Fashion industry professionals disagree as to whether Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a valuable tool for the industry or a force that will result in job losses and stifle imagination and innovation.

In the former camp, Matthew Drinkwater, head of London College of Fashion’s Innovation Agency, believes AI could prove to be a “hugely beneficial tool” for creatives and the industry. According to Drinkwater, AI has given individuals from varied backgrounds access to an industry with an “elitist” and “exclusive” reputation. Echoing these sentiments, Cyril Foiret, founder of generative AI studio Maison Meta, believes AI is “amplifying creativity.”

Fashion brand Selkie, founded by independent artist Kimberley Gordon, used AI image generator Midjourney to create its Valentine’s Day clothing drop in February 2024. Gordon, who views AI image generators as a tool, creates her designs by combining royalty-free clip art, paintings in the public domain, Photoshop collaging and digital illustration. Even though some consumers pushed back against the brand’s use of AI – citing concerns that artists are losing opportunities and that image generators may have been trained on copyrighted images – Gordon believes the technology will be accepted as another art medium by future generations.

Biological recycling company Protein Evolution has similarly begun to leverage AI technology to innovate within the fashion industry, using AI to create enzymes capable of recycling old polyester textiles. Jonathan Rothberg, the company’s co-founder, notes that only 9% of plastic is recycled, leaving behind plastic for biological recycling, i.e., breaking down the plastic using enzymes without degrading the material or creating microplastics. Because there are astronomical numbers of possible plastic-eating enzymes, researchers’ use of AI has quickly found a solution to a seemingly insurmountable problem. In 2023, Protein Evolution teamed up with fashion designer Stella McCartney, using enzymes to process leftover polyester and nylon fabric from the designer’s collections. Thus, the first garment made using biological recycling was debuted at COP28, the United Nations Climate Change Conference.

On the other hand, lawsuits have already been filed by those claiming harm caused by AI. For example, on April 5, 2024, a class-action lawsuit was filed against fast-fashion brand Shein. In the suit, artist Alan Giana alleged that Shein has used AI and machine learning to infringe copyrights that he and other artists own. In fact, Shein has faced dozens of lawsuits alleging IP theft using “secretive algorithms.” As early as March 2023, a sustainable fashion blog highlighted more than forty instances of thefts of designs by Shein, any number of which could have been scraped by the company’s AI tools.

As with all fields, increased use of AI in the fashion industry presents both exciting opportunities and legitimate concerns. Lutzker & Lutzker will continue to provide updates on the unique ethical and practical challenges AI poses, especially as to its impact on the intellectual property rights of creatives.

For an earlier article on AI and fashion, click here.