Vogue sent robots down the runway at Vogue World, and people were not impressed

Vogue World’s Milan presentation ended with a segment titled The Age of Intelligence in which humanoid robots from Chinese manufacturer Unitree entered the Galleria and performed simple gestures to Gigi D’Agostino’s “L’Amour Toujours.” The machines waved to the crowd, encouraged applause, and one executed a lasso-like move; they were not costumed. The moment drew immediate public attention and overshadowed coverage of the fashion shown during the event. The performance set off a wave of online commentary, including viral images of Valentino creative director Alessandro Michele reacting in the front row. Reporters and attendees circulated criticism on social platforms, and some observers pointed to wider anxieties about automation, job displacement and the growing influence of wealthy tech figures in cultural institutions. Vogue’s Milan edition was positioned as a tribute to Italian craftsmanship and “the human touch” in a tech-driven era—an emphasis that critics called at odds with the robot act. The magazine has been cultivating ties to the technology sector: the Vogue World series is partly sponsored in Milan by Meta Glasses, and the production received support from OpenAI, while Vogue has previously engaged with Silicon Valley figures and plans to stage its next event in San Francisco. Voices from the creative-technology community offered mixed takes. Some said the runway robots failed to represent the cutting edge of fashion-tech work, citing examples of engineers and designers using AI and engineering in more experimental or artistic ways. Others framed the appearance as an inevitable outcome of Vogue’s evolving commercial relationships: publications are exploring new revenue pathways and tech investors seek cultural access, which can result in spectacles that prioritize showmanship over nuanced demonstrations of innovation.