AI Makes an Appearance at Paris Fashion Week
Are we about to enter the post-smartphone era of mobile computing?
If you were searching for tech on the runway this fashion month, you may have come up short. Compared to seasons past, there was little to write home about in terms of Web3 activations and NFTs, given the collapse of crypto and the industry’s growing malaise towards tech hype. But a small device shown on the runway in Paris may provide a glimpse into the future of personal computing with artificial intelligence.
At their spring/summer 2024 show, Paris-based fashion house Coperni sent supermodel Naomi Campbell (along with other models) down the runway wearing a grey pinstripe suit adorned with an AI pin from technology company Humane.
A version of the device first debuted earlier this year when founder Imran Chaudhri gave a TED Talk demoing its features and making the case that the future of computer interfaces is no interface at all.
The Humane Ai Pin is a screenless, standalone device—meaning it doesn’t need to pair with a smartphone or other companion device. The intelligent clothing-based wearable uses a range of sensors that enable natural and intuitive compute interactions and is designed to weave seamlessly into users’ day-to-day lives. It includes AI-powered optical recognition and a laser-projected display.
This isn’t the first time tech has appeared on the runway. Diane von Furstenberg first debuted Google Glass in 2013 when she sent models down the runway donning the device. A few years later, New York-based Public School collaborated with Fitbit which kicked off a year of tech-on-the-runway collaborations that sent us into a peak of inflated expectations for wearable technology.
Humane’s AI pin, which is set to officially debut on November 9th, could signal we’re crawling out of the trough of disillusionment and towards a plateau of productivity in the hype cycle. What we saw in Paris hints at a future where AI makes computing more personalized, intuitive, and (yes!) wearable.