The Future of Fashion & Sustainability | 12 REVOLVE Drops AI-Designed Fashion

The fashion industry has been among the earliest adopters of generative AI tools across various areas, from models to merchandising and design. However, November 2023 marked a new milestone in the fashion industry’s ongoing experiment with generative AI technology. Southern California-based clothing brand REVOLVE launched a collection of generative-designed clothes in partnership with winning designers of the inaugural AI Fashion Week. The development and release of this collection featuring 10-12 releases from each finalist weren’t without its challenges. Still, these collections mark a unique feat in AI designs culminating in tangible products for the consumer. This venture moved Generative AI beyond an experimental technology.

Along with design collections, contestants were tasked with bringing to life an entire virtual fashion show ecosystem including runways, backgrounds, and fashion show attendees. You can even see a digital Anna Wintour making a guest appearance in one of the extra (Front Row / Backstage / Streetstyle before the show) image collections. The public voted on the submitted collections, with the top 20 applicants from the public voting stage moving on to the final stage to be judged by expert judges from across the fashion landscape – editorial, creative agencies, and executives. These judges evaluated the designs as a whole ecosystem, not only the garments. From the collection to the detail and extra sections, designers had to present a unique but unified motif that pushed the boundaries of creativity, all while ensuring the clothes were ready-to-wear and marketable to a wider audience.[1] The competition’s parameters ensure contestants are actively thinking like creative directors putting care and detail into each aspect of the creative design process.

Image: [AI Fashion Week| Designer: Jose Sabral | Collection: Paatiff]

The result was a series of final collections that pushed the creative imagination. To make the winning designs a reality, the three winners - José Sabral, Matilde Mariano, and Opé StyleStar joined the AI Fashion Week incubator program, working with REVOLVE. Each winner gained access to REVOLVE’s extensive supply chain and worked closely with the brand’s atelier team and product developers on development and production.[2] The resulting final collections from each winner are available in all standard sizes for purchase through REVOLVE.

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Image: [AI Fashion Week | Designer: Matilde Mariano| Extra]

From the get-go, REVOLVE and AI-centric creative agency Maison Meta aimed to turn the winning designs into actual garments ready to be sold. REVOLVE’s commitment to the winners of the AI Fashion Week is a testament to the brand’s goal of being a “next-generation fashion retailer” with continued investments in technology.[3] As REVOLVE co-founder and co-executive Michael Mente notes “REVOLVE was started as a technology company first.”[4]

Technology was at the forefront of the image creation with contestants using AI image generators Midjourney and Stable Diffusion to create captivating virtual fashion shows complete with runway shots, backstage sights & personalities, and designs. Despite concerns about generative AI tools minimizing the role of designers, the virtual fashion runway and collections illustrated a powerful collaboration between technology and human creativity. Individuals were tasked with selecting the appropriate datasets, using generative AI engines, and guiding the design process via text prompts to generate their final output. The partnership between Maison Meta and REVOLVE went beyond producing first-of-its-kind collections. AI Fashion Week showcased new designers, brands, and trends that leveraged generative AI to produce never-before-seen designs. Formal design experience was not a pre-requisite, with two of the three winners – José Sabral and Matilde Mariano – having no formal background in fashion, while the third, Opé StyleStar, worked as a stylist. While the contestants needed to make clothes marketable, maintain a consistent motif, and execute, the AI fashion show opened the door to creators from all backgrounds.

Image: [Revolve X Opé]

Like any new venture, the process was not without its challenges. The process of producing the AI-designed clothes proved cumbersome, highlighting certain design limitations. Certain designs had to be toned down to make them physically feasible for production. Additional adjustments were made to ensure “real-life functionality, comfort, ease and aesthetic.”[5] Future designs will need to be generated with physicality and garment creation in mind. When looking at the use of AI for environmentally conscious design, designers need to also take the unique physical characteristics and construction of alternative materials into consideration.

Coinciding with the release of these inaugural AI-designed collections was the 2nd AI Fashion Week Season 2, which promises additional partnerships and even more creativity. Season 1 of AI Fashion Week thrust generative AI into the forefront of fashion production, but the process remains a testing and learning experience. For REVOLVE, the project signaled an opportunity to understand the use of AI as another tool – a supplemental tool – rather than a replacement for traditional design.[6] The unique challenges and learnings from the first collection drop should enable future efficiencies and make the production process quicker.

AI is here to stay, and opportunities such as the AI Fashion Week highlight the technology’s creative reach and accessibility. The technology will evolve, providing additional resources to existing designers, while opening the door for individuals interested in fashion design who lack formal training.

[1]https://fashionweek.ai/faqs/#:~:text=The%20top%2020%20applicants%20from,program%20in%20partnership%20with%20Revolve.

[2] https://apparelresources.com/technology-news/retail-tech/revolve-drops-three-ai-generated-fashion-collections/

[3] https://investors.revolve.com/overview/default.aspx

[4] https://www.forbes.com/sites/jennywang/2023/05/11/revolve-and-maison-meta-bring-ai-fashion-week-to-physical-runways/?sh=55dff8fc392e

[5] https://www.voguebusiness.com/technology/behind-the-scenes-of-revolves-ai-generated-drop

[6] https://www.voguebusiness.com/technology/behind-the-scenes-of-revolves-ai-generated-drop