AI (Artificial Intelligence) seems to be the next big thing in many industries today. On Gartner’s 2020 Hype Cycle of Emerging Technologies, for example, we find no less than seven explicitly AI-related trends in the first steep curve of inflated expectations—such as composite AI, generative AI, responsible AI, embedded AI, and explainable AI. For a term that dates back to 1956 and celebrates its 65th birthday this year, this seems remarkable, especially since the productive application of the currently hyped AI variations is expected to take another two to ten years.
In this arena of promising AI technologies, the Dutch AI-based startup Lalaland is an interesting case. They have found a way to make AI work in a way that is both tangible and speaks to the imagination. Using AI technology, they are one of the front-runners that may change the online fashion industry and, arguably, make it more inclusive, sustainable, and profitable, thereby speaking to all three P’s of the Triple Bottom Line. I spoke to two of Lalaland’s founders, Michael Musandu and Harold Smeeman to find out what they do and how they do it.
Lalaland is a Dutch, Amsterdam-based tech startup that develops hyperrealistic AI-driven virtual models for e-commerce platforms. Founded in 2019, its founding team consists of three founders (Ugnius Rimša is the third) and they are with 16 people now. So far, they have attracted €625k of funding and won the Philips Innovation Award 2020, giving them the title of most innovative student start-up of the Netherlands.
Unlike one might assume, the company has nothing to do with the Academy Award winning 2016 musical romantic comedy drama La La Land. When asked for the origins of the name, Musandu explains “We wanted a name that triggers your imagination, since what we create is not real, or at least not in the traditional sense. We also wanted a name that forces oneself to form an opinion; you either like it or you don’t.”
As stated on their website, Lalaland “empowers e-commerce brands to capture the incredible diversity of humankind by generating artificial full-body fashion models.” This means that they create fully AI-generated fashion models that online retailers can use to replace their traditional living fashion models. The most important benefit is that, when shopping online, consumers can select a model that fits for example their own size, age and skin color and see how garments look on that model—rather than on the usually young and slim models that retailers currently use.
A relevant question in the midst of the AI hype is how Lalaland is different from others. With AI-generated images being their core technology, the difference from straightforward model photography and online fashion retail stores is obvious. But what makes them different from their main competitors?
As Musandu explains, when they started two years ago, it was their ability to do full body generation: creating an image of a human being from head to toe. Today though, Smeeman adds, it is their ability to show the user exactly what they want to see. Based on continuous development, testing, and learning over the past two years, they have developed an advanced understanding of what users want and how this translates into hyperpersonalized synthetic images.
In a world where online shopping has taken a further flight through Covid-19, the online fashion market is booming. According to Statista, fashion is the largest B2C eCommerce market segment. Estimated at US$525.1 billion in 2019, it is expected to grow further at over 10% per year and reach a total market size of US$1003.5 billion by the end of 2025.
A market of this size means that any impact that the use of synthetic imaging will have on eCommerce fashion companies, will be significant. According to Musandu and Smeeman, there are significant benefits to gain. Not only financially, be along all three aspects of the Triple Bottom Line (TBL): People, Planet and Profit.
