Lorde told a festival crowd to skip the AI glasses. Then a Meta ambassador walked on stage.

Key points

• Lorde spoke out against AI smartglasses during her set at the Real Cool Festival in Madrid on a Thursday in July 2025.
• She did not name a brand, but the festival's sponsor was Ray-Ban, which sells AI glasses made in partnership with Meta.
• Blackpink member Jennie, a paid Ray-Ban Meta ambassador, performed directly after Lorde at the same event.
• Meta is reportedly planning a new pair of "super sensing" glasses that record continuously, even as its existing glasses face growing public criticism.

Lorde was midway through her set in Madrid when she paused to talk to the crowd. She thanked them for showing up to "something real," then said it was getting harder to tell what real even means any more.

Then she got specific.

"You don't know if someone is wearing sunglasses or if they're wearing those fucked up fucking... Can I just say, for the record, fuck the glasses. Don't get the glasses. Not sexy."

Fans filmed the moment and posted it to social media. The videos spread quickly.

She never named a brand. But the festival's sponsor was Ray-Ban, whose Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, a pair of ordinary-looking frames that can take photos, record video, and respond to voice commands via Meta's AI, have become the most visible product in this space. The timing made her target obvious to most people watching.

What made the moment stranger was what happened next. According to Stereogum, which first reported the detail, Lorde was followed on stage by Jennie from Blackpink. Jennie is a paid ambassador for Ray-Ban Meta glasses and has appeared in advertising campaigns for the product on Instagram. A promotional video for the glasses reportedly played on the festival's screens between sets.

The back-to-back was not subtle.

Should you be worried about AI glasses recording you in public?

Yes, this is a real concern, and it is not hypothetical. AI smartglasses look almost identical to ordinary sunglasses. Someone wearing them can record video or take photos without any obvious sign they are doing so. Meta is reportedly planning a next-generation version with continuous recording built in, meaning the camera would run non-stop rather than only when the wearer activates it.

For now, there is no reliable way for a bystander to tell whether the person next to them at a concert, on a train, or in a café is wearing ordinary glasses or recording ones.

Lorde's objection is personal and aesthetic. But the broader discomfort she voiced reflects a real gap between how the technology works and what most people expect when they step into a crowd.

Meta has not publicly responded to her comments.