Being part of the race for Artificial Intelligence has become a must, regardless of any necessity, aims or strategies. The fashion supply chain is not immune to this superficiality and Lineapelle is taking remedial steps with a series of projects, in order to build a shared ecosystem based on knowledge and concrete solutions. Because AI can’t be just a trend: it is a serious matter
by Luca Fumagalli
“Hi! I’m Lena, your own AI advisor for Lineapelle. My name stands for Lifestyle, Experience, Newness, AI. I’ve been created by Ingenium and Hevolus, and I’ve been personalized for guiding you through the Lineapelle world: from the fair to the exhibitors, from stylistic trends to sustainable innovations. I’m here to offer you assistance, information and an experience designed exclusively for you, both during the event and online. How can I help you today?” We are at the latest Lineapelle edition, which took place in Fiera Milano Rho from the 23rd to the 25th September 2025.
An edition that marks, from a certain point of view, a turning point, by catapulting this event and its identity into the world everyone is talking about, that everyone is reaching for and that – perhaps – few truly understand. It is the world of Artificial Intelligence that Lineapelle, in order to effectively transform it into a development tool for its community and supply chain, has decided to take on in the broadest and most strategic way. The aim is to demonstrate and make clear that, first of all, Artificial Intelligence is a serious matter. Then, to launch its first AI advisor: LENA, the tip of the design iceberg that we discuss in this article.
Artificial Intelligence is a serious matter: chapter one
One of the concrete risks of this historical period – among many – is Artificial Intelligence being completely misunderstood, pursued without clear objectives and without strategies defined by companies; transformed into a sort of magical wand capable (in theory) of replacing the human factor and resolving any issue: commercial, communicative of related to governance. This is an illusion: an error, a dangerous misunderstanding. This is precisely why Lineapelle has launched the project named AiMateriality, in collaboration with Limitless, a society specialised in open innovation.
Limitless is among the promoters of Ingenium, an Italian platform that aims at creating a bond between the Made in Italy sector and the one of emerging technologies: mainly, Artificial Intelligence. A project that took center stage at Lineapelle for an entire afternoon and that, on October 14th, arrived at the Gitex Global in Dubai, one of the biggest exhibitions in the world dedicated to technology, innovation and startups.
Facts, not words
LENA is just a “simple” and, if you want, eye-catching example of how it is possible to put AI at the service of companies. AiMateriality aims to be this and – obviously – much more. It aims to become a platform for discussion and storytelling with a focus on open innovation. Its goal is to offer various causes for reflection and evolutionary incentives in order to perfectly manage a fashion company and the expertise of its workers. It aims to propose exemplary stories, as what was presented during Lineapelle.
Three exemplary stories
AiMateriality, during Lineapelle, proposed an all feminine panel aimed at the presentation of three technological startups, dedicated to advanced AI applications within the worlds of lifestyle and fashion. Yuliya Raquel of Patternfast, from the Silicon Valley, talked about her job, dedicated to rapid prototyping and to the personalization of products. Anna Bonciani of Temera is, instead, leader in terms of traceability and of digital product passports, which are fundamental elements in order to guarantee transparency, authenticity and sustainability in the fashion and luxury sectors. Francesca Bucci of Ephoto, as well, is responsible for mapping the online presence of brands, on websites and on sales platforms, with a degree of precision and depth which are incredibly useful for profiling activities aimed at the prices of products, and for visual communication and the optimization of digital contents.
Artificial Intelligence is a serious matter: chapter two
The second project launched by Lineapelle is named Lineapelle on the Road – Intelligent Weaves: The Intertwining of Fashion and AI. It was also presented at the fair during last September, after having arranged a series of in-depth sessions in the Italian districts of the fashion supply chain. LORO (acronym that stands for Lineapelle on the road) aims at becoming a true observatory of the best practices of AI introduced by the Italian PMI in the various districts, as announced by Fulvia Bacchi, CEO of Lineapelle.
The extremely wide examples of how AI can be applied in fashion have already been put under the lens. Marina Paolanti, researcher at VRAI-Vision, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, spoke about it. Among them, the usage of generative AI for modifying the colorways of products, or the AI that, with few images, is capable of reconstructing a shoe with accurate details. Or, the case of Peron Shoes, narrated firsthand by the CEO Alberto Masenadore.
A particular case
“A year and a half has passed from the moment in which our ballerina designed by AI was presented at WAICF – World AI Cannes Festival – as stated by Masenadore-. We started from the RFID technology for tracking hides and their production. Then, we have moved on to e-commerce for our brand Via della Paglia. Then, to the introduction of the blockchain with the NFC technology, in order to get the electronic passport. In order to run some tests, we used generative AI that designed us a pair of ballerina flats. The peculiarity is that, while others were discussing it, we have materially realized the object, ultimately and concretely showing the potential of AI”.
Giving value to skills
By trying to define how the applications of Artificial Intelligence could positively affect companies, LORO reached the heart of a much-debated matter: Will AI destroy jobs? “They increase in relation to innovations. It’s history. It happened with the creation of robots, computers, mail, of the digital and of the web. AI will deal with jobs that we currently carry out and that, in a few years, we will define as inhuman. Do you know about typists?”. To pronounce these words, at Lineapelle, it was Valter Fraccaro, president of SAIHUB, incubator of technologies and complementary services of Artificial Intelligence.
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