Kozminski Techblog

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The fashion business has always been at the forefront of innovation, establishing trends and pushing the boundaries. In recent years, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformational force, changing several industries. The fashion modeling industry is one of the more exciting industries where AI is making an effect. From design and production to marketing and customer experiences, AI is changing the fashion industry.

Lalaland.ai is one of the numerous firms developing AI models today.Lalaland.ai was founded in 2019 by CEO and Co-Founder Michael Musandu to solve issues with a homogeneous modeling business and offer a cost-effective solution.

The Diversity Dilemma:

Consumers sometimes struggle to imagine how a certain dress or top would look on them when presented by models who do not reflect their own appearance. Recognizing this challenge, Lalaland.ai developed a disruptive solution: digital models of all sizes, ages, and races.

“From an ethnic aspect, the world is incredibly different; we do not all have the same skin tone. When you consider the model’s age and size, it doesn’t make sense to us that a XXL person should estimate how the product will look on their body based on looking at someone who is a size small.

The Importance of AI in Promoting Diversity and Reducing Waste:

Lalaland.ai’s creative method not only addresses the diversity gap in fashion representation, but also helps to promote sustainability. Brands who use Lalaland.ai’s AI models may display their products on a wide range of digital models, making customers of various shapes, sizes, and backgrounds feel seen and represented.

Throwaway returns account for around 2.3 million tonnes of waste. Unsold clothing wind up in an incineration or landfill. Given that Lalalands.ai’s primary purpose is to create techniques to reduce return rates. In principle, if you know how the thing will look on you when you buy it.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=a9aCev3pThU%3Fsi%3DoSHDqaYke0DR-hLh

While such AI technology has clearly delivered tremendous improvements and benefits, it is vital to understand and critically analyze its possible drawbacks.
1) Job Displacement:

Devaluation of typical modeling careers. Because with digital models, corporations will not see the need to look for different sorts of models, set up photoshoots, and all the other expenditures
2) Limited Emotional Expression:

Digital models lack the genuine emotional reactions and relationships that real models provide to the fashion industry. The delicate subtleties and emotions given by a real person on the runway or in advertising materials may be difficult for AI models to accurately duplicate.

AI-driven digital models in the fashion business have great potential for innovation, efficiency, and inclusivity. However, ethical, cultural, and societal ramifications should be carefully considered. The appropriate development and deployment of new technology necessitates transparency, inclusivity, and a dedication to preserving the authenticity and humanity that distinguish the fashion industry.

Sources:Lalaland.ai is changing the fashion game | I amsterdam

10 Best AI Fashion Designer Tools (January 2024) – Unite.AI

Are AI-Generated Models Really Going to Replace Human Ones? – Fashionista

Chat gpt

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Apple’s revenue has been progressively declining in one of its most important markets, China. Since 2019, revenue equivalent to or greater than 4.5 billion has been lost yearly, despite a growth in sales between 2021 and 2022, which has been a source of concern for the market stock.

One of the reasons for the drop is the selling of Mac computers and iPads. However, since the announcement of the iPhone 15, demand in China has been lower than predicted.

According to Jeff Pu, an analyst at Haitong International Securities, a cause of decline in demand is the Huawei in China which has posed to be a strong competitor to Apple. The affordability and diversity of its Android phones such as the Huawei launched the 6.8-inch Mate 60 2023 with prices starting at 5999 (about $819), which was $200 less than the iPhone 15 Pro caused it to have a higher demand.

The political tension as well created from the effects of Trump’s trade war with China trade barriers on China , labor is becoming more expensive and he workforce as a whole is getting older. This has produced a shift in the two countries’ overall relations.

The question is whether this decision is optimal for Apple as Apple dominated the phone industry in China given their long term past. Due to lower labor costs, entering India and Vietnam proves beneficial allowing Apple to expand its sales in these nations. Recognizing the constant political concerns, Apple intends to avoid concentrating all of its investments in a single country.

Nonetheless, Vision Pro, Apple’s new spatial computing headset, a larger iPad Air, and conjecture about the iPhone 16 are likely to kick off 2024. Apple is still expected to dominate the market and maybe push customers’ wallets with higher prices WITH THE CONFIDENCE that sales revenue would remain strong despite the dip in sales.

Sources:

https://appleinsider.com/articles/22/12/03/apple-tells-suppliers-to-plan-for-shift-of-manufacturing-out-ofchina#:~:text=A%20Foxconn%20facility%20Apple%20is%20working%20to%20speed,has%20reconsidered%20relying%20on%20the%20country%20so%20much

Apple Suffers 1st Quarterly Sales Decline in Nearly 4 Years (usnews.com)

As demand for iPhone 15 is weaker than expected, Apple could change strategy next year – SamMobile

Apple, the world’s most valuable stock, is about to start growing again (ft.com)

Chat gpt

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Stroke robotic treatment is a type of rehabilitation that uses robotic equipment to help people who have had a stroke restore motor function and improve their overall mobility. It focuses towards the damaged limbs, with the goal of improving motor control, strength, and coordination.

There are two main classifications for upper-extremity robotics: end-effector and exoskeleton. End effector devices are often simpler, engaging just with the most distal components of the participant, whereas exoskeleton devices can align with one or more joints, allowing for direct measurement and modification of joint movement.

LOKOMAT

Lokomat is an example robotic therapy. It is a robot-assisted treadmill that supports a patient in an upright position while moving the legs through a normal walking pattern – even if a patient is unable to move his or her legs independently.

How it works ?

The patient is suspended in a harness above a treadmill, and an exoskeleton robotic frame linked to the outside of the legs by straps moves the legs in a natural walking pattern.

The velocity of walking and the body’s reaction to movement are controlled by a computer as the repetitive walking pattern helps the brain and spinal cord work together to re-route signals that were interrupted by injury or illness.

Sensors and other technology track the patient’s walking pattern, track changes in strength, range of motion, and endurance over time, and allow the patient to gradually increase physical effort while maintaining safety. 

In patients with a spinal cord injury, the therapy induces reflexes that allow leg input to go up the spinal cord. Whilst In patients with brain injury and stroke, the involved side of the body responds to moving in the normal pattern of walking even if the patient does not have the strength to move his legs.

Juntendo Clinic is the first clinic in Japan to use this Lokomat therapy robot to treat gait abnormalities caused by stroke, spinal cord damage, and Parkinson’s disease.

The availability of such technology may be more prevalent in larger cities and well-established medical institutions. However with Japan being one of the few countries that offer the Lokomat Stroke robotic therapy to patients, this just sets the floor for the rest of the world to begin incorporating robotic therapy in hospitals with greater regularity.

Advantages

1)The Most Physiological Motion

The individually configurable patient interface ensures physiological movement of the lower extremities. It helps strengthen muscles and improve circulation using Augmented Performance Feedback (APF).

Also, the weight bearing nature of the exercise may help strengthen bones at risk for osteoporosis (the loss of calcium from bones that makes them fragile and easy to break) due to lack of use.

2)State-of-the-Art Gait Rehabilitation

Patients are increasingly more informed about what the most effective and efficient therapy is, and they use this information to decide where to go for their rehabilitation.

3)Optimal Patient Challenge

Patients must be challenged during rehabilitation. Therapists can assist patients in reaching their goals by tailoring training parameters to their abilities. Therefore, Patients are inspired to achieve their goals through a variety of game-like exercises especially for the pediatrics.

4)Increased Efficiency

The Lokomat allows therapists to focus on the patient and the actual therapy. It enhances staff efficiency and safety, leading to higher training intensity, more treatments per therapist, and consistent, superior patient care.

In my opinion, such increased therapy makes such a tremendous difference, especially for stroke victims. With the traditional therapy patients would recover to a considerable extent , but would still have certain effects for the rest of their lives that may have been impossible to entirely heal from. As a result, robotic decreases, if not fully eliminates, the odds of a patient developing long-term consequences in the future.

Sources:

https://www.msn.com/en-xl/health/other/juntendo-clinic-use-robotic-therapy-for-gait-disorders/ar-AA1kobM2

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3859002/

https://jneuroengrehab.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12984-021-00804-8

Lokomat®

https://chat.openai.com/c/41e43bbc-4400-4787-ba9b-715f7b2e3a21

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Imagine the convenience of being able to put on a VR headset and travel anywhere in the globe, whether sledding in Sweden or paragliding over the Himalayas. Well, thanks to VR tourism, you can now be transported from your couch to a distant area with a few clicks.  

What is Virtual Reality Tourism ?

 Virtual reality (VR) technology is used in VR tourism which  enables travelers to explore and experience their destination virtually without ever boarding a plane. It offers consumers an immersive and interactive experience that mimics being physically there experiencing the sights, sounds, and sensations of distant locations . Virtual trip destinations are generated through the use of specialist VR gear and software.

How does it work?

Users wear VR headsets (such as Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, or PlayStation VR) that completely immerse them in a 3D virtual environment. It includes spatial audio, where sounds are simulated in 3D space. This means users can hear sounds coming from specific directions, enhancing the feeling of immersion.

Through object recognition technologies, VR travel apps such as City Guide Tour can tell you about places you visit. The apps help you identify popular tourist destinations such as parks, museums, and galleries and provide on-screen details about them. Users can access these apps through VR headsets, smartphones, or computers and get to access a wide range of destinations and activities, from exploring natural wonders to visiting historical sites and landmarks.

Benefits of VR Tourism

• With Virtual travelling many restrictions, such as financial cost (airfare, lodging and transportation), time, or physical limitations, can be removed. All you have to do is invest in virtual reality technologies to access immersive travel experiences to any location in the world. 
• VR is also paving the road for greater inclusion of the elderly who may not be physically fit enough to travel.
• You and your loved ones can take VR city tours and get transported anywhere you like, without the hassle of taking public transportation, group planning tools that facilitate better trip planning for friends and family.
• VR Tourism can help to reduce the environmental impact of travel such as reducing unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions in transportation load of tourist destinations, the pressure on their ecosystems caused by human activities.

Many countries and tourist attractions have already embraced and continue to embrace development. The Louvre, the Palace Museum, and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, for example, have all developed virtual tour services for tourists.

Germany has offered viewers virtual reality tours of various regions within the nation.The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) has taken viewers on tours across the nation as well as to sections of its Baltic and North Sea coasts through 360-degree recordings meant to be seen on Oculus Rift headsets.

              Worldwide travelers are becoming increasingly interested in virtual tourism . According to insights from Future Market , the Virtual Toursim market is expected  to grow by 7.8% in the next 10 years.

However, to address the question of whether Virtual Tourism will succeed over traditional tourist, I do not believe so. Yes, the virtual reality headset’s 3D capability is quite advanced, but it only concentrates on visual and audio experiences, and it cannot convey a comprehensive feeling of a destination’s richness. Traveling allows people to connect with many people and the residents of that area; it allows people to participate in activities and find things that they would not have discovered otherwise, which increases the physical authenticity of the experience. Not to mention Furthermore, virtual reality travel might be costly. Many people may find the expense of VR experiences and equipment prohibitively expensive.

Sources:

https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/virtual-tourism-market#:~:text=As%20per%20the%20latest%20findings%20of%20Future%20Market,estimated%20to%20reach%20around%2026.0%20Billion%20in%202033

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54658147

https://www.makeuseof.com/what-is-vr-tourism-and-benefits/

https://www.makeuseof.com/what-is-vr-tourism-and-benefits/

https://immersionvr.co.uk/about-360vr/vr-for-touris

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Artificial intelligence (AI) has helped firms in the beauty industry provide more efficient services to meet customer expectations such as personalized beauty products and virtual try-ons. It is also opening doors for those who cannot use conventional cosmetics owing to motor skill limitations to be included in the profession through the use of assisted beauty technology. Here are two instances of how Artificial intelligence is changing the beauty industry.

Le Teint Particulier: Customised Foundation

Finding the accurate foundation shade for your skin is one of the most common issues when it comes to buying foundation. According to Mr Balooch 2019,  “50% of women complain that they can’t find the right shade of foundation for their face, and women with darker skin tones have been crying out for more choice.”

Therefore, the Lancome division of L’Oreal launched a customized foundation tool called Le Teint Particulier in 2017 that uses artificial intelligence to identify the “exact match” for a customer’s complexion.

The machine scans the user’s skin with an innovative device for color accuracy. The results are then run through a computer, which uses a proprietary algorithm to choose from 20,000 different foundation shades. The results are then sent to a machine that mixes the foundation for the user, instantly in the shop.

The product is long-wearing, oil, fragrance and paraben-free with a second skin feel. Every bottle comes with the user’s name and shade number to allow for easy re-orders. This service is available in 27 store all around the US and is available for the price of $88.

THE HAPTA LIPSTICK APPLICATOR

The Hapta Lipstick Applicator is the first handheld smart makeup applicator created for beauty lovers with hand and arm mobility. It also benefits those who have tremors and stroke effects finding it challenging to get a comfortable angle when applying lipstick or mascara.

The lipstick applicator system is made up of three parts – lipstick in a custom case, a gimbal on a mount and a grip. The user removes the lipstick from the case with the spring-loaded release, places it in the ring attached to the gimbal, then attaches the grip to the gimbal mount. Once the gimbal is brought to the lips, the user can apply it steadily without any issues.

However, the Hapta Lipstick Applicator is not fully independent as it still requires the use of another hand to open and twist out the lipstick. L’Oreal is continuously improving the applicator’s design and plans to release the product onto the market by the end of 2023.

In the coming years AI is likely to gain more prominence in the beauty industry as more companies are looking to take advantage of the technology to better suit the needs of the clients and the improving the efficiency of their service. It will pick up as more beauty operations are absorbing it but it may take time to expand into other markets as the current price point might be high for the majority of consumers.

Sources:

www.lorealtechincubator.com/leteintparticulier

Microsoft Bing

https://www.youtube.com/@Engadget

L’Oréal, world leader in beauty : makeup, cosmetics, haircare, perfume (loreal.com)

Discover HAPTA (loreal.com)