H&M is taking a notably different approach to artificial intelligence, choosing to make the technology fit its designers rather than asking designers to change the way they work. The Swedish fashion retailer's strategy reflects lessons learned from its earlier experience with 3D design, when a tool intended to support creativity sometimes ended up restricting it.
Today, H&M is applying those lessons to its artificial intelligence strategy, placing creative teams at the centre of the process. The approach appears to be paying off, with as many as 90 per cent of the company's designers now using AI in their workflows and more than 700,000 designs having been generated since the initiative launched.
H&M Learned a Lesson From 3D Design
For H&M, the push towards AI did not begin in isolation. Its digital product creation team had already seen how introducing new technology could unintentionally affect the creative process.
Bhargava Ram Kummamuru, H&M's head of digital product creation, explained that some designers had previously avoided more complicated product concepts because they were difficult to execute using 3D design tools. Instead of simply making the process easier, the technology could influence what designers felt able to create.
That experience shaped H&M's thinking about artificial intelligence. Rather than expecting employees to adapt their creative processes around a new system, the company wanted its AI tools to work around the way different teams already operated.
'We didn't want to fall into the same trap as before,' Kummamuru said during a keynote at the PI Apparel Fashion Tech Show in New York.
Putting Designers at the Centre of AI
H&M's strategy has focused on understanding how its teams actually work before deciding how AI should be introduced.
One example came from H&M Home, where the digital product creation team was invited to run a creative workshop. Instead of simply teaching employees how to use AI, the sessions centred on conversations about existing workflows and where technology could genuinely be useful.
The approach helped uncover tasks that the digital team had not initially considered suitable for AI.
That discovery process became an important part of the wider rollout. Rather than bringing every department together for a single company-wide programme, H&M worked with teams separately. Designers from areas including swimwear and womenswear were given space to discuss their individual needs and experiment with AI in familiar working environments.
Employees also brought physical product samples and iPads into these sessions, allowing them to explore possible solutions using the materials and tools they already knew.
According to Kummamuru, this helped prevent designers from feeling overwhelmed by the idea of artificial intelligence.
Adoption Has Grown Across H&M
The results have been significant. H&M's new digital product creation strategy took around four months to develop, but the company says AI is now used in the workflows of up to 90 per cent of its designers.
The high rate shows how quickly AI has moved from an emerging technology to a practical part of H&M's creative operations. However, the company's digital product creation team believes the most important benefit cannot necessarily be expressed through a simple efficiency metric.
For Kummamuru, one of the biggest advantages is the ability to move more easily from an initial idea to a finished product. That process can be difficult to measure because creative work varies considerably between departments and individual projects.
In other words, H&M is not viewing AI simply as a way to make fashion design faster. It is treating the technology as another tool that can help designers translate their ideas into products.
Why H&M's Collaborative Approach Matters
The fashion industry has increasingly explored artificial intelligence for design, product development and other creative processes. Yet introducing new technology into an established workflow can be complicated, particularly when creative professionals feel that their experience or judgement is being replaced.
H&M's approach attempts to address that concern by making collaboration part of the implementation process.
Instead of presenting AI as a ready-made solution, the company has encouraged designers to help shape how the technology is used. That means different teams can have different applications depending on their needs.
The strategy also gives employees a more active role in the transition. Rather than simply being instructed to use a new platform, designers are involved in identifying problems, testing possible solutions and deciding where AI can make a meaningful difference.
That has helped create what Kummamuru described as a growing demand from teams across the organisation, with employees increasingly approaching the digital product creation group for help.
Leadership Has Also Played a Key Role
H&M's AI transformation has not happened entirely from the bottom up. Kummamuru also pointed to the importance of senior leadership in giving the digital product creation team the authority to introduce new ideas.
Kristina Felixon, who has spent more than three decades at H&M and was appointed chief product officer last year, has provided significant backing for the initiative. Her support gave the team greater authority to push for changes and encourage experimentation across the business.
That leadership support can be particularly important when introducing technology that affects established creative and commercial processes. Having senior executives behind the programme can make it easier for teams to test new approaches and move beyond traditional ways of working.
AI Could Change How Fashion Design Works
H&M's experience highlights a broader lesson about artificial intelligence in fashion. The success of new technology may depend not only on what the software can do, but also on how comfortably it fits into the people and processes already in place.
For H&M, that has meant putting designers first and technology second.
Its growing use of AI demonstrates that the company sees artificial intelligence as a practical part of digital product creation rather than a replacement for creative thinking. The emphasis remains on helping designers develop their ideas while allowing the technology to adapt to different workflows.
As AI continues to reshape the fashion industry, H&M's strategy offers a clear example of how companies can approach innovation without losing sight of the people expected to use it. Rather than forcing designers to work around technology, the retailer is attempting to make technology work around designers — and that may prove to be one of the most important parts of its AI strategy.
