Fashionably A.I
By Jo Phillips
The fashion industry is in constant flux and as the world changes, fashion changes with it. In the last few years, for example, there has been a real push for ethical and sustainable fashion as people start to consider their impact on the environment. These significant changes to the way that we think about the world and our increased focus on reducing our environmental impact are likely to change the fashion industry forever. But sustainability isn’t the only big change that has impacted the fashion industry.
Advances in technology have changed all aspects of our lives and artificial intelligence is set to be one of the biggest changes that we have seen in decades, if not centuries. Many people are already considering the potential dangers of AI and how it will affect different areas of our lives, but not many people are aware how the fashion industry is adapting and changing as a result of AI.
If you consider current software development outsourcing trends, you will see that businesses of all kinds are increasingly focused on using AI to create an enhanced experience for their customers, and the fashion industry is no exception. Branding and marketing are just as important as design in the fashion industry, and the way that brands promote their products is changing with the use of AI. By using software that will monitor and learn consumer behavior, fashion brands can create a seamless online shopping experience that makes life so much easier for the customer. It also allows for tailored ads that are more specific than ever, so the customer is shown exactly what they are looking for without having to search for it themselves.
Although online shopping has overtaken high street stores and there are a lot of benefits to buying online, you do miss the human contact element. It’s great to have an assistant there when shopping for clothes so you can ask them quick questions about sizing etc. and you don’t get that online. However, that is all changing with the introduction of chatbot software. These incredibly clever artificial intelligence programs can mimic a real human and people can ask questions in a chatbox on the website, just like they would ask questions in a store. If artificial intelligence software is unable to answer a question, the customer will then be passed onto a human operator.
AI has a role to play in fashion design too. One of the biggest challenges that designers and retailers face is trying to predict what next seasons trends are likely to be. Often, retailers base their predictions on last year’s sales, but this is not usually accurate because there are a lot of other factors at play. AI software will consider all of these factors and make suggestions, which can reduce the margin of error by up to 50%.
These are just some of the ways that artificial intelligence technology is already changing the fashion industry. Only time will tell what other big changes will come in the future.
