As fashion experiments with artificial faces, the industry is being forced to reckon with long-ignored questions about ownership and control.

Artificial intelligence, often abbreviated as AI, has been a topic of conversation in nearly every industry worldwide, and fashion is no exception. While AI&rsquo;s impacts on a large scale are still unknown, there is one place in fashion where we are already seeing change, and unfortunately, subsequent problems. In a new report released by Cornell University&rsquo;s Worker Institute and Data &amp; Society, authors Alexandra Mateescu, Zo&euml; West and Sanjay Pinto found that AI is already changing the fashion modelling industry and the scope of this shift extends far beyond job security.
According to the research, &ldquo;Frankensteining&rdquo; or altering a model&rsquo;s image, has long been standard practice in fashion. Generative AI is not only making things easier but also more profound. &ldquo;A single photoshoot or booking with a model can be used by client companies to capture images, body scans and/or measurements that can then be easily manipulated with AI technologies, allowing companies to extract additional profit from this data without needing to re-hire or further compensate the model,&rdquo; the report claims. Moreover, models are finding that agencies are not equipped for the rapid increase in usage, and therefore, are put in situations where their likeness is manipulated or used without their knowledge.
One of the most prominent news that revolve around the topic is the appearance of an advertisements for the Californian company Guess in American Vogue&rsquo;s August 2025 issue. At a cursory glance, nothing appears unusual: a Caucasian woman with wave blonde hair, flushed cheeks and perfect teeth flashing a wide smile and showing off a long stripe dress with a matching top-handle bag. In another image, she models a floral playsuit with a drawstring that cinches her waist. Yet, in small print on the page, it is revealed that the model was created using artificial intelligence. The campaign developed by Seraphinne Vallora, a London-based AI-driven marketing agency, whose work has also been featured in titles including Elle, The Wall Street Journal and Harper&rsquo;s Bazaar. The discourse around the AI photos was ignited by TikTok users, especially @lala4an, whose video on the Guess ad has since been viewed more than three million times.
The revelation that AI models were inside the pages of Vogue sparked debate over what it might mean for real-life models pushing for greater representation and diversity, and consumers, particularly younger people, who often face unrealistic expectations of beauty. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s insane because it is not like we are short on people looking for modelling gigs or anything,&rdquo; wrote one user on TikTok in a comment that, to date, has over 70,000 likes. &ldquo;So first normal women are comparing themselves to edited models, now we have to compare ourselves to women that don&rsquo;t even exist???&rdquo; wrote another.
One of the biggest go-to brands among modern society today, H&amp;M received the same backlash over its plans to explore artificial intelligence in fashion campaigns moving forward. Though the brand has been very clear about its intentions to utilise AI for fashion modelling, it does not alter the impact of the practice. Many fashion models are already subject to a power dynamic in which the brands and the agencies have significant sway over their livelihoods. Specifically, the report finds that e-commerce and fit models (models that brands work with to test samples) are subject to this type of AI usage, where brands have the potential to create the illusion of youth, racial and body equity through AI models the most.
In September, ultra-fast fashion brand Shein came under fire after an image of Luigi Mangione, the man accused in the shooting of UnitedHealth CEO Brian Thompson, who has since pleaded not guilty to all federal charges, appeared on its site. According to the BBC, &ldquo;The image in question was provided by a third-party vendor and removed immediately upon discovery.&rdquo; Shein told the outlet that they are &ldquo;conducting a thorough investigation, strengthening our monitor processes and will take appropriate action against the vendor in line with our policies.&rdquo;
The image showed what appeared to be a smiling Mangione wearing a men&rsquo;s floral button-up shirt. While Shein has not confirmed that the image was, in fact, AI-generated; it seems clear that Mangione did not recently model for the brand, as he has been in jail awaiting trial since December 2024.
Whether the product listing was a mistake by a third party or intentional, it highlights a serious lack of discernment in this practice. Outside of the obvious trivialisation of a serious court case (and cultural conversation about healthcare in the United States), the way Mangione&rsquo;s likeness got onto that page was not through a paid partnership. It means that models, influencers or really, any of us could potentially find our likeness being used to sell something we don&rsquo;t even know about or possibly believe in.
Worse, some models who spoke to the researchers highlighted how these image manipulations were being used to sexualise their likeliness. In those cases, &ldquo;they were generally left without any avenue for recourse&rdquo;.
&ldquo;We know that the fashion industry is built on the back of long-standing inequitable power structures,&rdquo; Sara Ziff, founding director of the New York-based Model Alliance, said in a statement about the report. &ldquo;The steps we take today will determine whether AI entrenches these imbalances or helps us reimagine a better, more equitable fashion industry.
As we head into fashion month, the impact of generative AI might still be felt. The physical presence of models on the runways is, of course, necessary but the ramifications of unrealistic body standards created by artificial intelligence models could be a major setback toward any progress the industry has made in that area.

Getty Images.

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