Because of its adaptability, artificial intelligence might be compared to the “little black dress” of technology.
Shopping for clothes, following the latest trends on social media, or picking out holiday clothing may all be enjoyable activities. It’s not only bad for the planet, but it may be annoying to both customers and store owners (fit!) (most returned clothing ends up in a landfill).
Nearly every participant in the fashion industry may benefit from AI’s assistance in resolving these and other issues. Consumers will be more satisfied and the industry’s environmental impact will decrease as a result of applications that assist them to find the right match. Fabric and clothing designers employ AI while consulting organisations use it to foresee the future of manufacturing.
Data gathering is where the magic happens. Collecting data allows us to discover the best course of action for fixing the fit problem, predicting future trends, and determining the genuineness of high-end objects (Cartier watches, Birkin bags, etc.). Data of any kind may be collected, processed, and analysed by AI, from social media photographs to physiological measurements like heart rate and sweat.
AI CAN FIX FIT
Carlanda McKinney, CEO and founder of Bodify, an Overland Park, Kansas startup working to address the fit problem, has stated that the number one reason customers return clothing purchased online is that it doesn’t fit properly and that this practice can cost a retailer up to 38% of the item’s original price.
Bodify utilises machine vision to analyse customer-submitted images of their bodies to provide custom measurements. Metrics are mapped by machine learning onto the company’s stored data. When consumers run this algorithm, they get a list of companies that provide products in their assumed size. McKinney promises that you will find “companies you didn’t even know about.”
Manufacturers may use the information gathered through Bodyfit to create more accurately sized clothing, better coordinate the sizing of various garment types (such as shirts and jeans), and find the most cost-effective manufacturing locations. For example, “the same pair of jeans may be produced in China and in Indonesia, and they’ll fit differently,” as McKinney put it.
The Princeton, New Jersey-based company Fit for Everybody sends a video to its customers that teach them where to take their measurements. Designers, who are the paying clients of Fit for Everybody, utilise the data to create designs that better fit the dimensions of the people who purchased them. According to CEO and co-founder Laura Zwanziger, “you’re essentially constructing clusters, you’re making five sizes that are going to contain as many individuals as possible.” “We want to maximise the potential of every cluster.”
AI HELPS MAKE DECISIONS
How do you think I would look in this colour? Using artificial intelligence (AI)-powered virtual styling tools, stores can guide clients in the right direction when it comes to finding the right clothes for their unique shape, skin tone, and lifestyle.
German business-to-business software developer Styleriser is one example of a corporation using AI in the field of image consultancy. After a customer uploads an image to the internet shop, a “virtual stylist” there may help them choose the right clothes. To each individual, it gives a list of recommended colours that work well with their skin tone (wear cream instead of white, or charcoal grey instead of black). Mark Hunsmann, CEO and co-founder, claims that the tool enhances consumers’ willingness to make a purchase by 80% due to increased confidence in buying. Because of this, he said, there would be fewer returns, which is good for the industry’s long-term health.
AI HELPS WITH THE DESIGN
Using AI has enabled Almossawi to come up with more ideas than he would have otherwise. From tossing around wild, untested hypotheses to collaborative brainstorming, “the early phase entails a lot of experiments and ideation sessions” for any designer. He said that AI helps teams work together by allowing them to work together with machines. The development of artificial intelligence is fascinating, but he predicted that it was still in its early stages.
Data collected by Fit for Everybody will also aid manufacturers in improving grading consistency (sizing up and down from the fit model size). Zwanziger aimed for the device to be perceived as “something that makes their day simpler.”
AI AIDS MERCHANDISING
Shopping for clothes online? Augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR) technologies powered by artificial intelligence may help you better understand how something will appear and how it will fit. According to Tech Fashionista, there are applications that let users virtually try on clothes, then modify the fit, colour, and details to create a unique ensemble.
Almossawi said that AI has the potential to place things in the ideal setting. “Product placement is a key component of developing enthusiasm around a product and conveying a tale of what the product is and what it was built for,” he added. In a variety of styles, “AI allows you to instantly produce creative and suitable backdrops for your product.”
AI CAN “GREEN” FASHION
Since the fashion industry is responsible for as much as 8 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions and 9 percent of yearly microplastics in the oceans, going green has become the new black. As replenishing returns are frequently not financially viable for stores, and high-fashion companies don’t want to devalue their trademarks by selling to deep discounters, almost all returned products wind up in a landfill.
Predicting future trends is only one area where AI might be useful. Bet poorly, and a manufacturer will be left with a lot of unsold garments. Determining what people want and then mass manufacturing that item is a game of chance. Several companies employ artificial intelligence and machine learning to sift through social media photographs, noting details like print, form, and colour to assist their manufacturing clients to predict which products would be successful. In addition to assisting firms with pricing strategies and avoiding fads that are on the decline, these businesses use AI to do so.
AI CAN REDUCE COUNTERFEITING
No one worth their salt would buy a knockoff, Birkin. No one, least of all someone who spent a minimum of $40,000. There are two uses of AI that may assist avoid such situations.
One is a programme developed by the auditing firm Deloitte that uses artificial intelligence to identify design theft. The software, Dupe Killer, analyzes data from millions of images to identify minute but important differences in design, such as an item’s distinctive shape, colour, or stitching pattern. In this article from Vogue Business, we learn how Dupe Killer facilitates the identification and pursuit of counterfeiters of design trademarks.
The Tech Fashionista cites another approach that employs computer vision, a kind of AI, to validate “genuine” things and so assist customs officers and others along the supply chain in identifying fakes.
AI CAN ADVANCE WEARABLES
A number of already available wearable gadgets use artificial intelligence, such as fitness bands that monitor vital signs, activity, and efficiency. According to eInfochips, a digital transformation business, revenues of this industry are expected to hit $42.4 billion by 2023, making it one of the largest in the world.
Ultimately, designer Hussain Almossawi sees this technology being incorporated into clothing. He added that smarter textiles, clothes that are better for sports and performance, and clothes that adapt to the body are all possible outcomes of incorporating AI into clothing. “For instance, there are materials available that can detect when the body is heated or sweating, and little holes within the material open up to allow for greater ventilation,” he said.
He went on to say that other materials have varying degrees of rigidity and flexibility. Artificial intelligence might design sections of sports clothing to be more rigid or flexible depending on the wearer’s body motions and patterns throughout a game. Almossawi said, “The possibilities are infinite.”
