Pinterest, a social media platform and imageboard built around discovery and inspiration, is continuing its shift into e-commerce with a new augmented reality feature designed to simulate the in-store shopping experience.
Augmented reality, or AR, uses digital information to overlay or "augment" the physical world through a camera. The applications are boundless, but product brands, in particular, are piqued.
Pinterest is looking to facilitate that adoption on its popular pinboard, which has long inspired users to seek out the items so lovingly displayed on its platform.
"People have always come to Pinterest to shop," Jeremy King, senior vice president of engineering at Pinterest and former CTO of Walmart, told Cheddar. "Once you find that particular item that inspires you, many people want to know where to get it, how to build it, how to cook it."
In early 2020, the San Francisco-based company launched a "Try On" tool for lipstick products that allowed users to see themselves in different shades. Now it's expanding that feature to include eyeshadows from brands such as NYX Cosmetics, YSL, Lancôme, and Urban Decay.
Images of eligible products will include a "try on" button in their bottom right corner.
While, for the moment, the feature is limited to a very select number of items, King said Pinterest is refining the technology to include more users and more products.
For instance, the platform is tapping into its vast database of faces, so that different skin tones, angles, and lighting conditions are captured accurately through its AR tool. The goal is to build a system that detects every item presented on Pinterest and give users the opportunity to look up and purchase that item. King called this pipeline "inspiration to action."
The coronavirus pandemic has also brought more and different types of potential customers to the platform, which draws nearly half a billion users per month.
"The biggest categories right now are Gen Z and men," King said. "Gen Z is actually growing at twice the rate of our other categories."
Federal health officials are expanding an investigation into potentially lead-tainted pouches of apple cinnamon fruit puree marketed for children amid reports of more illnesses and additional product recalls.
Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate run by businessman Warren Buffett, reported its operating earnings in its most recent quarter jumped more than 40% from a year ago but posted its first net quarterly loss in a year.
Maks Chmerkovskiy and wife Peta Murgatroyd, of "Dancing With the Stars" fame, are branching out into skincare.
Donald Trump began testifying Monday morning in his civil fraud trial, producing the spectacle of a former president and the leading Republican presidential candidate defending himself against allegations that he dramatically inflated his net worth.
The trial between Google and the maker of the game Fortnite will begin Monday as a San Francisco jury will hear Epic Games' case claiming the Google Play Store takes an unfair commission on purchases made through apps.
One of the most self-made and success stories in the country, Emma Grede, has worked along with the Kardashian Jenner family on many of their best-known brands. Grede, CEO and co-founder of Good American, gave back to the next generation of business leaders as a featured speaker at the Chase for Business Make Your Move summit last week. She spoke with Cheddar News about her career, her company's fashion brand, working with the famous Kardashian-Jennifer family and balancing her own family life.
Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate run by businessman Warren Buffett, reported its operating earnings in its most recent quarter jumped more than 40% from a year ago but posted its first net quarterly loss in a year.
Elon Musk's company XaI has announced a new chatbot called Grok.
SAG-AFTRA said over the weekend that it received the studios' last best and final offer following a meeting on Saturday, with the union saying it's reviewing it and considering a response "within the context of the critical issues addressed in our proposals."
Stocks rose slightly as Wall Street looks to continue its momentum with earnings season winding down.
