For years, big tech companies like Amazon and Google have been trying to make virtual try-ons engaging to encourage consumers to shop more online. Startups also tried to solve for inspiration and fit in fashion using AI.
A new startup called Doji is now entering this space with an app designed to make apparel try-ons both fun and social. It does so by creating your avatar and then serving you different looks that may inspire you to buy new clothes.
So far, early adopters have been impressed by it.
Only days after publicly launching on the App Store, the company is announcing a $14 million seed round led by Thrive Capital with participation from Seven Seven Six Ventures. The funding will be used to improve Doji’s AI models, the company says.
An app like Doji only exists thanks to recent advancements in AI. The company uses its own diffusion models to create its personalized avatars and to make clothing try-ons more realistic.
@doji_com Try it on. Try Doji. Download the app to secure your spot, or find a friend with an invite. [Link in bio] Creative direction: Gui Boucher Editing: Noel Oppliger, Khaidar Styling: Jeanette Reza Music: Jake Nadrich Thanks: Tony Wang, Gaia Del Santo, Dena Yago
The startup was founded last year by Dorian Dargan and Jim Winkens — hence the name Doji (Dorian + Jim).
Dargan previously worked at Apple on VisionOS and at Meta on games and experiences on Oculus Quest. Winkens was a researcher at DeepMind and also worked on a generative AI-based consumer product at Google.
The duo connected on Twitter/X around 2022. After realizing a shared interest in the fashion world, they began exploring side projects to work on together. Later, when the controversial avatar creation app Lensa was released, Dargan saw how deep a connection people had with their avatars.
“Lensa was doing stylized avatars with different themes,” Dargan told TechCrunch. “We saw Lensa and thought, what if we could do this for fashion, but in a photo-realistic way?”
Thrive Capital partner Miles Grimshaw said he’s been captivated by Doji’s app since the first time he used it. He notes that diffusion models create an opportunity to build a “virtual mirror” to try on clothes.
“Going around the web to hundreds of click links to shop is laborious. Doji has an opportunity to make shopping fun as it puts me at the center of the experience. The app also has a social aspect of making me want to share different looks [with friends and family],” he added.
What it’s like to use Doji’s app
Doji, which is still in invite-only mode, guides users through the process of taking six selfies and uploading two full-body images to create an avatar. The app takes roughly 30 minutes to create an avatar, then notifies you when the avatar is ready. You can also choose your favorite brands during onboarding to see more items from them in the app.
Other apps like Google-backed lock screen app Glance have tried to create AI-powered shopping inspiration flow by using a single image. However, Doji opted for a more in-depth setup process to create higher-quality avatars and better match users with the right clothes.
By default, the app shows you clothes that might suit you through a series of looks with your avatar. You can scroll through the different tops and bottoms listed on the site and tap on them to create a new look for your avatar.
Plus, you can post a link to an apparel from the web to check if it would suit you.
In tests, I felt that some of the images of the avatar made me look thinner or taller than I am. (Doji notes that users have the option of retraining the avatar through a new set of images if they don’t like their results.)
While the app lets you try on different clothes to see how certain apparel would look on you, it can’t yet tell you how an item would fit. That’s something the startup wants to tackle later, we’re told.
The team is also working to make the virtual try-on process faster and integrate the buying process in the app, instead of directing users to external sites.
The startup, whose app is available in more than 80 countries, didn’t specify when it will remove the invite system to allow everyone to use the app.
Dargan said that what sets them apart from other try-on apps is that Doji also offers a fun way to explore clothes. Plus, he believes Doji is better at human representation than others, thanks to his experience designing avatars over the years.
“I think people who have explored this idea before either haven’t had the technology chops to make it good or the taste to understand what actually makes a person feel good about an image of themselves,” Dargan said. “We have invested a lot in core technology to ensure the way you perceive yourself through images is interesting and inspiring.”
