Walmart’s newest generative AI tool enables designers to create trend-inspired fashion products with shorter lead times than previously possible.
According to the company, the proprietary tool, which it calls Trend-to-Product, gathers and analyzes information from myriad trend sources online, which it then uses to create “on-trend, high-quality items with speed,” while maintaining low prices for its consumers.
The company said the technology has created a unique opportunity for it to keep up with trend cycles, particularly because of its size. The Bentonville, Ark.-headquartered chain is the world’s largest retailer, and scaling products for specific markets can be a difficult task.
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“Trends come and go—fast—and that makes them a unique opportunity for a company like Walmart, where designing items that are cool and quality can be slow going,” the retailer wrote in its blog.
Trend-to-Product cuts down the time designers need to spend researching and scouring for inspiration, the company said, noting that the tool uses generative AI to create a moodboard with suggested colors, textures and ideas based on the trend insights it pulled from the internet.
From there, Walmart’s designers adjust the moodboards to their liking, validate the ideas against the company’s sell-through data and creatively infuse AI’s ideas throughout the designs they create. Once the designers complete that piece of the process, they can turn their final designs over to Trend-to-Product, which creates the tech pack manufacturers need to create each individual item in a collection.
According to the company, using Trend-to-Product in tandem with human designers has helped Walmart shave its lead times from 24 to 26 weeks down to six to eight weeks.
Jen Jackson Brown, senior vice president of apparel brand and design for Walmart U.S., said the tool helps optimize designers’ time, enabling them to focus on what humans do better than machines: use their creativity.
“Trend-to-Product empowers our private brand design and product development associates to spend less time chasing trends and more time doing what they love most—creating and delivering high quality, on-trend items for our customers for every season and occasion,” she said in a statement. “We are excited by the early results of this new technology and the power it could have to transform the way we operate and serve our customers.”
While the company did not mention President Donald Trump’s tariffs in its announcement about the new technology tool, having shorter lead times could help Walmart further diversify its sourcing, depending on how duties on goods inbound from China shake out—and whether other premier sourcing destinations, like Vietnam and Cambodia, receive a true reprieve from tariffs after Trump’s 90-day grace period lapses.
Walmart said it drew inspiration in developing the tool from a generative AI application making change in another industry. The company’s technology team saw a paper suggesting that large language models (LLMs) could be leveraged to analyze and potentially invent new chemicals. Based on the scientists’ findings, Walmart set about to use that same idea, applied to the fashion industry.
Andrea Albright, executive vice president for Walmart sourcing, said seeing the tool come to life to help designers has been a strong first step, but there may be more in store for Trend-to-Product in the coming months.
“We recognized the possibilities with customer-facing technology and saw Trend-to-Product as a way to bring the best of AI and gen AI to the first mile. Now, that vision is coming to life,” Albright said in a statement. “And we’re not stopping with fashion. Imagine a future where Trend-to-Product helps designers create the next great lipstick color or a new flavor combination that sets the internet on fire. That’s where we’re headed.”
Walmart already leverages AI for myriad tasks, including natural language search for easier shopping on its site; review summarization and product comparisons; inventory management and demand forecasting; pallet unloading in warehouses and more.
Vinod Bidarkoppa, executive vice president and chief technology officer for Walmart International, said he sees Trend-to-Product as the latest-and-greatest offering in Walmart’s technology mix, particularly when it comes to keeping prices down for consumers.
“Walmart has continued to invest in cutting-edge AI and gen AI technologies to make the lives of our customers, members and associates easier. Trend-to-Product is the latest example of how these technologies drive optimization, and when combined, can revolutionize an entire business line or industry,” Bidarkoppa said in a statement. “This innovation underscores our commitment to pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, ensuring that our customers always have access to the latest trends at the best prices.”
