How Glance built a large-scale hybrid image search system processing one million images using SigLIP visual embeddings, SPLADE v2 text embeddings, and YOLOv8 — reducing latency from 4 seconds to 850ms. By Himanshu Aggarwal, Applied ML at Glance.

building image search system

Building a Hybrid Image Search System with Modern AI

How Glance built a large-scale hybrid image search system processing one million
images using SigLIP visual embeddings, SPLADE v2 text embeddings, and YOLOv8 —
reducing latency from 4 seconds to 850ms. By Himanshu Aggarwal, Applied ML at Glance.


This post details Glance's implementation of a large-scale hybrid image search system capable of processing and retrieving from one million images using both visual and textual queries. The system combines three core components: SigLIP for image embeddings (76.3% zero-shot top-1 on ImageNet, 40% more efficient than CLIP), SPLADE v2 for sparse text embeddings with automatic query expansion, and YOLOv8-Large for object detection at 50ms per image. Entity recognition via Google Web Extraction Service identifies over 5 million named entities. Metadata enrichment via Gemini extracts 25 structured attributes per image. End-to-end latency was reduced from 4 seconds to 850ms (95th percentile: 1.2 seconds). Development completed in 4 months versus an estimated 12+ months for a custom-built equivalent.

Building Image Search System Leveraging Modern AI Services

How Glance's LookSync system matches AI-generated outfit looks to 18M+ real products at sub-second latency — plain-language guide to our Best Paper Award winning work at CODS 2025.

intelligent shopping agent 

LookSync: How Glance Makes AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale | Glance Tech

LookSync is Glance's production system for making AI-generated fashion looks instantly shoppable — matching outfit items from 18M+ catalog products against 350K+ AI-generated looks per day at sub-second latency.This post explains how it works in plain language: the two-part retrieval and reranking architecture, how AI looks are decomposed into layer-wise shopping intent, and how sub-second response time is achieved at scale.The full technical paper won Best Paper Award at CODS 2025 and is available on arXiv.

From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

Six predictable failure patterns in agentic AI systems — and how Glance solved them at scale across 8M monthly users. By Rumit Anand, Head of AI, Glance.

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Agents Don't Fail Randomly. They Fail in Patterns. | Glance Tech

Agentic AI systems fail not randomly but in six predictable patterns — intent misfire, planning collapse, tool chaos, memory amnesia, latency death, and missing recovery loops.This article breaks down why agents break at scale, how multi-agent architectures solve each failure mode, and what builders need to understand before shipping autonomous AI systems into production.Based on lessons from building Glance's multi-agent intelligent shopping platform across 8 million monthly active users in the US.

Agents Don't Fail Randomly. They Fail in Patterns

Discover how Glance builds scalable, resilient systems using a “Vulcan” approach to architecture—focused on clarity, precision, and long-term performance.

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The Vulcan Architects: Designing Scalable Systems at Glance

The Vulcan Architects

Agentic AI is transforming fashion through AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions. Understand how It connects color psychology, fabric behavior, & context.

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AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions: The Rise of Agentic Styling Intelligence

Fashion is moving from manual styling to intelligent decision systems powered by agentic AI. Instead of simply suggesting outfits, AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions now evaluates color psychology, fabric behavior, personal identity, and real-world context to make optimized fashion decisions. This shift enables adaptive styling where outfits are chosen based on outcomes like comfort, confidence, and situational relevance rather than aesthetics alone.

The New Era of AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions

: Context-aware shopping means AI reads your weather, location, and trends before you search. See how Glance acts on your behalf — before you pick up your phone

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Context-Aware Shopping: How AI Reads the Room Before You Do

Context-aware shopping means AI reads your weather, location, and trends before you search. See how Glance acts on your behalf — before you pick up your phone

In 2026, online shopping has shifted from a manual chore to a personalized conversation. Context aware shopping moves beyond the search bar, using your local weather, personal calendar, and physical features to filter the noise of the internet. With Glance acting as your intelligent shopping agent, &nbsp;the friction of endless browsing is gone—replaced by a curated feed that understands exactly what you need, right where you are.

Context-Aware Shopping: The AI That Reads Weather, Location and Trends at Once

Learn how AI-generated fashion looks are converted into real, purchasable products using intelligent matching, enabling seamless outfit-to-cart shopping at scale.

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From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

Turning AI-generated outfits into real, purchasable products is one of the biggest challenges in modern fashion tech. This article explores how Glance bridges that gap—mapping AI-generated looks to real inventory at scale, enabling users to go from inspiration to “add to cart” in a seamless, intelligent shopping experience.

AI, blockchain, 5G and cloud computing are transforming AR powered shopping experiences. Learn how these technologies enhance personalization & transparency.

ar powered shopping 

4 Technologies Improving Your AR Powered Shopping Experience

AR powered shopping is moving far beyond virtual try ons. With advances in artificial intelligence, blockchain, 5G connectivity, and cloud computing, the entire retail journey is becoming more immersive, personalized, and trustworthy. AI sharpens recommendations and adapts AR experiences in real time. Blockchain adds transparency and product authenticity. 5G supports smooth, high fidelity AR overlays even in crowded environments. Cloud computing brings large scale processing power that lets retailers offer richer virtual experiences without heavy devices.&nbsp;

4 Technologies Improving Your AR-Powered Shopping Experience

Learn what an AI magic mirror is, how it works in stores, & where to try it across the USA. Explore virtual try ons, features, benefits, & real retail examples.

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AI Magic Mirror Meaning and Where to Try It?

Learn what an AI magic mirror is, how it works in stores, & where to try it across the USA. Explore virtual try ons, features, benefits, & real retail examples.


AI magic mirrors use advanced AR and AI to let shoppers try outfits, makeup and accessories on their real time reflection without entering a trial room. They improve fit accuracy, reduce returns, boost store conversions and are now available in major US fashion and beauty stores. The tech scans your body, overlays products with realistic lighting and lets you switch colors, sizes and styles instantly. As retailers adopt them nationwide,&nbsp;<a href="https://glance.com/us/blogs/glanceai/shopping/virtual-try-on-technology-ai-first-shopping">virtual try-ons are becoming a mainstream shopping habit</a>.

Tech & Architecture

Building Image Search System Leveraging Modern AI Services

From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

Agents Don't Fail Randomly. They Fail in Patterns

The Vulcan Architects

The New Era of AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions

Context-Aware Shopping: The AI That Reads Weather, Location and Trends at Once

From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

4 Technologies Improving Your AR-Powered Shopping Experience

AI Magic Mirror: What It Is and Where to Try It

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Tech & Architecture

Building Image Search System Leveraging Modern AI Services

From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

Agents Don't Fail Randomly. They Fail in Patterns

The Vulcan Architects

The New Era of AI Fashion Fabric Color Decisions

Context-Aware Shopping: The AI That Reads Weather, Location and Trends at Once

From AI Outfit to Add to Cart: Making AI-Generated Fashion Looks Shoppable at Scale

4 Technologies Improving Your AR-Powered Shopping Experience

AI Magic Mirror: What It Is and Where to Try It

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