Pop star Lorde ignited a debate on tech fashion during her set at Mad Cool Festival in Madrid last week. From the stage, she fiercely criticized AI-powered glasses, calling them 'not sexy' and warning the audience about privacy risks. 'Increasingly in our world, it gets harder and harder to know what is real,' Lorde said. 'You don't know if someone is wearing sunglasses or if they're wearing those f—ed up, f—ing AI glasses. Can I just say, for the record, f— the glasses. Don't get the glasses. Not sexy.'
Lorde's stance on tech surveillance
The singer, who once reportedly threw her phone into the ocean to disconnect, took her critique to another level. Her comments come as Ray-Ban, a festival sponsor, partners with Meta to produce smart glasses. Lorde performed just before Jennie, an ambassador for the Ray-Ban Meta line. While celebrities like Kylie Jenner act as human billboards for Meta, Lorde offers a dissenting voice that sparks reflection.
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Privacy concerns and abuse cases
Smart glasses, equipped with cameras and AI features, have been used for harassment and extortion. Meta, the leading maker, claims to take privacy seriously with visible recording lights, but faces numerous investigations and lawsuits over violations. One lawsuit alleges Kenyan workers were forced to watch graphic footage obtained via the glasses to train Meta's AI, a claim the company has not publicly addressed. Despite this, sales soar: EssilorLuxottica sold over 7 million Meta AI glasses in 2025, triple the combined sales of 2023 and 2024. In an era where AI is celebrated, as seen with the creation of National AI Day, Lorde's criticism raises important questions.
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Aesthetic rejection as protest
Lorde's declaration 'not sexy' hits home: if privacy doesn't deter, maybe aesthetics will. She concluded that 'the here and now, that is sexy.' As New York blocks new data center construction for a year, Lorde's words add a cultural perspective to the AI debate. Better to live in the moment than be watched by a device.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/14/lorde-says-ai-glasses-are-not-sexy
