Co-creating the future of fashion with Google

Google's Envisioning Studio, with support from Google Labs, worked side by side with fashion designers Jane Wade and Sergio Hudson to build two specialized tools in Google Flow, Google's AI creative studio, ahead of New York Fashion Week. The collaborations focused on easing production tasks, since administrative work, factory logistics, and vendor coordination typically consume most of an independent designer's time, leaving little for design itself.

For Jane Wade, the co-created Styling Suite mapped every facet of her runway model looks. In-person casting and fittings normally take up to three full days for a design team. Using the tool, she curated hair, makeup, accessories, shoes, and garments on digital models, experimented with styling virtually, and balanced each look while identifying missing elements before cutting and sewing additional pieces.

Sergio Hudson's challenge was staging his show without exceeding his budget. Previously, requests to change lighting and props increased costs because each design revision required a new 3D rendering. The co-developed Runway Visualization tool removed that back-and-forth by simulating his runway. It let him adjust his venue setup, swap lighting and props for options that fit his budget, and refine the paths models would walk to harmonize the show and viewer experience.

Google says the results of these collaborations were visible on the runways at New York Fashion Week. The company notes that while there is excitement around AI in fashion, many projects remain stuck in theoretical testing. Google Flow now lets anyone build custom design tools using natural language to describe the desired tool or workflow, with no coding required.

Why it matters: Designers and product teams can create bespoke workflows in Google Flow without coding, and the two tools show how AI can target specific production bottlenecks such as fittings and set revisions, potentially saving time and materials.