What: Aesthetic has introduced a new AI platform, likened to "Shazam for Clothes," enabling users to shop and discover fashion directly through social media.

Why it is important: This innovation bridges the gap between inspiration and purchase, offering a personalised shopping experience and empowering tastemakers to monetise their influence, potentially transforming the e-commerce landscape.

Aesthetic, a new e-commerce technology company, has launched an AI platform that allows users to shop for fashion directly through social media platforms like Instagram. The platform uses a proprietary algorithm called Alma, part of Google Cloud’s AI start-up program, to identify and recommend fashion items based on user preferences. Users can send content to the Alma bot and receive instant shopping links. The platform has attracted over 80,000 waitlist sign-ups and is expanding to TikTok and other platforms. Aesthetic aims to map the "human style genome," offering tailored recommendations and bridging the gap between inspiration and purchase. It also supports tastemakers—stylists, creators, designers—by sharing revenue from sales influenced by their content. This approach allows tastemakers to monetise their style fully. The company has received investment from notable figures in fashion and tech, with plans to revolutionise how personal taste is shared and monetised.

Aesthetic launches AI platform for fashion discovery