BERLIN: A perfect smile, flawless figure and an outfit that fits like a glove. Scanning the online shop, the image looks perfect and totally normal and why wouldn't it? It’s a model.
But is it a real person? Increasingly, such images are no longer created solely by people, but by artificial intelligence (AI).
Companies are increasingly turning to AI in their online shops for reasons of speed, efficiency and lower costs.
Bad news for models worldwide, many are now wondering whether the industry will even need real people to pose for the cameras in future.
"AI is no longer a topic for the future. It is already part of our everyday working lives,” Ukrainian model Stasya tells dpa.
She has worked as a model across several countries for years, most recently spending an extended period in China. There, she witnessed the rapid advance of AI-driven transformation, including instances where faces were digitally mapped onto other bodies after shoots.
Working hours have also become shorter, she says, in part due to the use of AI. In her view, this raises serious ethical and legal questions.
Worse yet, clients are offering contracts that explicitly permit the use of models' faces for AI purposes. "You think about job security and whether you’ll still be able to earn enough in the future,” she says.
At the same time, the market may be shifting with AI accelerating standardised mass production, she says. That could mean high-quality campaigns with real teams and real sets would become more exclusive.
Berlin-based model Annika Schnauffer does not see AI as a dominant threat. Competitive pressure is part and parcel of an overcrowded industry anyway, she says.
Whether you lose a job to AI is usually unclear. She can most readily imagine digital figures in standard online retail outlets, where large volumes of images are needed, with little creative leeway.
She takes a critical view of the diversity debate, saying while AI can simulate diversity, "there are enough people and models who could be booked in real life.”
In many countries, AI models are already in use. Hamburg-based mail-order company Otto says it already uses generative AI to create photorealistic model images of synthetic, fictional people.
That means Otto can put new collections online in a matter of hours. The company states that its use is limited to the online shop and is only employed for product presentations in which no real people would have been visible anyway.
AI mainly fills the gaps where traditional photo shoots reach their economic or organisational limits, the company says.
Online fashion retailer Zalando says it's using digital twins of real models. These high-resolution 3D replicas are created based on traditional photo shoots. Real people still appear in front of the camera for creative campaigns, the company says.
Zalando only uses models generated purely by AI without a real-life counterpart in exceptional cases, it says, such as to avoid shoots involving children or to respond to trends at short notice.
Modelling agencies torn between resistance and adaptation
A similar debate is taking place within modelling agencies, though with less focus on technology and more on rights. "We are not currently seeing a massive drop in bookings,” says Carlos Streil, a model scout at the Frankfurt-based agency East West Models in Germany.
However, he says there have been enquiries – including from major clients – regarding contracts in which models would be required to assign rights for AI use, for example for data collection and subsequent use as AI models.
The agency has rejected such agreements, he says. In principle, however, the agency is not opposed to AI, provided that avatars are created based on real models and the models continue to earn an income.
Carmen Weigel, head of the Berlin-based modelling agency BMM, takes a similarly pragmatic view. She sees Zalando’s approach as promising.
Digital avatars of real models could be licensed without the models having to physically appear on set, which is economically appealing as licensing fees often exceed traditional daily rates, she says.
But she does not expect real people to be completely replaced. For Weigel, modelling is more than just being photogenic. "To me, a model is more of a talent,” she says. It is not just about being beautiful, but about charisma, poise and the potential for identification, she adds.
Labelling, consent and legal guidelines
The legal situation is also unclear, particularly when it comes to how to label AI-generated content in online retail. Weigel calls for clear labelling and warns against new, even more unrealistic body images that would lead models and young women to compare themselves to computer-generated images.
This is difficult to regulate by law, but agencies must be particularly cautious when licensing images of their models for AI avatars that could be resold to brands, she says.
Models must fully understand what is happening to their faces and be adequately compensated for it, she notes.
There are long-term implications too, she says. Once someone's face has been digitised, it could continue to be used even long after the person has died, making informed consent and clear contractual boundaries all the more important.
In Europe, the debate is "ongoing," Otto says. Binding requirements and guidelines for online retail have not yet been definitively clarified.
Zalando emphasises the need for transparency, but still sees grey areas when it comes to digital twins based on real models and real clothing, where AI only supports parts of the production process, the label "AI-generated” sometimes falls short.
Customers decide
Ultimately, it is not technology alone that decides in the industry, but the market, says Streil. Weigel also says: "Ultimately, customers vote with their wallets.”
Brands have already seen how public pressure can change strategies. Weigel points to Victoria’s Secret. When shoppers slammed slim beauty ideals and customers turned away in the 2010s, sales figures fell, shaking the brand’s image.
How the industry will develop remains to be seen. For Schnauffer, power is also an issue. "Ultimately, as a model, you’re somewhat at the mercy of how the industry moves forward.”
The decisive factor is likely to be whether clear rules are established, she says, regarding consent, use and remuneration when faces become data. – dpa
