Mark Zuckerberg meets Italy's fashion elites to discuss next generation of smart wearables

Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg is on a charm offensive, meeting with Milan’s top fashion professionals to discuss the next generation of smart wearables in virtual reality.

The founder of Facebook and parent of WhatsApp and Instagram, Meta is heavily investing in the future of wearable technology and last year launched a range of smart glasses with Ray Ban, which feature a camera, audio, the latest tech from Meta and the iconic style of Ray Ban’s shades.

Meta-Porter

In Milan on Friday Zuckerberg met with Yoox founder Federico Marchetti, who posted a caption on Instagram: “Meta-Porter in Milan", referring to Net-a-Porter, the online luxury retailer where Marchetti was previously CEO. In the accompanying photo a bevy of Italian fashion CEO’s, founders and industry leaders where present, including Prada’s Lorenzo Bertelli, Diesel and OTB founder Renzo Rosso, Geoffroy Lefebvre, current CEO of Net-a-Porter, Marco Gobbetti of Ferragamo and Brunello Cucinelli.

Zuckerberg also met with Leonardo Del Vecchio, the president of the eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica, posting on Instagram “It's great to be back in Milan to discuss plans for the new smart glasses with Leonardo Del Vecchio and the EssilorLuxottica team. Here Leonardo is using a prototype of our EMG bracelet with a neural interface which will eventually allow you to control the glasses and other devices ”.

While Zuckerberg has not revealed details of why he met with Italy’s fashion executives, Meta’s push into Web3, the metaverse and lauching products for the virtual landscape is a key priority for the company’s future and earnings strategy.

Meta stated last year that the metaverse will not be built by a single company and that Italian fashion companies are already using "new technologies such as augmented and virtual reality" to sell their products. “We are thrilled to continue working with Italian partners to bring this vision of the metaverse to life."