Hasta La Ideas

For better or worse, AI-designed footwear is here, and I suppose it was only a matter of time. Entrepreneur Ben Weiss, backed by Reebok co-founder Joe Foster, has set up a company called Syntilay that will leverage both the technology and the influencer economy to shift product.

Let’s start with the footwear, which I find incredibly ugly (but then I am not the target market). AI is used to generate concept sketches, the 3D model and the surfacing. “Each process, overseen by our designer Kedar Benjamin, has improved the efficiency greatly, reduced waste, and enabled a forward thinking design that is unprecedented,” the company writes. To ensure a perfect fit, consumers scan their foot using a smartphone app.

The business model is also quite different. Rather than say, sponsoring pro athletes to take care of the market, Syntilay plans to work through the influencer economy. “With around half of today’s youth aspiring to be influencers and new age brands that have incredible influence, why not give them a true path to bring to life their own distinct creativity in the footwear category? Many influencers can sell hats, shirts, shorts, and more yet shoes are not an option. There is a great opportunity to empower these creators and to inspire the next generation.”

As much as I dislike both the look of the shoes and the influencer economy we now live within, I can’t deny the business model is genius: Auto-designed product as merch, flogged for you by folks whose business is developing their “brand.”

The company also notes that they “have the ability to improve efficiency from build to release for a new shoe by up to 9x the industry average.” The sacrifice required, at least at this point, are the aesthetics. The question is, will buyers care?

The lone model the company currently offers, seen above, goes for $150 a pair.