Daily LInks
1. Chinese luxury goods: the bear case. Luxury demand from domestic travel has returned (as a reminder, up to 50% of luxury sales in Beijing and Shanghai is contributed by non-local customers), the average spending ticket has continued to rise, and the very high end (e.g. VIPs) has increased its luxury spend since the beginning of 2023. – Read More on the FT
2. FTC sues Amazon over ‘deceptive’ Prime sign-up and cancellation process. The FTC on Wednesday sued Amazon, alleging it tricked customers into signing up for its Prime subscription program and intentionally complicated the the cancellation process. – Read More on CNBC
3. Apple Is an AI Company Now. Apple is a luxury brand, more deeply in the business of making using your computer and phone enjoyable above all else. “So it isn’t surprising that Apple is approaching AI cautiously, with a product-oriented focus.” – Read More on the Atlantic
4. RETRO READ: Is Apple a Luxury Brand? Well, That Depends on Your Definition of Luxury. “If change is happening at Apple, it seems like it’s moving from high-end electronics company to something more like a luxury fashion brand, moving away from focusing on user experience and industrial engineering as driving forces, and toward a company that offers trendiness, status, and individuality first.” – Read More on TFL
5. In tech, everything is labeled “AI” now. Real advances in machine-learning based pattern- recognition and -completion have sparked a new bubble in tech-industry investment, encouraging companies to apply the “AI” label to anything that moves. – Read More on Axios
6. AI’s regulation naysayers protest too much. Behind the new-fangled and possibly game-changing technology is a familiar arm-wrestling contest between regulators and big technology firms. – Read More on Reuters
1. Can AI end the era of the fashion super-fake? Pierre Denis, former CEO of Jimmy Choo and an investor in the luxury authentication space, blends cautious optimism about what AI can do with a warning about the counterfeiters’ relentless innovation. “Everything can be forged,” he explains. “There are hackers in every domain.” – Read More on the FT
2. The counterfeit lawsuits that scoop up hundreds of Chinese Amazon sellers at once. US law firms have been putting together mass IP cases, suing hundreds of sellers on Amazon or other platforms at the same time for selling counterfeit goods. – Read More on MIT Tech Review
3. Europe, US urged to investigate the type of AI that powers systems like ChatGPT. EU consumer protection groups are urging regulators to investigate the type of AI underpinning systems like ChatGPT, citing risks that leave people vulnerable and the delay before the bloc’s groundbreaking AI regulations take effect. – Read More on the AP
4. AI Is Changing China’s Apparel Industry But Can’t Replace Designers Yet, Insiders Say. AI is being more widely used in China’s clothing sector. Linctex’s customers include Bosideng, Anta, and UR, and the company’s clothing design, pattern-making, and photo-taking are all done in digital 3D. – Read More on Yicai Global
5. AIs producing art or inventions have to navigate a hostile legal landscape, and a consensus is far away. Who should profit from a model’s output? Should the owners of a model’s training data have a share? Can anyone own the rights at all? – Read More on IEEE
6. If it’s broken, they fix it: A look at how global fashion brands have successfully integrated repair into their business models – and how they have navigated some trickier aspects like monetization and garment collection. – Read More on the Guardian
1. Apple Is Taking on Apples in a Truly Weird Trademark Battle. Apple’s attempts to secure the trademark in Switzerland go as far back as 2017, when it submitted an application to the Swiss Institute of IP seeking a registration for a realistic, black-and-white depiction of an apple variety known as the Granny Smith—the generic green apple. – Read More on Wired
2. A.I. could ‘remove all human touchpoints’ in supply chains. Here’s what that means: Generative AI in supply chains will be able to forecast demand, predict when trucks need maintenance and work out optimal shipping routes, according to analysts. – Read More on CNBC
3. Should You Start a Generative AI Company? Many entrepreneurs are considering starting companies that leverage the latest generative AI technology, but they must ask themselves whether they have what it takes to compete on increasingly commoditized foundational models, or whether they should instead differentiate on an app that leverages these models. – Read More on HBR
4. As AI Expands, Consumers Will Still Prefer Some Products Made With a Human Touch. In one study, consumers preferred reading glasses where the frame—a fashion accessory, and hence symbolic—was made by hand vs. machine. But they preferred glasses with machine-made lenses. – Read More on the WSJ
5. Why is China obsessed with luxury brands? “China is the most fertile ground for luxury brands because CCP has destroyed traditions, religions in China, and Chinese are socially competitive and status-conscious.” – Read More on SCMP
6. How counterfeits and celebrities are defining China’s growing resale market: “Brands should continue playing an active role educating shoppers and positioning themselves to capitalize on the resale market as it emerges.” – Read More on Jing Daily
1. Legal fight over “Zoom” name tests Japan’s trademark system. A legal battle between Zoom, the U.S.-based video conferencing system, and a Japanese audio equipment manufacturer of the same name began in the Tokyo District Court in 2021. The dispute now spans 29 countries and is complicated by the unexpected involvement of another party: Tombow Pencil, a Japanese manufacturer of stationery products. – Read More on Nikkei Asia
2. Corporate America is making huge bets on AI transforming their businesses. Investors are paying attention, too, and nearly every tech company’s quarterly results conference call has been full of analysts asking how the company in question will find growth or operating leverage with AI-related tooling. – Read More on TechCrunch
3. Pandemic-Era Habits Just Won’t Die: From how we shop and work to how we connect with others, the pandemic greatly accelerated our adoption of some key technologies. Americans aren’t going to go back to the way things were before. – Read More on the WSJ
4. Crypto Detective ZachXBT Faces Defamation Lawsuit. MachiBigBrother has sued ZachXBT for an investigation the latter published in June 2022 alleging the trader stole tens of millions of dollars worth of crypto. – Read More on Coindesk
5. AI-generated junk is flooding Etsy Images created with Midjourney can be made in seconds and sold as digital downloads on Etsy—a way to tap into the “multimillion-dollar market” of clip art. – Read More on the Atlantic
6. The Future of Luxury: Marketing to China’s Gen Z vs. millennials. Instead of focusing on selling and data collection, brands should leverage social media platforms such as WeChat, Weibo, Xiaohongshu and Douyin, and live-streaming and mobile games to foster a sense of community and interactivity. – Read More on Jing
1. The fashion industry shrugs at the “circular economy.” Clothing makers are still “busy pushing more and more products into the market” — and incinerating unsold inventory rather than giving it a new life. – Read More on Axios
2. Fashion retailers resilient despite consumer fears. A strong start to June for the world’s second-biggest fashion retailer H&M, an optimistic outlook from Hugo Boss and a return to profitability at ASOS helped allay concerns over a sector hit by weakening U.S. demand. – Read More on Reuters
3. Twitter is facing a $250 million lawsuit filed by major music publishers. The lawsuit alleged that the social network “fuels its business with countless infringing copies of musical ‘compositions, violating Publishers’ and others’ exclusive rights under copyright law.” It added that, unlike its competitors TikTok and Instagram, Twitter hasn’t struck a music licensing deal for the use of copyrighted music. – Read More on TechCrunch
4. Rapid advances in AI set to upend intellectual property. Should an AI system be considered an inventor and granted a patent for its invention? And how should regulators respond to copyrighted material being fed into AI systems? – Read More on the FT
5. Louis Vuitton Channels Hermes by Creating Neverfull Bag Waiting List: Louis Vuitton is taking steps to diminish the availability of the Neverfull bag. Consequently, this item is now exclusively accessible through alternative purchasing methods, with online and in-store direct purchases no longer available. – Read More on PYMNTS
1. Fashion Brands Still ‘Nervous’ to Set IP Loose in Metaverse: BNV CEO. “We have to demonstrate how that can actually be quite cool. You can still retain your brand DNA, your brand identity, your brand IP, but you can also enable your community to be proactive around that,” he said. – Read More on Decrypt
2. A Once-Obscure Chinese Startup Overtakes Shein In US. Spending on Temu — an e-commerce marketplace backed by China heavyweight PDD Holdings Inc. — was 20% higher than more established fast-fashion retailer Shein in the US in May. – Read More on Bloomberg
3. RELATED READ: SHEIN Accuses Rival Temu of Impersonation Scheme in Trademark Lawsuit. The case comes amid an effort by SHEIN – which is no stranger to infringement litigation – to double-down on the U.S. market, where it has overtaken competitor brands like H&M, Fashion Nova, Forever 21, and Zara. – Read More on TFL
4. Generative A.I. Can Add $4.4 Trillion in Value to Global Economy, Study Says. Generative A.I., which includes chatbots such as ChatGPT that can generate text in response to prompts, can potentially boost productivity by saving 60 to 70 percent of workers’ time through automation of their work, according to the McKinsey report. – Read More on the New York Times
5. EU lawmakers vote for tougher AI rules as draft moves to final stage. European Union lawmakers on Wednesday agreed changes to draft artificial intelligence rules to include a ban on the use of the technology in biometric surveillance and for generative AI systems like ChatGPT to disclose AI-generated content. – Read More on Reuters
6. Google is using AI to change how you shop. The company on Wednesday announced a new virtual try-on feature that uses generative AI, the same technology underpinning a new crop of chatbots and image creation tools, to show clothes on a wide selection of body types. – Read More on CNN
1. US Supreme Court’s dog toy ruling puts parody products on notice. Some experts say the decision could force companies that want to engage in parodies to ink licensing deals or find ways “to be more creative” and less similar to the brands they reference. Others said it leaves space for the First Amendment to apply to parody products. – Read More on Reuters
2. Maurizio Cattelan Wins Copyright Lawsuit Over Banana Sculpture. A Miami federal judge ruled this week in favor of the Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, who, for a few weeks in 2019, was the talk of the art world after his work Comedian, a banana duct-taped to a wall, sold at Art Basel Miami Beach for $120,000. – Read More on ArtNews
3. Nike Reverses Course to Reestablish Wholesale Partnerships and Expand Retail Presence. During an earnings call on Thursday, Designer Brands CEO Doug Howe revealed that DSW will renew its partnership with Nike, after the athletic brand had withdrawn from the collaboration in 2021. – Read More on PYMNTS
4. Companies Quiet Diversity and Sustainability Talk Amid Culture War Boycotts. Companies’ mentions of green and social initiatives during earnings calls have fallen off sharply in recent quarters, reversing a more boastful approach taken over the past few years amid intensifying pressure from some investors and conservative activists. – Read More on the WSJ
5. What Is This? A Handbag for Ants? On Wednesday, MSCHF plans to unveil its Microscopic Handbag, a specklike rendition of Louis Vuitton’s OnTheGo tote. The bag measures 657 x 222 x 700 micrometers, making it smaller than a grain of sea salt and narrow enough to pass through the eye of a needle. – Read More on the New York Times
6. Is clothing rental, resale, and recycling sustainable? Survey after survey suggests that shoppers care about sustainability and consider a product’s environmental impact when deciding what to buy. So it behooves clothing brands to clean up their acts—or at least their narratives. – Read More on Time
1. How AI Will Accelerate the Circular Economy: Extending the life of products, using fewer materials in production, and using more recycled materials. These tech-enabled strategies promise significant financial returns, but unlocking their full potential will need serious investment. – Read More on HBR
2. Luxury goods: Europe’s joke on the world. “The luxe boom tells you more about world politics than another Henry Kissinger interview will.” – Read More on the FT
3. UK PM Sunak pitches Britain as future home for AI regulation. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Monday Britain could be the global home of AI regulation as he pitched London as a tech hub to industry leaders and urged them to grasp the opportunities and challenges of AI. – Read More on Reuters
4. RELATED READ: Is the United Kingdom Getting AI Regulation Right? This year, the UK government published a white paper unveiling how it intends to regulate AI, with an emphasis on flexibility in order to avoid stifling innovation. – Read More on TFL
5. Louis Vuitton’s Soulbound Luxury NFTs, Apple’s Expensive Vision. While Apple avoided the term metaverse, it’s likely that Apple has been influenced by competitors like Microsoft and Meta. “It builds upon theories built by the metaverse industry over the past few years.” – Read More on Yahoo
6. Apple’s new AR headset may face trademark issue in China as ‘Vision Pro’ name already belongs to Huawei. The Chinese tech giant’s registration could prove a thorny issue for Apple in China after last week’s unveiling of Apple Vision Pro, which is expected to hit the market next year, beginning in the US before rolling out to other markets. – Read More on SCMP
1. Retailers are gamifying shopping with virtual storefronts to boost engagement, loyalty: Virtual storefronts are on the rise, and Obsess has built platforms for a slew of other retailers and brands, including American Girl, Ralph Lauren, Corona, Crocs, Coach, Dior and Mattel. – Read More on CNBC
2. Microsoft, Google strategy to test AI search ads irks some brands. Testing new ad placements without gaining consent from brands is a concerning practice for advertisers, said Jason Lee, executive vice president of brand safety at Horizon Media. – Read More on Reuters
3. How Fast, Cheap Fashion Is Polluting the Planet. textile production, dominated by apparel, generates as much as 8% of global carbon emissions, according to the United Nations, exceeding the impact of maritime shipping and international flights combined. Polyester and cotton make up 85% of all clothing material. – Read More on Bloomberg
4. European Fashion Alliance Addresses Regulation Concerns at European Parliament. Formed just under a year ago, the EFA brings together the federations of various countries, including France’s Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, Italy’s Camera Nazionale della Moda, the British Fashion Council as well as Copenhagen Fashion Week and Slovak Fashion Week, among others. – Read More on Yahoo
5. U.S. ‘aspirational’ shoppers are spending less on fashion, jewelry. “Inflation and food and other costs are taking dollars away” from the so-called aspirational shoppers, said Cowen and Company analyst Oliver Chen. Their desire to splurge in prior years represented a growth segment for luxury goods. – Read More on Reuters
6. The recycling idea at Levi’s, Adidas, Zara to stop trillions in fast fashion from going to waste. Recycling efforts so far have not made much of a dent, due to the fact that most garments are made with a blend of textiles hard to recycle. – Read More on CNBC
1. How AI raises challenges to protecting creators’ work. The Senate Judiciary subcommittee on intellectual property held a hearing Wednesday on concerns around patents and innovation, escalating lawmakers’ focus on a wide range of concerns about AI. – Read More on the Hill
2. Yacht maker’s Italy pivot shows the way for Prada. Lorenzo Bertelli, heir to the Prada fortune, has been openly talking about the need to hedge geopolitical risks via a European listing. Shifting winds may force such change sooner rather than later. – Read More on Reuters
3. The Step-Up in Ecommerce Sneaker Fraud. Technology has a significant role to play, with machine learning and AI solutions able to detect patterns to fight popular fraud types. – Read More on Retail TouchPoints
4. TikTok Eyes $20 Billion Commerce Business Despite US Setback. Despite attempted bans the company faced in the U.S., ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok aims to more than quadruple the size of its global e-commerce business to as much as $20 billion in merchandise sales this year. – Read More on Bloomberg
5. Senators to introduce a bipartisan AI bill aimed at keeping up with China. The Global Technology Leadership Act comes as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other members of Congress have made addressing artificial intelligence a key target. – Read More on NBC
6. Scarred by the 2008 Recession and COVID, 48% of Gen Z Frequently Shops at Discount Stores: Four out of five are worried about the health of the U.S. economy, and a significant group, 41%, set aside more money than they spend, compared to 36% who say they spend more money than they save. – Read More on Retail TouchPoints