclair and Grau’s work at other houses, I am very curious to smell how their style comes through here, and whether I would “read” the same personality in is and was knowing there is a machine involved in the creative chain.

    I live in the USA.

  • Jeremi says:

    The concept of not knowing which fragrance was created by AI versus human perfumers is absolutely fascinating – it’s like a blind test for the soul of perfumery. J’s description of “is” as a shimmering, futuristic floral with metallic greens, fig, and dark chocolate sounds otherworldly and addictive. That’s the one I’d choose.
    I live in Poland, EU.

  • Ramses Perez says:

    You know J, I’m going to challenge you and say Is was the one created by AI because I don’t think AI could work well with Yerba maté as a note which is something we don’t see often in perfumery. This is a fascinating idea to create fragrances and I too want to know what was that brief given that ended up yielding such complete opposite fragrances. Also since the creation of the non-AI fragrance was done by 3 perfumers, I’m prone to believe it was definitely Was as it’s a more complex fragrance. Let’s see what Neandertal comes up with next and hopefully it’s something easier to decipher. I follow Neandertal Perfume on Instagram and I’m located in the US.

  • ElGallina says:

    What interests me here is less the technical side of the AI and more the bigger question behind it. I grew up thinking of perfume as something very human and very personal, so seeing a brand lean into this partnership between a computer and real perfumers makes me wonder how our idea of creativity is going to change.

    The Neandertal theme fits that conversation nicely, because it puts old and new right up against each other, from prehistoric inspiration to very modern tools. I appreciate that you are not just talking about notes, but about who is really “making” the fragrance and what that might mean for the future of perfume.

    I reside in the USA.

  • TheScentedPage says:

    What sparked my interest was, as J wrote, the Ying and Yang of Neandertal‘s is and was. The yearning for the potential of the future while also enjoying reminiscences of the past. While was has notes of everything that I love in a fragrance, I’d have to reach for the future. is would be my choice.

  • jennapark says:

    This is the coolest inspiration. I love that things like this are brought into perfumery. The bottles are so creative works of art. Neandertal was would be my pick but is sounds unique and interesting as well. It’s a strange concept for AI to take over the creative. I always thought that what makes us human. AI can enhance things but art in any form seems like it requires feeling. This is definitely an interesting experiment. I gave a follow to Neandertal Pefume.USA Pennsylvania

  • TheScentedPage says:

    What sparked my interest was, as J wrote, the Ying and Yang of Neandertal‘s is and was. The yearning for the potential of the future while also enjoying reminiscences of the past. While was has notes of everything that I love in a fragrance, I’d have to reach for the future. is would be my choice.

    I’m in the US.

  • Devry says:

    These bottles are gorgeous and such an interesting concept to have one created by AI and another by a perfumer. Was captures my attention the most and would be the one I would choose. USA

  • Sybelle16 says:

    These two offerings from the conceptional house of Neandertal continue the ethos of exploring the premise of humanity and the great beyond. Two compositions; ying and yang one created by man the other AI–man vs artificial intelligence. “IS” a fruity, chocolate dominant, futuristic and metallic creation; “Was”, a woody and spicy scent with a strong fig accord; two scents that pose an existential question of the ultimate effects of man’s place in a synthetic world.
    USA (yara16xyz)

  • Ensorceler says:

    What really sparks my interest here is how Neandertal turns scent into a philosophical dialogue, not just between light and dark, but between human intuition and machine precision. The idea that both is™ and was™ could blur the line between organic emotion and algorithmic creation fascinates me. I love how J captured that tension, turning perfumes into sculpted reflections of what it means to create in an age where art and AI coexist.

    Though was™ carries many of my favorite notes, I find myself more drawn to how is™ feels on skin. It’s like wearing light made tangible, a bloom of something future-born yet hauntingly human. The interplay of fig, chocolate, and those shimmering greens feels both intimate and transcendent, like skin translating memory into scent.

    – USA –

  • Deso says:

    Thought-provoking concept of using AI in perfumery and puzzling us which of the two scents was created by human perfumers. I would chose was™.
    I follow this unique brand on Instagram too.
    From EU.

  • ianbradleyandrews says:

    This is a very interesting concept, human or AI. Was sounds really spicy and wood which is up my alley. I’d love to win that. I followed Neanderthal on instagram and live in Indiana.

  • Jos says:

    What sparks my interest: The concept of not knowing which fragrance came from human perfumers versus AI is brilliant, but what really drew me to was™ is how J described it—”a smouldering smoky woody amber” with that interplay of soft powdery iris against raw, earthy resins. That tension between the velvet warmth of Diviniris and the mineral bite of clove feels like something that required genuine intuition to balance. The Yerba matè detail is fascinating too; it adds this unexpected bitter complexity that feels almost like a signature—whether human or machine, it’s a bold choice that makes was™ feel more considered than algorithmic.
    J mentions being unsure which was created by AI, but if I had to guess, I’d lean toward is™ being the AI creation simply because was™ feels like it has a deeper narrative—there’s a story in those contrasts, not just data points assembled. Either way, was™ is the one I’d reach for.
    I’m from EU and I follow Neandertal Perfume on Instagram.

  • Steven A says:

    My interest was sparked by the entire idea of which one is created by who or what. For the draw I pick is™. US

  • wonderscent.mari says:

    What got me interested in J Wearescentient’s review of Is & Was was the feeling that he had of these fragrances, the yin and yang of each other, with is feeling like the light and was the dark, while wearing them together.
    As someone who’s really interested into niche fragrances, I’m always looking for new houses that have an innovative concept, that feel different and modern. I am very intrigued by the conceptual art of the Artist Kentaro Yamada and looking forward to experience the artworks itself, which creating fundamental existential questions and our role as human existence in earth. Quite interesting that one of the compositions of Is & Was, is composed by Al in perfumery and the other by human too.
    J’s description of IS would be my first choice, with the fresh, sweet pulp of stone fruit and a gourmand note of chocolate, all wrapped in a clean, chalky veil with a subtle metallic edge but i must admit that Was stole my heart by reading its complexity, a very orris powderiness feeling like velvet warmed by skin, lifted by the bitter freshness of geranium and yerba mate and a cistus note making Was into a stunning darkly smooth incense. I need to smell this for sure! That’s the one I’d choose.
    Thank you for this incredible review and also for offering this giveaway! Wishing Happy Holidays!
    I’m from EU and I am following them on instagram from @wonderscent.mari

  • nduggs says:

    I love this idea, so unique and inspiring. I would absolutely love to try is, the notes are alluring and seem to set the perfect balance between comfort and cool. I’m located in NY

  • cindy.fragrance says:

    I follow Neandertal on Instagram for quite a while already…
    I love dark fragrances and “Was” is actually the fragrance I wanted as a Christmas present!
    I love the whole concept about Neandertal and the bottles are simply stunning…
    Loved J‘s description saying: “was™’s darkness from the more raw resinous earth feels like incense smouldering with a dark smoke veil.“
    Based in Germany!

  • ericwaynebiscuit says:

    So interesting. I feel conflicted, curious, repulsed, intrigued…I definitely wanna go read more of Kentaro’s thoughts and intentions behind this specific project. I really appreciate J’s thoughts on the fragrances and the place of AI in perfumery, art, and the world. In art, in fragrance, I want those human flaws, the personhood behind the craft that works through the problem to build a perfume.

    Based on the description of the fragrances, I am more curious to try is™. I do follow Neandertal on Instagram, and am located in VA, USA,

  • xoe says:

    Wow. Brilliant concept! I love the riddle of trying to figure out which is which. I am ambivalent about AI. This seems like a very clever use for and test of its possibilities. I do follow Neandertal Perfume on Instagram and I am in the US.

  • alleycat says:

    What a unique concept, and what cool bottles! I love when perfumers push the envelope beyond just making a scent. I like how Is is described as a strange flower, dusted with a veil of powder. If I won, I would like to try that one. I am also really drawn to that white bottle. USA

  • Amaziz89 says:

    A plume of aromas blooms from your skin as is™ hits it. Bitter herbal greens grow like powdery vines with dusty spices forming glowing buds that soon burst with sweet alien flowers. Chocolate and fig give is™ a delicious richness that plays in lovely contrast to the metallic shimmering neon like greens that wrap around you feeling expansive and airy. is™ glistens as if it’s composed in transparent layers with the slight darkness coming from rich chocolate and resins, who quietly making themselves known. Violet gives is™ an abstracted floral feel, it’s modulated and manipulated by musks adding a fuzzy flicked texture to the shimmering sheen. Vetiver’s rooty warmth is felt but its scent gives body to the perfumes invisible form. is™ softens into a softly smoky woods in its dry down. There’s a cosy warmth from vetiver still joined by sandalwood and resins with a lovely myrrh like sweetness as the fig and chocolate notes blur into abstraction. Both is™ and was™ share this resinous myrrh like sweetness with varying intensities, with was™ feeling like the darkness to is™’s light. Gentle suede like textures and clean musks continue the minimal futurist feel of is™, as its openings shimmer is dulled slightly. It still has that contemporary architectural feel of sleekness shaped from modern materials. Feeling futuristic, clean like some strange flower that doesn’t exist, sculpted by a 3D model maker and dusted with a fine layer of powder, leaving you with this powdery smokiness incense with a kaleidoscope of toned down colours like light is shining through muslin. A beautiful concept and of AI makes this an intriguing proposition really loving the notes especially Chocolate and Patchouli. I am following on Instagram my handle is amnaaziz5296@gmail.com. I would love it if I won is. Thanks a million from the UK

  • Ozzyaziz says:

    By presenting the two fragrances, Neandertal challenges the user to consider the nature of creativity itself: can an algorithm surprise us with a scent that feels raw and “less worked on,” or is the more familiar, homely scent the one made by a machine trying to emulate human preferences?. This poses an interesting conundrum I would love to try is on skin because the notes really struck a chord with me. Thanks a lot from the UK

  • EPTrail says:

    I like this essay because it treats perfume as a lived, spatial experience rather than a checklist of notes. The imagery feels true to how I actually perceive scent without becoming decorative for its own sake. It captures how fragrance moves on skin and in air, not just how it smells on paper.

    Most of all, I like that the essay stays personal and grounded. My uncertainty about which scent was AI-composed and even the small Yerba Maté speculation keep the piece human. It balances intellect and intuition in a way that mirrors how I experience perfume itself.

    I’m in the US and I’ve been following him on IG for nearly a year now since I sampled Neandertal Light which I had an immediate negative reaction to, but was impressed by their willingness to market it.

  • Brad Woolslayer says:

    AI is really becoming a big part of everyday life, and I’m really interested to see if AI can compete with the top perfumers in the world today. Both fragrances sound really interesting, but I would choose to own a bottle of was. I live in Maryland USA.

  • Shibuichi2000 says:

    This is such an intriguing and oh so awesome scented scenario. Given Kentaro’ s artistic background, it’s no wonder that the bottles are small art pieces and the scents were created in such an original manner, but also, not quite – in the sense that two different people could develop a concept in two very different ways, too.
    From J’ s review I would’ve placed my bet on i™ – being created by AI, but maybe because it seemed more abstract. I hope we will find out :).
    I’m in EU, and my choice, if I’d win, is i™.

  • Johnmc5000 says:

    Neandertal was would have to be my choice should I be fortunate enough to be selected.
    I love the use of AI to develop a scent.
    The majority of my favorites include smouldering smoky woody amber, with clove burning at its heart only makes it better.
    I look forward to the day when we put in the notes we want and AI gives us 10 choices and the ability to fine tune them ourselves.
    It’s a good use in my mind.
    Thanks
    John
    Oklahoma USA

  • psebi101 says:

    This review perfectly captures the intellectual and aesthetic appeal of this project. The “conundrum” at its heart—not just human vs. AI, but light vs. dark, past vs. eternal present—is what makes it so compelling. It’s art that makes you question the very process of creation itself.

    I’m also utterly captivated by Kentaro Yamada’s concept. It elevates the scents from beautiful objects to a genuine conversation. The descriptions of is as a “shimmering white incense smoke plume” and was as a “dark smoke veil” are incredibly evocative.

    I’m left with the same question, which I think is the point: not necessarily who composed which, but what we feel as we try to decide. A cool project.

    I’m in the EU.

  • nafrayou says:

    Thank you so much for the giveaway it’s nice. I went to the private event in Paris where I get the chance to discover for the first time the perfumes. First the design is a masterpiece and the fragrances is well done but my fav is the far one for sure cause I’m more into oud, leather, incense fragrance.
    I registered to your website and follow Neandertal on Instagram.
    I’m based in France now 🙂

  • roxhas1cat says:

    Love those bottles. They are so clever I wouldn’t mind them not standing up in my collection. I’m drawn to “Is” due to the blurry fig and chocolate notes. Always love a touch of violet. USA.

  • opalbear says:

    Ooof well they seem to share a lot of the same notes both in the top Bergamot, nutmeg, galbanum and vanilla in the heart, and in the dry down with musk, sandalwood, patchouli and vetiver. So that leaves siblings who have their unique qualities as . Violet, chocolate, metallic or Yerba maté, clove, Iris as J said in the article. Who do I think AI put the “2 scents” into? Is.
    I’m located in California. Thanks for the generous giveaway.

  • Patricia R. says:

    Isn’t AI just a tool in creativity based on patterns of what is has been fed into anyway, in general? These two fragrances sound and look nice. I would go for IS TM. EU

  • Saverioud says:

    The use of AI for the creation of perfumes, that are essentially art in liquid state, denotes the avant-garde mindset of Kentaro Yamada, experimenting the union between the algorithm and the creativity.
    “Was” is the creation that intrigued me more, maybe because lately I’m obsessed with dark scents.
    I really tried to imagine how the cistus blends with the geranium in a dark woody background.
    I really hope to try it, I’m from Italy.
    I followed Neandertal perfumes on IG @saverio_loiudice

  • Annika says:

    Neanderthal’s is and was perfume duo is probably the most interesting use of technology in fragrance I’ve heard of in quite a while. AI really is everywhere now, isn’t it? The use of the same note palette in the creation by both man and machine and seeing what each entity develops makes me think of chess matches between masters and computers. It’s interesting that one is seen as “light” and the other “dark”. The yin yang duality concept seems to be continued in those gorgeous art bottles. MD, USA

  • Teresa C says:

    I love the concept, the bottles and the juxtaposition of human vs AI. Noth sound delicious, but I would select IS if chosen. I live in the US.

  • mmerline says:

    Interesting thought experiment and take on modern perfume design, made all the better by the complex and surprising results. Both is™ and was™ feature intriguing contrasts: rich chocolate and fig against “shimmering neon greens”; textured florals over smoky vetiver and musks; warming spices against cool-powdery iris and geranium. I have no idea which of these would have been composed by AI—cool! Terrific review.

    I’m in the USA. I follow Neandertal Perfume on Instagram as @mmerline. If I were to win, I’d choose Neandertal was™. Thanks for the giveaway!

  • Jules says:

    To be honest is™ is my favorite too. Its description made me fall in love with it through screen by just imagining how interesting it could smell.
    From EU

  • Danniel says:

    I’m following Neandertal on Instagram. I think the use of AI is interesting and unfortunately inevitable in all aspects of human life but to what extent should we be using AI in the realm of the arts? I guess I still need more info as to how this tool actually is used but after witnessing what it does with the visual arts I have my concerns. I’d like to smell both of course but if I have to choose I’ll pick Was. I’m in the USA

  • Angelica says:

    I didnt know Ai was used in perfumery! What sparked my interest “is™ softens into a softly smoky woods in its dry down. There’s a cosy warmth from vetiver still joined by sandalwood and resins with a lovely myrrh like sweetness as the fig and chocolate notes blur into abstraction.” my choice is “is™
    EU reader

  • immortano26 says:

    J’s review immediately sparked my curiosity about how Neandertal IS and WAS blend human artistry with AI innovation. The collaboration between Isaac Sinclair, Fanny Grau, and Symrise’s Philyra 2.0 sounds fascinating — especially the idea of capturing both primal depth and futuristic precision in scent form. I’d love to experience how that contrast comes alive on skin. I live in Pleszew, Poland, EU.

  • Kassie Tocko says:

    what’s truly interesting is how neandertal is™ and was™ blur authorship entirely—turning scent into a philosophical experiment where concept, craft, and uncertainty are inseparable. The intrigue lives in not knowing. & the aesthetic of this brand- omg! what a creative concept in a developing world of technological advances, as well! this review would have been a very interesting one to write & then, also to try & decipher which is made by which. thank you for the review & thank you to the brand for the fragrance- always appreciative! in the united states.

  • krrrstenelise says:

    What a fascinating means to stir intrigue for two scents – I’m left wondering if the symbolism of light vs. dark has any correlation to “human” vs. “AI;” therefore, I’m guessing Neandertal was is the AI creation since so many are still grappling with the mystery and darkness of AI. I personally would choose Neandertal is as my scent (although both sound incredible)!

    Following them on IG and am based in the USA.

  • David F says:

    Neanderthal now is a modern take on what could be. The note breakdown is rough and sweet. Would like to own, from USA.