Ecommerce ops · Production

Instacart enhances FoodStorm with AI image generation for customizable grocery products

The problem

Grocers using FoodStorm faced an ongoing challenge sourcing images for every possible configuration of customizable products like sandwiches, cakes, and deli items, where high-quality food photography is crucial for the online shopping experience.

First attempt

An initial one-click AI image generation design had flaws because using only the filling name as the prompt was too vague, lacking nuances about ingredient type and preparation, leading to suboptimal images.

Workflow diagram · grounded in source
1
Retailer opens image creation dialog
trigger
“The new Create AI Image dialog box builds on our existing image upload component — so anywhere that users could previously upload an image, they could now instantly create an AI image”
2
User fine-tunes prompt
human_review
“users can fine-tune their prompts, specifying details like, "sliced monterey jack cheese on a white background"”
3
Pixel generates images via Imagen
ai_action
“We were lucky to have a dedicated text-to-image service, called Pixel, already operational. Pixel provides easy access to a range of different AI models, including Google Imagen, and has controls around acceptable use of prompts to gener…”
4
User previews and selects image
human_review
“We then landed on a third iteration that also provides a larger preview of the selected image. This allows users to take a close look at the details of the image, as occasionally you'll get artifacts that may be slightly off”
5
Image optimized and published
output
“compressing and scaling the images post-generation to optimize them for web use, and serving them efficiently through our content delivery network. From a legal standpoint, users must also agree to relevant terms of use before using this…”
Reported outcome

FoodStorm's AI image generation feature lets retailers create, fine-tune, and publish AI-generated product and promotional images across the Instacart Platform, acting as a significant time saver and dynamic creative tool.

Reported metrics
Integration development timesaved us considerable time
Content creation timesignificant time saver
Reported stack
PixelGoogle ImagenFoodStorm
Source
https://tech.instacart.com/enhancing-foodstorm-with-ai-image-generation-d76a74867fa4
Read source ↗

Frequently asked questions

What did this team achieve with this AI workflow?

FoodStorm's AI image generation feature lets retailers create, fine-tune, and publish AI-generated product and promotional images across the Instacart Platform, acting as a significant time saver and dynamic creative…

What tools did this team use?

Pixel, Google Imagen, FoodStorm.

What results were reported?

Integration development time: saved us considerable time; Content creation time: significant time saver (source-reported, not independently verified).

What failed first in this deployment?

An initial one-click AI image generation design had flaws because using only the filling name as the prompt was too vague, lacking nuances about ingredient type and preparation, leading to suboptimal images.

How is this ecommerce ops AI workflow structured?

Retailer opens image creation dialog → User fine-tunes prompt → Pixel generates images via Imagen → User previews and selects image → Image optimized and published.

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