The fashion industry has shown increasing interest in applying artificial intelligence (AI), yet there is a significant gap in exploring the potential of emerging diffusion-modeling-based AI image-generation systems for fashion design and commerce. Therefore, this study aims to assess the effectiveness of Midjourney, one such AI system, in both fashion design and related commerce applications. We employed the action research approach with the Functional, Expressive, and Aesthetic (FEA) Consumer Needs Model as the theoretical framework. Our research comprised three stages: refining an initial idea into well-defined textual design concepts, facilitating concept development, and validating the preceding observations and reflections by creating a new line of hemp-based products that were evaluated by targeted consumers through an online survey. Findings reveal that this AI tool can assist fashion designers in creating both visually expressive attire and ready-to-wear products, meeting defined design criteria and consumer needs. Midjourney shows promise in streamlining the fashion design process by enhancing ideation and optimizing design details. Potential e-commercial applications of such AI systems were proposed, benefiting physical and digital fashion businesses. It is noted that, to date, the major limitations of using Midjourney encompass its restriction to only facilitating early fashion design stages and necessitating substantial involvement from designers.

中文翻译：

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释放人工智能在时装设计和电子商务应用中的潜力：Midjourney 案例

时尚行业对应用人工智能 (AI) 表现出越来越大的兴趣，但在探索新兴的基于扩散模型的 AI 图像生成系统在时尚设计和商业中的潜力方面还存在很大差距。因此，本研究旨在评估 Midjourney（一种这样的人工智能系统）在时装设计和相关商业应用中的有效性。我们采用行动研究方法，以功能、表达和审美（FEA）消费者需求模型为理论框架。我们的研究包括三个阶段：将最初的想法细化为明确的文本设计概念，促进概念开发，并通过创建新的基于大麻的产品系列来验证先前的观察和反思，并由目标消费者通过在线调查进行评估。研究结果表明，这种人工智能工具可以帮助时装设计师创造具有视觉表现力的服装和成衣产品，满足既定的设计标准和消费者的需求。Midjourney 有望通过增强创意和优化设计细节来简化时装设计流程。人们提出了此类人工智能系统的潜在电子商务应用，使实体和数字时尚企业受益。值得注意的是，迄今为止，使用 Midjourney 的主要局限性包括其仅限于促进早期时装设计阶段并需要设计师的大量参与。