Leena Nair, the CEO of Chanel, has shared her insightful perspective on the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the luxury sector. During an interview with Stanford Graduate School of Business’s “View From The Top,” Nair was asked about Chanel’s approach to recent advancements in AI and robotics. Her response underlines the company’s commitment to embracing the transformative potential of AI while staying true to its core values.
“AI is everywhere and it’s going to be transformative in our world, so luxury has to engage with it, Chanel has to engage with it as all others,” Nair stated. She elaborated on her experience, “In fact, our leadership team and I travelled to Seattle in May, and we met a whole lot of people. We visited Microsoft, Google, and many of the startups in the area, and spent some time with ChatGPT, because we wanted to understand how it impacts us.”
Nair emphasized a key principle that guides Chanel’s approach to AI: “I do think number one in my mind is to keep a relentless focus on human creation. I don’t think that ever to go. So ensuring that AI supports human creators and creations rather than taking away what they bring, so skillfully and masterfully core to who we are at Chanel.”
She further emphasized the importance of ethical considerations in their AI endeavors: “We are also high on ethics and integrity, so we want to do it in the right way.”
Nair then shared a humorous anecdote that underscores her concerns about AI’s potential limitations: “We were at Microsoft, we were playing around with ChatGPT on the premises. And we are like, show us a picture of a senior leadership team from Chanel visiting Microsoft.” To her surprise, the AI generated an image of “all men in suits.”
She chuckled, “This is Chanel. Yes, 76 per cent of my organisation is women, and 96 per cent of my clients are women, female CEO. It is a 100 per cent male team, not even in fashionable clothes.” “This is what you’ve got to offer, ChatGPT? Come on.”
Nair concluded her thoughts on AI with a strong call for responsible implementation: “So, it’s so important that we keep the ethics and integrity of what we are doing with AI.”
Leena Nair’s insights offer valuable perspectives on the evolving landscape of AI in the luxury sector. Her emphasis on human creativity, craftsmanship, and ethical considerations provides a framework for navigating the transformative potential of AI while safeguarding the values that define luxury brands like Chanel.
