French fashion software group Lectra has launched Apogy, a cloud platform developed over three years that uses agentic AI to manage the work between an initial garment concept and a production-ready prototype.

The Paris-headquartered company describes Apogy as its first system built around software agents that retrieve information and carry out tasks, rather than simply responding to user commands. Lectra offers the platform as software-as-a-service.

What does Apogy actually do?

Apogy provides a shared workspace where designers, patternmakers, product developers and suppliers operate from the same product data, following changes as they occur. Users can generate concepts from text prompts, sketches and images, while 3D simulation and photorealistic rendering aim to cut the number of physical samples required.

The system supports standard industry file formats rather than locking participants into a Lectra-only environment. AI agents automate routine operations and surface relevant information as a product moves through successive development stages.

Lectra says the platform is also designed to capture specialist knowledge now concentrated among a small number of experienced patternmakers and technical staff, a concern as senior technical employees retire.

Who is using it?

Irish sportswear manufacturer O'Neills is among the early adopters. David Towell, senior manager at O'Neills, said:

"For the first time in our history, all our teams are using a single solution. This harmonisation eliminates errors linked to data transfers, increases transparency and now enables us to accelerate operations, improve productivity and effectively support our growth."

Oniverse, the Italian group behind Calzedonia, Intimissimi and Tezenis, is also adopting the platform. Operations director Riccardo Romani said the technology would help transfer expertise to a new generation of product development employees.

Several dozen customers took part in discussions during the three-year development period, Lectra said.

How does it fit the existing stack?

Apogy represents a significant extension of Lectra's installed base. The group's Modaris and Gerber AccuMark platforms remain widely used for pattern development and production preparation, but the new system moves further upstream into the exchanges that determine how a garment reaches that stage.

Collection cycles have shortened while brands manage more variants, dispersed supply chains and rising traceability and regulatory demands, according to Lectra. Product development remains one of the less integrated parts of the fashion industry's digital infrastructure as a result.

What is the financial logic?

The launch reflects the rising weight of recurring digital revenues. Lectra reported €507 million in total 2025 revenues, of which €89 million came from SaaS activities, or roughly 17.6% of group turnover.

"For fifty years, Lectra has helped transform the fashion industry, particularly by digitising patternmaking," said Maximilien Abadie, deputy CEO of Lectra. "Today, agentic artificial intelligence gives us the opportunity to take a new step forward and reinvent product development as a whole."

Lectra plans to add further AI functions and automated tasks to Apogy on a rolling basis. The commercial test will be whether agentic AI can convert patternmaking software customers into broader product-development SaaS contracts at a time when apparel brands are still working out how to budget for upstream digital tools.