{"id":42923,"date":"2025-08-03T20:04:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-03T20:04:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/42923\/"},"modified":"2025-08-03T20:04:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-03T20:04:09","slug":"the-uproar-over-vogues-ai-generated-ad-isnt-just-about-fashion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/42923\/","title":{"rendered":"The uproar over Vogue’s AI-generated ad isn’t just about fashion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sarah Murray<\/a> recalls the first time she saw an artificial model in fashion: It was 2023, and a beautiful young woman of color donned a Levi\u2019s denim overall dress<\/a>. Murray, a commercial model herself, said it made her feel sad and exhausted.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The iconic denim company had teamed up with the AI studio Lalaland.ai to create \u201cdiverse\u201d digital fashion models for more inclusive ads. For an industry that has failed for years to employ diverse human models, the backlash was swift, with New York Magazine calling the decision \u201cartificial diversity<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cModeling as a profession is already challenging enough without having to compete with now new digital standards of perfection that can be achieved with AI,\u201d Murray told TechCrunch.<\/p>\n

Two years later, her worries have compounded. Brands continue to experiment with AI-generated models, to the consternation of many fashion lovers. The latest uproar came after Vogue\u2019s July print edition featured a Guess ad with a typical model for the brand: thin yet voluptuous, glossy blond tresses, pouty rose lips. She exemplified North American beauty standards, but there was one problem \u2014 she was AI generated.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The internet buzzed for days<\/a>, in large part because the AI-generated beauty showed up in Vogue, the fashion bible that dictates what is and is not acceptable in the industry. The AI-generated model was featured in an advertisement, not a Vogue editorial spread. And Vogue told TechCrunch the ad met its advertising standards.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

To many, an ad versus an editorial is a distinction without a difference.\u00a0<\/p>\n

TechCrunch spoke to fashion models, experts, and technologists to get a sense of where the industry is headed now that Vogue seems to have put a stamp of approval on technology that\u2019s poised to dramatically change the fashion industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Techcrunch event<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 27-29, 2025\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

They said the Guess ad drama highlights questions arising within creative industries being touched by AI\u2019s silicon fingers: When high-quality creative work can be done by AI in a fraction of the time and cost, what\u2019s the point of humans? And in the world of fashion, what happens to the humans \u2014 the models, photographers, stylists, and set designers \u2014 performing those jobs?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just so much cheaper\u201d<\/p>\n

Sinead Bovell, a model and founder of the WAYE<\/a> organization who wrote about CGI models for Vogue<\/a> five years ago, told TechCrunch that \u201ce-commerce models\u201d are most under threat of automation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

E-commerce models are the ones who pose for advertisements or display clothes and accessories for online shoppers. Compared to high-fashion models, whose striking, often unattainable looks are featured in editorial spreads and on runways, they\u2019re more realistic and relatable.<\/p>\n

\u201cE-commerce is where most models make their bread and butter,\u201d Bovell said. \u201cIt\u2019s not necessarily the path to model fame or model prestige, but it is the path for financial security.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"sinead bovell, founder & model Image Credits:Sinead Bovell<\/p>\n

That fact is running in direct contrast to the pressure many brands feel to automate such shoots. Paul Mouginot, an art technologist who has worked with luxury brands, said it\u2019s simply expensive to work with live models, especially when it comes to photographing them in countless garments, shoes, and accessories.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAI now lets you start with a flat-lay product shoot, place it on a photorealistic virtual model, and even position that model in a coherent setting, producing images that look like genuine fashion editorials,\u201d he told TechCrunch.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brands, in some ways, have been doing this for a while, he said. Mouginot, who is French, cited the French retailer Veepee as an example of a company that has used virtual mannequins to sell clothes since at least 2013. Other notable brands like H&M<\/a>, Mango<\/a>, and Calvin Klein have also resorted to AI models.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amy Odell, a fashion writer<\/a> and author of a recently published biography on <\/a>Gwyneth Paltrow<\/a>, put it more simply: \u201cIt\u2019s just so much cheaper for [brands] to use AI models now. Brands need a lot of content, and it just adds up. So if they can save money on their print ad or their TikTok feed, they will.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

PJ Pereira, co-founder of AI ad firm Silverside AI<\/a>, said it really comes down to scale. Every conversation he\u2019s had with fashion brands circles around the fact that the entire marketing system was built for a world where brands produced just four big pieces of content per year. Social media and e-commerce has changed that, and now they need anywhere from 400 to 400,000 pieces; it\u2019s too expensive for brands, especially small ones, to keep up.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no way to scale from four to 400 or 400,000 with just process tweaks,\u201d he added. \u201cYou need a new system. People get angry. They assume this is about taking money away from artists and models. But that\u2019s not what I\u2019ve seen.\u201d<\/p>\n

From \u201cdiverse\u201d models to AI avatars<\/p>\n

Murray, a commercial model, understands the cost benefits of using AI models, but only to an extent.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"sarah murrayImage Credits:Courtesy of Sarah Murray<\/p>\n

She lamented that brands like Levi\u2019s claim AI is only meant to supplement human talent, not take away.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf those [brands] ever had the opportunity to stand in line at an open casting call, they would know about the endless amounts of models, including myself, that would dream of opportunities to work with their brands,\u201d she said. \u201cThey would never need to supplement with anything fake.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

She thinks such a shift will impact \u201cnon-traditional\u201d \u2014 think, diverse \u2014 commercial models, such as herself. That was the main problem with the Levi\u2019s ad. Rather than hiring diverse talent, it artificially generated it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bovell calls this \u201crobot cultural appropriation,\u201d or the idea that brands can just generate certain, especially diverse, identities to tell a brand story, even if the person who created the technology isn\u2019t of that same identity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And though Pereira argues that it\u2019s unrealistic to shoot every garment on every type of model, that hasn\u2019t calmed the fears many diverse models have about what\u2019s to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe already see an unprecedented use of certain terms in our contracts that we worry indicate that we are possibly signing away our rights for a brand to use our face and anything recognizable as ourselves to train their future AI systems,\u201d Murray said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some see generating likenesses of models as a way forward in the AI era. Sara Ziff<\/a>, a former model and founder of the Model Alliance, is working to pass the Fashion Workers Act<\/a>, which would require brands to get a model\u2019s clear consent and provide compensation for using their digital replicas. Mouginot said this lets models appear at several shoots on the same day and possibly generate additional income.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That\u2019s \u201cprecious when a sought-after model is already traveling constantly,\u201d he continued. But at the same time, whenever an avatar is hired, human labor is replaced. \u201cWhat few players gain can mean fewer opportunities for many others.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

If anything, Bovell said the bar is now higher for models looking to compete with the distinctive and the digitized. She suggested that models use their platforms to build their personal brands, differentiate themselves, and work on new revenue streams like podcasting or brand endorsements.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cStart to take those opportunities to tell your unique human story,\u201d she said. \u201cAI will never have a unique human story.\u201d<\/p>\n

That sort of entrepreneurial mindset is becoming table stakes across industries \u2014 from journalism to coding \u2014 as AI creates the conditions for the most self-directed learners to rise.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Room for another view\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Artcare AI-generated model.Image Credits:Artcare<\/p>\n

Mouginot sees a world where some platforms stop working with human models altogether, though he also believes humans share a desire for the \u201csensual reality of objects, for a touch of imperfection and for human connection.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMany breakthrough models succeed precisely because of a distinctive trait, teeth, gaze, attitude, that is slightly imperfect by strict standards yet utterly charming,\u201d he said. \u201cSuch nuances are hard to erode in zeros and ones.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is where startup and creative studio Artcare<\/a> thrives, according to Sandrine Decorde, the firm\u2019s CEO and co-founder. She refers to her team as \u201cAI artisans,\u201d creative people who use tools like Flux from Black Forest Labs<\/a> to fine-tune AI-generated models that have that touch of unique humanity.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Much of the work Decorde\u2019s firm does today involves producing AI-generated babies and children for brands. Employing minors in the fashion industry has historically been a gray area rife with exploitation and abuse. Ethically, Decorde argues, bringing generative AI to children\u2019s fashion makes sense, particularly when the market demand is so high.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like sewing; it\u2019s very delicate,\u201d she told TechCrunch, referring to creating AI-generated models. \u201cThe more time we spend on our datasets and image refinements, the better and more consistent our models are.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"Screenshot from Seraphinne Vallora\u2019s Instagram page.Image Credits:Seraphinne Vallora<\/p>\n

Part of the work is building out a library of distinctive artifacts. Decorde noted that many AI-generated models \u2014 like the ones created by Seraphinne Vallora<\/a>, the agency behind Vogue\u2019s Guess ad \u2014 are too homogenous. Their lips are too perfect and symmetrical. Their jawlines are all the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cImagery needs to make an impact,\u201d Decorde said, noting that many fashion brands like to work exclusively with certain models, a desire that has spilled over into AI-generated models. \u201cA model embodies a fashion brand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pereira added that his firm combats homogeneity in AI \u201cwith intention\u201d and warned that as more content gets made by more people who aren\u2019t intentional, all of the output feeds back into computer models, amplifying bias.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cJust like you would cast for a wide range of models, you have to prompt for that,\u201d he said. \u201cYou need to train [models] with a wide range of appearances. Because if you don\u2019t, the AI will reflect whatever biases it was trained on.\u201d<\/p>\n

An AI future is promised, but uncertain\u00a0<\/p>\n

The usage of AI modeling technology in fashion is mostly still in its experimental phase, Claudia Wagner, founder of modeling booking platform Ubooker, told TechCrunch. She and her team saw the Guess ad and said it was interesting technically, but it wasn\u2019t impactful or new.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"H&M Digital modelImage Credits:H&M<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels like another example of a brand using AI to be part of the current narrative,\u201d she told TechCrunch. \u201cWe\u2019re all in a phase of testing and exploring what AI can add \u2014 but the real value will come when it\u2019s used with purpose, not just for visibility.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Brands are getting visibility from using AI \u2014 and the Guess ad is the latest example. Pereira said his firm recently tested a fully AI-generated product video on TikTok that got more than a million views with mostly negative comments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut if you look past the comments, you see that there\u2019s a silent majority \u2014 almost 20x engagement \u2014 that vastly outnumber the criticism,\u201d he continued. \u201cThe click-through rate was 30x the number of complaints, and the product saw a steep hike in sales.\u201d<\/p>\n

He, like Wagner, doesn\u2019t think AI models are going away anytime soon. If anything, the process of using AI will be integrated into the creative workflow. <\/p>\n

\u201cSome brands feel good about using fully artificial models,\u201d Pereira said. \u201cOthers prefer starting with real people and licensing their likeness to build synthetic shoots. And some brands simply don\u2019t want to do it \u2014 they worry their audiences won\u2019t accept it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wagner said what is becoming evident is that human talent remains central, especially when authenticity and identity are part of a brand\u2019s story. That\u2019s especially true for luxury heritage brands, which are usually slow to adopt new technologies.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Though Decorde noted many high-fashion brands are quietly experimenting with AI, Mouginot said many are still trying to define their AI policies and are avoiding fully AI-generated people at the moment. It\u2019s one reason why Vogue\u2019s inclusion of an AI model was such a shock. <\/p>\n

Bovell pondered if the ad was Vogue\u2019s way of testing how the world would react to merging high fashion with AI.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So far the reaction hasn\u2019t been great. It\u2019s unclear if the magazine thinks it ride out the backlash.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat Vogue does matters,\u201d Odell said. \u201cIf Vogue ends up doing editorials with AI models, I think that\u2019s going to make it okay. In the same way the industry was really resistant to Kim Kardashian and then Vogue featured her. Then it was okay.\u201d<\/p>\n