AI is transforming fast fashion, focusing on Shein, the Chinese fast-fashion giant, and its use of AI algorithms to monitor consumer demand and streamline production. By using AI, Shein is able to produce and list over 600,000 items at lightning speed, contributing to its global dominance. However, the company faces criticism for environmental and labor violations. Shein claims AI helps reduce waste, but its carbon footprint has soared, tripling in 2023. Other fast fashion brands like H&M and Zara are also using AI to optimize supply chains, reduce costs, and predict trends, with some experts, such as McKinsey's Holger Harreis, believing that AI could lead to more personalized and sustainable fashion.
Yet, environmentalists like Lewis Perkins from the Apparel Impact Institute are skeptical, arguing that without ethical practices, AI may drive overproduction and overconsumption. Despite AI's potential for reducing waste, critics note the industry's ongoing issues with pollution and exploitation. Moreover, AI's use in fast fashion raises concerns about copyright infringement, as algorithms copy designs from artists without permission. While AI can reduce fabric defects and optimize environmental impacts, experts warn that if used solely to accelerate production, it may exacerbate fast fashion’s existing problems rather than solve them.