Google is entering the world of e-commerce, aiming to outperform online shopping platforms like Amazon.com Inc.
The Alphabet Inc.-owned tech giant unveiled many features that use generative AI technology. These features include helping consumers determine how clothing items will fit them regardless of their body size, utilizing search and image-recognition methods to identify products, and introducing new ways to explore and plan routes for travel using generative AI.
This advanced technology can generate text, graphics, and even videos based on simple suggestions.
“We want to make Google the place for consumers to come shop, as well as the place for merchants to connect with consumers. We’ve always been committed to an open ecosystem and a healthy web, and this is one way where we’re bringing this technology to bear across merchants,” Maria Renz, Google’s vice president of commerce, said in an interview ahead of the announcement.
Amazon competes with Google in terms of product searches and research, even though Google is the top search engine globally. Even though Google leads the search industry, a CivicScience survey found that 46% of US shoppers started their product searches on Amazon.
Additionally, the research found that TikTok is growing in popularity in the e-commerce sector, with 18% of Generation Z shoppers preferring to begin shopping on the platform. With its AI-driven shopping exploration tools, Google acknowledges this trend and aims to appeal to younger audiences.
Google’s virtual “try-on” function lets customers see how clothing fits various body types, ranging from XXS to 4XL sizes. During the development phase, Google captured images of multiple models, and this feature makes use of these images, adding apparel on top of them to provide a more inclusive and comprehensive representation. The aim is to help users understand how clothing looks and fits on different body sizes.
A brand-new service from Google has been introduced due to an internally developed image-based AI model. The company has also made a research paper available that describes the technology behind this feature.
The virtual try-on capability creates realistic images by considering clothing characteristics like stretching and wrinkling. The try-on option will be made available initially in collaboration with retailers like Anthropologie and Everlane and will initially focus on women’s tops. Men’s apparel will be a subsequent addition to the feature.
Google also plans to increase the number of information sources available as consumers experiment with its brand-new “search generative experience.” This tool, first unveiled at Google’s I/O developers conference last month, is only available now with the company’s Search Labs product. Google does plan to include more diversified and comprehensive sources of information in the experience as users test the service.
