Clothing brand Levi’s is turning to AI to improve the diversity representation of its models.
As per reports, the brand has tied up with Lalaland.ai, an AI-centric studio that has worked with fashion brands like Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. It is well known for its ‘hyper-realistic’ fashion models.
Levi’s is looking at AI models for being authentic and more representative of their customers. The brand claims that the AI models would be body inclusive and are a big step in furthering their DEI vision, their top priority.
A Levi’s spokesperson was quoted by a report as saying, “We believe our models should reflect our consumers, which is why we’re continuing to diversify our human models in terms of size and body type, age and skin color.”
However, it has received flak and the move is being called ‘artificial diversity’. Some critics have called on the brand to consider working with diverse models, stylists, and fashion photographers rather than relying on AI for ensuring diversity and inclusion. The recent layoffs by the brand have raised concerns. The decision to rely on AI is all the more worrying for the critics as they rue the impact of such moves on an industry grappling with realistic representation.
