Fashion model Alexsandrah poses with a computer showing an AI generated image of her, in London, Friday, March 29, 2024. The use of computer-generated supermodels has complicated implications for diversity. Although AI modeling agencies — some of them Black-owned — …has a twin, but not in the way you’d expect: Her counterpart is made of pixels instead of flesh and blood.
But critics raise concerns that digital models may push human models - and other professionals like makeup artists and photographers - out of a job. Unsuspecting consumers could also be fooled into thinking AI models are real, and companies could claim credit for fulfilling diversity commitments without employing actual humans., a nonprofit aiming to advance workers’ rights in the fashion industry.
In March 2023, iconic denim brand Levi Strauss & Co. announced that it would be testing AI-generated models produced by Amsterdam-based company Lalaland.ai to add a wider range of body types and underrepresented demographics on its website. But after receiving widespread backlash, Levi clarified that it was not pulling back on its plans for live photo shoots, the use of live models or its commitment to working with diverse models.
Nonetheless, companies that generate AI models are finding a demand for the technology, including Lalaland.ai, which was co-founded by Michael Musandu after he was feeling frustrated by the absence of clothing models who looked like him. The technology is actually creating new jobs, since Lalaland.ai pays humans to train its algorithms, Musandu said., who is Black, says her digital counterpart has helped her distinguish herself in the fashion industry. In fact, the real-life Alexsandrah has even stood in for a Black computer-generated model named Shudu, created by Cameron Wilson, a former fashion photographer turned CEO of The Diigitals, a U.K.-based digital modeling agency.
But for Yve Edmond, a New York City area-based model who works with major retailers to check the fit of clothing before it’s sold to consumers, the rise of AI in fashion modeling feels more insidious.