The Mexican entrepreneurial team "Someone Somewhere" has successfully reached a cooperation with Adidas by combining AI design with traditional Mexican embroidery for football uniforms, empowering traditional handicrafts and bringing significant economic and social benefits. This case demonstrates the organic integration of technological innovation and social responsibility, as well as the huge potential of AI technology in promoting sustainable development and poverty alleviation. It is not only a business success story, but also a successful example of cultural inheritance, technological innovation and social responsibility, which is worthy of our in-depth discussion and study.
In Mexico City, an entrepreneurial team named Someone Somewhere successfully attracted the attention of global sports brand giant Adidas with its artificial intelligence-designed football uniforms, achieving a leap-forward business cooperation. This story not only demonstrates the perfect integration of technological innovation and traditional handicrafts, but also highlights the huge potential of social enterprises in promoting sustainable development and poverty alleviation.
Founders Antonio Nuño, Fatima Alvarez and Enrique Rodriguez have been following the craftsmen of Mexico’s indigenous communities since they were teenagers. In 2016, they founded Someone Somewhere with the aim of combining traditional craftsmanship with modern fashion while helping artisans achieve financial independence.
The company's turning point will occur in 2023. The team used AI image generation technologies such as Stable Diffusion to create a series of innovative product concept drawings. Among them, an Adidas-style national team jersey design that incorporates traditional Mexican embroidery elements caused a sensation on social media, attracting more than 1 million views.
Picture from Someone Somewhere
This AI-generated concept not only demonstrates the unique charm of the product, but also delivers profound social value. Nuño estimates that the production of each jersey will provide fair employment opportunities for more than 3,000 craftsmen for half a year, potentially benefiting more than 15,000 people. This idea quickly attracted the attention of Adidas, and the two parties reached a cooperation agreement in just a few weeks.
On June 21, 2023, Adidas teamed up with Someone Somewhere to launch a limited edition Mexican national team jersey series. Each jersey embodies more than 11 hours of hand-made knotting efforts by Puebla female craftsmen, which not only inherits Mexico's cultural heritage, but also embodies innovative design concepts. It is worth mentioning that a QR code is printed on the jersey, allowing consumers to learn information about the craftsmen involved in the production, which reflects the brand's social responsibility.
The application of AI technology has greatly improved the design efficiency and innovation capabilities of someone somewhere. Nuño revealed that the company's monthly design capacity has soared from 10 products to 5,000, it has produced more than 10 million products in the past year, and its revenue has increased 36 times in three years. This high efficiency has also earned the company opportunities to cooperate with technology giants such as Google, Uber, and Amazon.
In addition to breakthroughs in the field of design, someone somewhere’s social enterprise model has also been widely recognized. Through cooperation with Nimble, the company has successfully launched its products into Apple stores around the world. Nimble CEO Ross Hoy was attracted by the company's mission and B-corporation certification, and the products from the partnership are now available in Apple stores in 30 countries.
Despite raising just $1.7 million in funding, Someone, Somewhere is already profitable and planning a new round of funding to capitalize on market opportunities in nearshoring and sustainable sourcing. This case not only demonstrates the huge potential of AI technology in business innovation, but also highlights the feasibility and influence of business models that combine technology, design and social responsibility.
The success story of someone somewhere provides us with a revelation: In the digital age, the combination of innovative thinking, social responsibility and advanced technology can create amazing business miracles while bringing positive impact to society. This model not only promotes economic development, but also provides new ideas for solving social problems.
The successful experience of "Someone Somewhere" provides valuable reference for other enterprises, proving that the perfect integration of technology, culture and business can create huge social and economic benefits, and also provides new opportunities for the exploration of sustainable development models. direction.