While the fashion world is busy trying to figure out how technology can augment its existing offering—from AI-generated ad campaigns to the mechanical “beating heart” dress on the Schiaparelli fall couture runway—Silicon Valley has created a new multibillion-dollar product category: agentic wearables. And unlike the lacklustre wearables of the past (think 2014’s Google Glass and 2024’s Apple Vision Pro), this time around, the biggest names in tech are relying on fashion labels to embed proprietary AI into stylish accessories, potentially sidestepping safety, privacy and security scrutiny. Meta’s successful collaboration with Ray-Ban has shown that fashion can be very effective when it comes to masking digital governance concerns, generating demand and even facilitating direct-to-consumer sales.

Where Google Glass made early adopters look like cyborgs, the agentic wearables of tomorrow promise AI-powered assistants subtly built into the fabric of your personal style. Although current iterations are mostly in the form of smartglasses, the future heralds sleek, AI-enabled designer jewellery, including pins, rings, bracelets and pendants, as well as functional buttons and even flexible electronic fabrics, also known as e-textiles.

“Agentic wearables are on track to become as common as smartphones, just far less visible,” notes Matthew Drinkwater, head of the Fashion Innovation Agency at the London College of Fashion. “They’ll be embedded in what we already wear: glasses, jewellery, clothing. Fashion will play a critical role in normalizing them.”

Meta’s collaborations with Ray-Ban and Oakley and the ubiquity of increasingly powerful LLMs—or large language models, programs that interpret and generate human language text—have whetted the appetite for agentic wearables. At one point, Meta’s smartglasses were the top seller in 60 per cent of Ray-Ban stores throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

“That little spectacles icon on Instagram Stories has become a quiet symbol of how widely adopted these wearables already are,” Drinkwater says. “Seamless, stylish and socially embedded, that has to be the formula.”

But unlike the Meta Ray-Bans everyone is using to snap a hands-free pic today, the next crop of wearables promises to be “context aware,” thanks to a powerful mix of forward-facing cameras, microphones and AI assistants—and with that comes a whole lot of baggage in the form of safety, privacy and security concerns. Sabine Seymour, a cultural strategist, data economist and former professor of Fashionable Technology at Parsons School of Design, shares in the excitement around wearables, but notes the security concerns.

If someone asks their AI-powered glasses to search for a black denim jacket in a specific area, for example, they are revealing more than they realize. “Imagine you stroll down Main Street, and it pushes [the information you requested] to you. You’re constantly going to be sent information about things you’re prone to buy. The system has a psychological profile of you,” she says. Some might say that’s business as usual, but personal data isn’t evaporating into the ether—it’s going somewhere out of the user’s control.

For others, facial-recognition and biometric data-gathering capabilities are the real sticking point. “Extended reality (XR) devices are packed with sophisticated capabilities to sense/capture their environment, proximate bystanders, and the user’s actions and physiology,” write the authors of a 2022 University of Glasgow research paper. “More information can be given away than the user or bystanders may have been aware of.”

“This necessitates addressing these concerns before XR becomes ubiquitous,” say the academics, who recommend real-time data collection alerts with regular opt-ins, adjustable privacy dashboards and XR impersonation safeguards.

And then, of course, there are questions about the utility of wearables as you travel the globe; access to apps and data can vary by region, thanks to geo-fencing technology. Will it be possible to drive while wearing AI-powered glasses? That might depend on the user’s jurisdiction and how local authorities classify XR accessories. None of these issues are new, but they are exacerbated by the incognito nature of these devices. While experts may be calling for further research, public-private consultation and even legislation, they are unlikely to stop the fashion world, which tends to move quicker than digital governance frameworks. Not to mention the billions of dollars already invested by Google, Apple, OpenAI and Meta to bring these devices to market.

Google is arguably closest to delighting sartorialists with its forthcoming Android XR Glasses, in partnership with Warby Parker and Korean brand Gentle Monster. They blend visual search, real-time translation, memory assistance and Google’s Gemini in multiple form factors. More art collective than optician, Gentle Monster understands the cultural capital of eyewear, says Drinkwater. “Google needed a partner that could transform hardware into desire and in Gentle Monster they found a partner who had already done it.”

Apple, too, appears to have pivoted toward streetwear with smartglasses featuring cameras, microphones, speakers and a Siri voice assistant coming as early as next year. The California-based company is also said to be considering context-aware smartwatches and AirPods.

Meanwhile, OpenAI acquired Jony Ive’s AI-hardware start-up, io Products Inc., for an estimated US $6.5 billion, for its voice-first, screen-free devices, and Meta purchased a roughly three per cent stake in EssilorLuxottica, the world’s largest eyewear manufacturer (owner of brands Chanel, Prada, and Dolce & Gabbana), for an estimated US $3.5 billion.

With designers such as Ive and fashion labels such as Coperni contributing to agentic wearables, it’s easy to get swept up in the hype. “Fashion is more than solving a problem or generating a pattern—it’s about telling stories, challenging norms and expressing identity,” says Jocelyn Ng, the Paris-based designer of couture label Joccelyn. “We’re heading into an era where ‘stylish intelligence’ means more than just esthetics.”

Calgary-based stylist, CEO and founder of Knit Me Up, Sade Babatunde, is more cautious: “It’s no longer just about convenience. It’s about consent. Who’s collecting the data? Who’s watching? And are we being told? It’s going to be up to both creators and consumers to stay awake to the risks.”

Seymour takes it one step further: “It’s very concerning, particularly with the current influence of the tech industry in world politics. Basically, with these devices—agentic AI, IoT, wearables—it’s not about technology, it’s about how it is used now and by whom and how it’s programmed.”

And there’s the real possibility that in this new age, quiet computing further isolates people. Live translation negates the need to pick up a new language while travelling abroad; Google’s XR Glasses won’t need to ask a local for directions. So much for technology enabling connection.

Despite these drawbacks, the rise of agentic wearables appears inevitable. In its 2025 CX Predictions: Ride the AI Wave to the Future report, research firm Gartner predicts significant AI adoption: by 2028, at least 15 per cent of daily work decisions will be made autonomously through agentic AI, and by 2030, around 30 per cent of knowledge workers will use bidirectional brain-machine interfaces (BBMIs) via wearables to boost cognitive capabilities and stay competitive.

For her part, Ng sees the convergence of fashion and tech as a positive. “It’s about designing with intention, using smart tools to be more sustainable, inclusive and responsive, while holding on to the soul of fashion. Technology will elevate fashion, but the heart of the industry will always be human.”

Gentle Monster is reframing beauty standards

In 2011, Hankook Kim founded eyewear brand Gentle Monster and brought sleek, stylish and unique frames to the world.

Now owned by South Korean manufacturer II Combined, it boasts more than 78 flagship stores in more than 10 countries. Collaborations with Fendi, Moncler and Maison Margiela and celebrities such as Blackpink’s Jennie, helped II Combined generate an estimated US $570 million in revenue, up nearly 30 per cent versus 2023.

Gentle Monster sets itself apart by creating eyewear that rejects Caucasian facial structure as the default for design. “Gentle Monster designs oversized glasses and frames with low-fit bridges tailored specifically for Asian facial features, making their products more comfortable for this demographic,” says Ming Yii Lai, a Daxue Consulting representative familiar with the industry.

This niche approach, along with K-pop and Korean beauty trends, has increased the brand’s visibility. “Gentle Monster stands out by transforming retail into immersive, artistic experiences and by bridging fashion with cutting-edge tech collaborations, including partnerships with Samsung and Google,” Lai notes. “This approach positions the brand as a leader in merging culture, style and technology.”