the silicon valley sweater set
corporate brand victims
This is the way a trend ends. This is the way a trend ends. This is the way a trend ends. Not with a bang but a whimper…
Today OpenAI’s merch arm, Supply Co. released what we can only hope is the last in a long line of attempts at merging the Silicon Valley sweater set (T-shirt and hoodie) with the hypebeast culture of streetwear. It's all very 2010s—but not in a nostalgic way.
The site copy reads:
Supply Co. documents the visual culture surrounding intelligent systems. Commemorative objects for breakthroughs that were immediately followed by another breakthrough.
The Blossom Hat
With its soft corduroy construction and understated embroidered mark, it’s an easy accessory to throw on that adds character to any look, or just to shield your eyes this summer.
The Good Research Tee
A statement piece for the Research department. The Good Research Tee embodies our principles of patience, process, and doing things intentionally. All good things take time–including and especially research.
The Blossom Socks
Cuff your pants and show some ankle–rep the Blossom with every step you take. Do you know how hard it is to get the Blossom to show up on ribbing? We did it just for you.
The Codex Distressed Tee
Life is nothing without a bit of distress. Designed in a soft, structured cotton that looks sun-kissed and well-loved, this tee balances comfort with a graphic edge that stands out.
The Codex Bubble Cap
The Codex Bubble Cap draws directly from the language of the command line—precise, functional, and quietly expressive. An homage to those who spend their time creating, refining, and shipping: we see you!
The Codex Build Hoodie
For the ones who keep building: the Codex Build Hoodie is bold at a glance and richly complex up close. It pairs a minimal silhouette with technical-inspired graphics, bringing a quiet edge to a closet essential.
The ChatGPT Longsleeve
A clean and simple design, reflecting the foundation of ChatGPT. Soft, breathable cotton longsleeve with a relaxed fit.
The Research Half Zip
Crafted on a premium Knickerbocker Stadium Loft Knit, it features a crisp collar that reminisces on our days in academia. Look effortlessly fitted while you lock in or cozy up. Knickerbocker partners with some of Portugal’s finest mills to produce garments with exceptional fabric, fit, and construction. We believe true quality starts with the base—creating a piece that’s built to last.
The ChatGPT Basketball
Sometimes the best ideas show up between open runs. This basketball comes from the Pause. Play. Prompt. campaign, a physical reminder that creativity doesn’t just live on our screens.
The Bloop Tote
Take Bloop along for the build. Our little bot Bloop blends space fantasy with the nostalgia of toys and tinkering. Featuring Bloop in motion with beautiful embroidery, it’s a well-crafted reminder that great ideas start with play.
The Pixel Nalgene
The Pixel Nalgene is lightweight, durable, and ready to go wherever you go. With its translucent pink body and poppy, pixelated, neon OAI graphic, spot your bottle instantly in the crowd.
The irony of this embarrassing attempt to make artificial intelligence cool is that the public already finds AI fascinating. Attempts to make this technology 'fashionable' misread the room.
Sure it will sell out—Silicon Valley strivers are desperate to project association with the trillion dollar company. And more likely than not, that same class will provide a lucrative target for flippers on the secondary market.
But OpenAI should remember that Facebook and Instagram transformed culture as we know it will technology, not merch. And even today, Meta, Facebook’s successor company, struggles to find an entry point into wearables, despite prominent collaborations with Ray-Ban and Kylie Jenner.
Even Anthropic’s successful pop-up featuring the viral "Thinking Cap" was more lineslop than anything else. (I’ve never seen a "Thinking Cap" in the wild.)
Technology and fashion are the not the same thing. Remember Meta’s ill-fated digital fashion marketplace? Remember when web3 was going to sell everyone tokenized avatar skins?
Fashion like all industries utilizes the technologies of our time. But then again so do furniture manufacturers. That doesn’t mean OpenAI should release a couch. (I just had a pang of anxiety that by writing this sentence, I may manifest the creation of a ChatGPT couch.)
The very legible status anxiety of these endeavors dooms them to failure. And perhaps that’s why they always feel about five years behind in their aesthetic cues.
The anxious always play it safe.
