Textiles and fashion meet IT

TexAI – shaping the future of the textile industry

TexAI is a long-term research initiative that combines artificial intelligence and textile expertise to drive sustainable and AI-driven innovation in the textile industry. Our mission is to strengthen the competitiveness of the Swedish textile industry by enabling circular, resource-efficient and data-driven processes. By combining deep industry knowledge with AI, we create new ways of designing, producing and distributing textiles – with sustainability as a starting point.

$Circular diagram of the textile value chain, from raw material to reuse, with research areas RA1–RA4 linked to different stages and RA5 (AI Foundry) at the centre.$

Our focus is AI-based solutions for, for example, textile recycling, production optimisation, sustainable design and data-driven decision support. From materials and production to design, business models and circular flows.

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AI for Textile Recycling and Production

Research Area 1 (RA1) focuses on using AI to enable a more efficient and robust transition to circular textile production. Central to this is the development of intelligent systems for sorting, material identification and quality assessment of textile waste – critical steps to enable recycled materials to be used on an industrial scale.

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AI in Textile Processing and Functionalisation

Research Area 2 (RA2) addresses how AI can transform processes such as dyeing, printing and functionalisation of textiles – especially with a focus on recycled materials. The challenge lies in the fact that these materials often exhibit variations that affect the quality and performance of the final product.

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Sustainable Design and Product Development with AI

Research Area 3 (RA3) focuses on how AI can change design processes in fashion and textiles, with the goal of integrating sustainability and circularity from the start. Instead of retrofitting, AI enables design decisions to be made based on material, usage and lifecycle data.

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AI for the Optimisation of Textile Ecosystems

Research Area 4 (RA4) takes a systems perspective and focuses on how AI can be used to optimise the entire textile value chain, from raw materials to consumers and recycling. The goal is to enable more circular and resource-efficient flows through data-driven decisions.

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AI Foundry and Data-Driven Innovation

Research Area 5 (RA5) is the technical and organisational core of TexAI through the establishment of an AI Foundry and a Textile Data Hub. AI solutions are developed, tested and implemented in close collaboration between research and industry.

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Updates

2026-06-27

TexAI team in Techtextil, Frankfurt

TexAI members from research areas RA1, RA2, RA3 and RA5 along with industrial partners representative FOV Fabrics AB were present at Techtextil in messe Frankfurt to benchmark the latest in AI and robotic innovation within textile sector. Several meetings and potential collaboration were discussed through the event within the different research areas and developers to move forward towards better efficiency and quality in textile sector. Read more about Techtextil

2026-06-04

3D scanner enables digital garment archives

What if garment archives could be situated in digital environments and serve as data sources for generative AI systems? Recent investments in the portable 3D scanning device Shining 3D EinScan Rigil enable the creation of highly realistic digital twins of physical garments that capture not only garment shape and textile surface characteristics but also subtle material expressions such as creases and folds. Utilising these digital twins as data sources for AI-supported design ideation may facilitate more faithful translations of garment expressions that are specific to a brand’s design language. We are excited to explore the opportunities this presents, as well as its potential implications for future design practice in the fashion industry. Read more about RA3: Sustainable Design and Product Development with AI

2026-04-09

AI to enhance future learning and skills development

Johannes Sahlin, a researcher within TexAI, has had a paper accepted to the international conference DESRIST 2026 on how generative AI can support the production of digital educational materials. The research demonstrates how AI can be used to transform course content into lectures, presentations and videos, while teachers retain responsibility for quality, pedagogy and content. Within TexAI, the technology is now planned to be explored further to strengthen skills development and learning in the transformation of the textile sector. DESRIST 2026 brings together close to 200 researchers in information systems in Germany in June. Johannes Sahlin contact page

2026-03-10

New doctoral education in Information Systems

The University of Borås has been granted the authority to award doctoral degrees in a new programme in Information Systems – an important step for research at the intersection of textiles, digitalisation and artificial intelligence. The doctoral programme complements existing programmes within the strategic research area of Textiles and Fashion: Textile Technology, Textile Design and Textile Management. The initiative will form a central part of TexAI and aims to strengthen AI-driven innovation and sustainable transition within the circular textile industry. The first doctoral students in Information Systems are expected to be recruited this autumn.

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Here, research and industry meet to address concrete challenges. Together, we develop innovations that don't just stay in the lab, but are implemented in companies' business processes.