Undisclosed to many users, Pinterest released a new iOS application called Shuffles, which let people create photo galleries out of images and image cutouts taken directly from its website. It became a hit among Gen Z users, while its functionality soon became part of Pinterest itself. Now, the company reports that its AI-and-computer-vision-powdered collage feature is experiencing thrice as much engagement as its old Pins.

This new format enables users to collect content from anywhere across the web and from Pinterest combined with images that they can optionally take by using the camera of their phone, to converse on their style, interest or taste. The old days saw them do collages like mood boards or collections around some favourite interest, be it favorite pop star, publishing these to TikTok that later set them to music.

However, today's Pinterest users are just as likely to create image collages of style inspiration-innovation in the way of home decor, or outfit ideas- maybe something you may have seen in the glossy pages of women's fashion magazines from another era. Others use collages to compile groups of favorite products, perhaps skincare or makeup items they want to try. The vast majority of images are shoppable directly on Pinterest.

While collages take much more effort than just pining something to a Pinterest Board, the feature is taking off, the company said in its Q1 2024 earnings calls.

"Users are approximately three times as likely to save a collage Pin versus other Pins on Pinterest, and a majority contain actionable products," said CEO Bill Ready. "We're also seeing continued adoption of collages by Gen Z, who account for nearly 70% of collage creators. Moreover, ease of making the actionability of Pins available is one of the core tenets to further improve user satisfaction, deepen engagement, and grow [monthly active users]."

What's interesting is the way that the AI and computer vision drive the design of the collages. Rather than download, like a .jpg or .png, to a Pinterest board with a link or note, it identifies an object in a photograph and then "cuts that out," just like you can cut out the subject of a photo using scissors in the real world. This feature works similarly to a kind of iOS image cutout feature, which lets you crop out your dog in a photo and then paste that cropped image into an iMessage chat. However, the application for cutouts that Pinterest seemed to be after involves much more getting people to curate groups of items that go together.

That human-led curation could also help to power Pinterest's AI going forward, the company said.

As Ready pointed out, the feature driven by AI has a "flywheel effect of feeding us more and more granular signals that let us train our AI to do unique things that don't occur on other platforms." For him, this would help Pinterest be more aggressive as the AI race grows.

Boozed up by higher Gen Z adoption-the generation now comprises more than 40% of Pinterest's users-and the resumption of ad spend from brands, Pinterest handily topped analyst estimates on Q1 2024 earnings. The company delivered its highest quarterly revenue growth since 2021, according to CNBC, as the stock shot up. In Q1, Pinterest took in $740 million in revenue, a 23% increase from last year, with EPS of 20 cents adjusted, beating the 13 cents that analysts had predicted.

Pinterest says it is trying to do a better job of serving its Gen Z user base, which is now, unusually, the fastest-growing demographic on its site.

"Pinterest is aging down – a rarity in consumer internet applications, which typically age up as they mature," Ready said.