AI brands are courting women with Kylie glasses and smart mirrors
Meta, Swan Beauty and Phia are selling AI through fashion, influencers and celebrity founders as surveys show women use the tools less often than men.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
4 min read
Kylie Jenner’s newest Meta campaign puts AI on the face, in the closet and on the billboard.
For Meta’s June 2026 “Kylie Edition” AI-powered glasses push, campaign materials show Jenner moving through a high-gloss morning: fixing her manicure, browsing her wardrobe, drinking green juice, checking work around her home and eventually spray-painting “XO Kylie” on a billboard featuring her own image.
Meta’s rollout went well beyond one ad. The company introduced 26 frame, color and lens combinations, launched a dedicated Instagram account, placed Jenner billboards in New York and Los Angeles, and held a launch event attended by figures including Law Roach, Nara Smith and Peggy Gou.
Meta and Ray-Ban have sold smart glasses in some form since 2021, but this campaign frames the product less as a gadget than as a fashion buy. The Cut described the wider trend as the “Girlbossification of AI” in May 2026, as tech companies increasingly package artificial intelligence through beauty, shopping, productivity and lifestyle culture.
The gender gap tech companies want to close
The marketing push comes as surveys show men are using AI tools more often. A 2026 Pew Research Center survey found 27 percent of men said they used chatbots daily, compared with 20 percent of women. Pew also found men were more likely to use the tools for work and to say they improved productivity.
Lean In, the workplace nonprofit founded by former Meta executive Sheryl Sandberg, found a similar split. In its survey, 33 percent of men said they used AI daily or constantly at work, compared with 27 percent of women. Lean In also found men were more likely to receive encouragement and chances to experiment with AI.
Early numbers suggest Meta’s fashion play landed. Yahoo Creators reported that every colorway of the Kylie glasses had sold out at one creator event before many reporters arrived. Glossy, citing Dash Social data, reported Meta Glasses generated 275 million social media impressions, 9 million engagements and 97,000 mentions around launch week. Jenner’s three dedicated Instagram posts drew a combined 5.5 million likes, while the @metaglasses account neared 100,000 followers within 11 days.
Influencer trips and founder podcasts join the pitch
Swan Beauty has taken the influencer route. The company sells a $795 smart mirror that can analyze skin, suggest products, guide makeup application and record content. Although the mirror has been available since 2023, Swan AI drew attention in April 2026 by flying creator Brigette Pheloung, known online as Acquired Style, and 16 friends to St. Barth’s for a bachelorette weekend called “Acquired A Husband.”
Pheloung and her twin sister Danielle documented the trip across social platforms, where the mirror appeared alongside outfits, makeup routines and travel content. Swan later reported its TikTok profile views rose 140,000 percent, while mirror sales climbed 650 percent week over week, iOS app downloads rose 4,535 percent and subscriptions increased 4,900 percent after the trip.
Phia, the AI shopping platform launched in April 2025 by Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni, has built its public image around its founders. The company says its browser extension and app help shoppers compare prices, find secondhand options and estimate resale value. Phia says it has reached 1.5 million users and partnered with 9,600 brands.
Gates and Kianni also host The Burnouts, a weekly podcast about building a company in their 20s while dealing with friendship, dating, money and burnout. Guests have included Paris Hilton, Kris Jenner, Chelsea Handler and Karlie Kloss. Phia raised a $35.5 million Series A in 2026, bringing total funding to $43.5 million, with backers including Khloé Kardashian, Mindy Kaling, Sydney Sweeney, Paris Hilton, Alix Earle, Jessica Alba, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Rachel Zoe. Gates told Vogue the company sought cultural figures who reflected the customers it wanted to reach.
Concerns have not vanished
Celebrity promotion has also drawn pushback. Reese Witherspoon said in a now-deleted Instagram post that only three of the 10 women in her book club had tried AI, while her company Hello Sunshine partnered with Purdue University on AI courses for young women. She told Glamour in September 2025 that women needed to be involved in AI because it would be part of filmmaking’s future.
Mel Robbins promoted Microsoft Copilot in a paid post that encouraged women to upload financial records such as bank statements, bills and debt information. After privacy experts and social media users warned about the risks, Robbins said she should have explained them more clearly.
Pew found in 2026 that women were roughly twice as likely to expect AI to harm them personally as to expect benefits. Meta glasses have raised specific privacy concerns because they can record from the wearer’s point of view. Reports have described some male creators secretly filming women in public with the glasses, and Meta announced in July that a camera will shut off if the recording light is damaged or tampered with.
This story draws on original reporting from Mashable.