AI news and archive

Lululemon names first chief of AI

Canadian athleisure brand Lululemon has appointed Ranju Das as its first-ever chief AI and technology officer, as it looks to leverage artificial intelligence to improve product innovation and personalise the customer experience. Das has more than two decades of leadership experience scaling global organisations and driving AI-first innovation...

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Business|Marketing

Selling the vibe: Why fashion brands need more than just product

In the last decade, the currency of fashion has moved decisively beyond fabric and form. Value now resides in broader social, cultural and environmental significance. A pair of jeans is never just a denim garment; it stands as an emblem of creativity, community and lifestyle values. Every garment is a transaction of meaning: the buyer aligns...

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Business

AI start-up ChatBlu raises 500,000 US dollars in pre-seed funding

London-based artificial intelligence start-up ChatBlu, which bills itself as the first autonomous AI agent for multi-platform inventory management, has raised 500,000 US dollars in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Matador Venture Capital, with participation from angel investors associated with Google and Amazon Web Services. The funding...

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Business

Insights from PwC: The mindset of supply chain managers

Audit firm PwC surveyed 610 supply chain and operations managers about the digital transformation of supply chains. The aim was to identify their priorities and tensions, as the supply chain is still perceived as a cost centre, not a strategic lever. While the "Digital Trends in Opérations Survey 2025" report does not directly address the...

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Business

Amazon shuts down Shanghai AI lab: source

US tech giant Amazon has shut down its artificial intelligence research lab in Shanghai, a source with direct knowledge of the matter confirmed to AFP. News that the lab, part of cloud division Amazon Web Services (AWS), has closed comes with AI at the forefront of a tech race between China and the United States. In a screenshot of a WeChat post...

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Business

Multiply Group completes acquisition of Tendam, will drive growth using AI as a lever

Multiply Group, an investment holding company based in Abu Dhabi, completed the acquisition of a 67.91 percent stake in Tendam, a Spanish fashion multinational, on 23 July 2025. Tendam owns brands such as Cortefiel, Springfield, and Women’secret. The transaction values Tendam at approximately 1.3 billion euros (5.6 billion UAE dirhams), with...

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Business

Inditex sees profit grow in first half of 2025 as commercial activities pick up

Madrid – This morning, July 15, Inditex’s 2025 annual general meeting took place at the company’s headquarters in Arteixo, Galicia. The meeting, chaired by Marta Ortega Pérez, non-executive chair of the Spanish fashion multinational, saw the approval of the company's 2024 annual accounts. It also highlighted various ongoing initiatives and...

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Business|Marketing

Why Labfresh ditched AI campaigns after four seasons: ‘Humans perform better’

AI still evokes different reactions. Enthusiasm and trepidation has now given way to experimentation and implementation. One of the fashion companies that started working with AI early on to help with its campaigns was Dutch brand Labfresh. After four seasons with AI by its side, however, the brand is now returning to fully “human” campaigns....

Retail|Artificial Intelligence

Mango energises shopping experience: WhatsApp channel and AI stylist

Mango continues its commitment to personalising the shopping experience through increased digitalisation. The company has announced the launch of two new digital tools: a WhatsApp channel and "Mango Stylist", an AI-powered fashion assistant and stylist. These are the latest steps in Mango's strategic "Plan 4E", presented in early March 2024. The...

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Fashion

Integrating AI into the organisational structure: Are companies at Pitti ready?

Global spending on artificial intelligence (AI) is expected to more than double by 2028, reaching 632 billion dollars, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide AI and Generative AI Spending Guide. Additionally, as Jorge Amar, senior partner at McKinsey, highlights in a report, "we are entering a world where we will have to...

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Business

AI-powered fashion agent Gensmo secures 60 million dollars in funding

Just months after its launch in December 2024, AI-powered fashion agent Gensmo has closed on a seed funding round amounting to over 60 million dollars. The financing “signals that investors deeply believe in the company’s mission to bring real AI innovation to the fashion e-commerce world”, Gensmo said in a release. The US-based company, which...

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Business

Voyado gains US majority shareholder: Focus on growth in Europe

Retail technology platform Voyado has a new majority shareholder. Funds managed by the global investment firm Viking Global Investors LP (Viking) are taking over, the company announced today in a press release. Existing shareholders – Novax, Verdane, eEquity and H&M Group – remain involved, as do Voyado’s founders. With the capital injection,...