How Tapestry is using Gen AI to supercharge digital twin design

The mania surrounding AI shows no signs of slowing down, with DeepSeek’s explosive global breakthrough dominating headlines this week. After shooting to the top of the U.S. App Store last weekend and upending the stock market, the disruptor is back in the spotlight amid reports that it leveraged rival OpenAI’s technology to train its own model. In other AI news, Tapestry, the parent company of Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman, is betting big on digital twins by partnering with Adobe to bring AI-powered design to luxury. The initiative, which has been quietly in the works since late 2024, leverages Adobe Firefly’s generative AI to create hyper-realistic digital replicas across product categories, in-store displays, and social media campaigns. According to Tapestry’s senior director of digital product creation, J.J. Camara, digital twins are now integrated across the group’s brands, allowing for more efficient prototyping, reducing waste, and streamlining marketing. A key breakthrough came when Firefly’s AI-generated twins closely mirrored real-life products, giving Tapestry the confidence to scale the technology further. With digital twin technology projected to reach $73.5 billion by 2027, according to McKinsey, more luxury brands may soon follow suit. New EU regulations are also accelerating adoption. The upcoming Digital Product Passport (DPP), set to roll out in the textile industry by 2026, will require products sold in the EU to have a digital twin comprehensively detailing their environmental impact. The ability to rapidly iterate designs, fine-tune merchandising strategies, and gather consumer feedback before physical production offers a competitive advantage, even as budgets tighten amid the luxury market slowdown. While many brands are scaling back on innovation, as evidenced by this Fashion Week’s noticeable lack of tech-related buzz, Tapestry is pressing ahead. The company is also utilizing Adobe Firefly Services to automate image creation for internal merchandising, ensuring its digital-first strategy extends beyond product design. Following the collapse of its planned merger with Capri last November, Tapestry appears to be shifting its focus back to organic growth as a solo player. The company’s full-year revenue for 2024 edged up to $6.67 billion, narrowly beating expectations, with shares rising 5.6% in pre-market trading.

Tapestry uses Gen AI to supercharge digital twin design

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Tapestry uses Gen AI to supercharge digital twin design