H&M Ditches Human Models For AI Clones In New Campaign

H&M has decided that human models are nice and all, but digital clones are much better. According to Inc, the fashion giant is teaming up with models and their agencies to create AI-generated replicas (30 of them, to be exact) that can wear the clothes and pose for ad campaigns without ever stepping foot in a photo studio. Business of Fashion reports that these "digital twins" will be rolled out this year across social media and marketing campaigns.

If you’re curious about the process, allow me to summarize it for you: Models are photographed from different angles, feeding those into an AI system, and you get a digital twin that can be posed, styled, and slapped onto a billboard without needing makeup artists, hair stylists, or photographers. Louise Lundquist, a business development manager at H&M, said the system will "affect the way we produce content," though she admitted, "I can't say exactly in what way."

The good news is that the models will get paid when their digital doubles get used. Lundquist said, "It's the digital twin being compensated for the usage rights of the digital twin," which sounds fair on paper. In reality though, this means that makeup artists, stylists, and set designers will get booked far less. 

The Repercussions

Not only will people lose out on job opportunities, but women may feel worse about themselves, too. The models being scanned are already society's beauty ideals, and their AI counterparts are only going to make what's shown even more unattainable. At least with human models, there's still a trace of reality. Oftentimes, you can see their skin texture, moles, and the small hairs on their cheeks. In contrast, AI smooths everything out and produces more symmetrical faces with little to no imperfections. 

To their credit, H&M is letting the models own the rights to their digital clones. This means they can license their AI avatars to other brands. However, if a brand can license a digital version of a model indefinitely, why would it bother hiring the real person again? What will these companies do to your image once you’ve sold them the rights to them? Furthermore, how are we supposed to trust how a dress fits when it's draped over a virtual body?

H&M’s Jörgen Andersson, chief creative officer of the Swedish fast-fashion retailer, seems to be optimistic about the whole thing, acknowledging that the future of AI-generated imagery might not be as dystopian as it seems. “AI is cutting across everything in the world today, and it will have effects on everything,” he said. “What effects we don’t know.”

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