Joe Foster, who founded Reebok in 1958 and sold the brand to adidas in 1991, has joined hands with Syntilay, a rising footwear brand founded by Ben Weiss, to create shoes using AI.
The brand is taking a bold leap into the future by combining artificial intelligence and 3D printing to create shoes designed specifically for content creators.
“We are building a shoe brand to give content creators their own shoes like athletes,” said Weiss. “As we are seeing a massive shift where youth aspires to be a YouTuber, TikTok star, etc., we plan to build brand new original designs for them.”
Explaining his association with the brand, Joe Foster said, “I associated with Ben because he has incredible ideas, and this is going to be a game-changer in the footwear industry,” Foster said.
Reflecting on the evolution of the industry, he noted, “When I introduced Reebok in 1958, sneakers weren’t called sneakers—they were athletic shoes. Today, everyone wears sneakers or something influenced by sneakers. Recently, the clog or slide has been gaining traction, and that’s why we are here at the forefront of what’s next.”
In a market where individuality and speed are key, Syntilay’s approach stands out. The brand has created shoes with AI. That’s likely the fastest and most affordable way to make shoes in the world.
“Through this method, we’re also 3D printing them so we can capture this incredible design that we can make with AI and put it into a physical product in reality,” Weiss added.
Syntilay launched its first AI-designed, commercially available slide in December. “It feels like taking AI out of the digital world and putting it into the physical world and giving people an opportunity to wear that. And it’s been exciting because AI thinks so differently about design and creates things uniquely.”
The company currently offers one SKU in five colors. Customers can use their phone camera and a piece of paper next to their foot to get accurate measurements, ensuring a perfect fit. The shoes are 3D printed and sold globally through its D2C website.
Kedar Benjamin, an Indian designer, played a crucial role in shaping the product’s design. Explaining AI’s involvement, Weiss shared, “AI has three different roles in the shoe. The first role is through the conceptualization of what this can look like. We used AI to make the 3D model based on the sketch. Then we used AI to generate all the patterns around it to make it look interesting from a design standpoint. We also used AI for shading.”
The next phase for Syntilay is scaling up. In the first phase, the brand has brought out an AI-designed product commercially in the footwear space.
“The second phase will be to bring in the same AI design to scale and build something that is traditionally manufactured. It will be something we can scale to every retailer around the world and make more accessible. It is expected to come out in the next few months,” Weiss revealed.
Syntilay’s first AI-designed shoe is priced at $150. The company, currently bootstrapped and valued at $6.25 million, is in discussions with investors.
“It is not an investment-heavy business as every single shoe is printed on demand when someone orders it. It saves us a lot of costs,” Weiss concluded.
