SecondWind
SecondWind

Secondhand, digitized.

AI vision-powered platform that can turn any thrift store into a browsable, searchable online catalog in seconds, with zero technical skill required.

The problem:

The fashion industry is one of the world's biggest pollutors.

92M

tons of textile waste / yr

A whole garbage truck every second.

8–10%

of global CO₂ emissions

From textiles alone, more than aviation and shipping combined!!

70–90%

of donated clothes wasted

Sent to landfills or shipped overseas.

10,000L

of water per pair of jeans

What you drink in 9 years.

UNEP 2023 · Ellen MacArthur Foundation · EPA · ThredUp Resale Report · Water Footprint Network

The innovation:

Point a camera, get a listing

Before Gemini AI vision

Every item is one-of-a-kind

No barcodes, no SKUs, no product database

Manual entry: ~2 min per item

Impossible at thrift-store volume

Staff aren't technical

Most small business owners aren't tech-savvy

Thousands of items per week

Inventory turns over constantly

Now, using SecondWind

Multi-image AI extraction

Item + tag photos analyzed together by Gemini 2.5 Flash

<5 seconds per item

Brand, size, material, color, condition: structured and searchable

Any phone, zero training

If you can take a photo, you can digitize your store

Fits the existing workflow

Snap 2 pics during donation intake; no extra steps

Measurable impact

Every item bought secondhand is manufacturing that never happens.

Environmental cost per new item, based on peer-reviewed lifecycle data:

👕

T-Shirt

6.5 kg CO₂ used

2,700 L water used

👖

Jeans

33.4 kg CO₂ used

10,000 L water used

🧥

Jacket

35 kg CO₂ used

12,000 L water used

👗

Dress

22 kg CO₂ used

8,000 L water used

👟

Shoes

14 kg CO₂ used

4,500 L water used

🛋️

Furniture

80 kg CO₂ used

20,000 L water used

📱

Electronics

50 kg CO₂ used

15,000 L water used

👜

Bag

10 kg CO₂ used

3,500 L water used

Levi Strauss LCA · MIT Materials Systems Lab · WRAP UK · Water Footprint Network · WWF

by the way

Your new shirt traveled 8,000 miles to get to you.

Buying new: ~15 kg CO₂

Raw materialsUzbekistan / India3.5 kg
ManufacturingBangladesh / China8 kg
Ocean freight8,000+ miles2 kg
Port warehouseLos Angeles0.3 kg
Regional freightLA → Phoenix, 370 mi0.7 kg
Last few milesA delivery to your door0.5 kg

Buying secondhand: ~0 kg CO₂

Already existsNo manufacturing needed.
2 miles awayLocal thrift store in Tempe.
Walk out with itZero packaging. Zero shipping.

Browse

Scroll everything from your couch

Search

Red dress, size M, under $15

Scout

Check stores in a city before you visit

People already want to buy secondhand.
Let's make it easier.

SecondWind

InnovationHacks 2026 · Tempe, AZ