Why Everyone At AFW Is Suddenly Talking About Nothing
tech meets fashion
By Kiri Johnston | 15th May 2026Wearable tech took on a whole new meaning at Australian Fashion Week 2026. Among the week’s strongest collaborations came from London-based tech brand Nothing and Australian designer Alix Higgins, who integrated the brand’s futuristic hardware directly into Higgins’ fifth AFW runway showcase at Sydney’s China Heights Gallery.
Fashion enters its tech era
The partnership landed at the same time Nothing announced Charli xcx as its first-ever Global Brand Ambassador and latest shareholder, signalling a major push into the intersection of technology, fashion, music and culture. Suddenly, consumer tech isn’t just sitting in your pocket. It’s sitting front row at AFW.
Presented during a week dominated by conversations around individuality, styling and personal identity, the Nothing x Alix Higgins collaboration reflected fashion’s growing obsession with futurism, identity and self-expression. Higgins fused his digitally driven textile work with Nothing’s sleek, transparent hardware, reframing technology as part of the outfit rather than an accessory added afterwards.
At a Fashion Week dominated by individuality and experimentation, the collaboration felt completely at home on the runway. It also reflects a wider shift happening across the industry right now. Fashion brands are increasingly leaning into tech partnerships, while tech companies are moving deeper into culture, design and entertainment in an attempt to feel less corporate and more emotionally relevant.
A Charli xcx collab
That’s exactly where Charli xcx enters the picture. Fresh off the cultural dominance of BRAT and her continued influence across fashion and music, the singer has officially joined Nothing, not just as a face of the brand, but as an investor and creative partner helping shape its future direction. The global campaign, titled NOTHING (CHARLI XCX), was shot in London by longtime collaborator Aidan Zamiri and features Charli wearing the new Nothing Headphone (a) for five consecutive days, spotlighting the device’s 135-hour battery life.
According to Nothing Co-Founder and CEO Carl Pei, the partnership is about pushing against the sameness that has come to define consumer technology.
“The tech industry has spent a decade making everything quieter, more minimal, more monotonous,” he said in a statement. “Charli has spent her career going the other way in pop. We want Nothing to feel more like that.”The pairing feels entirely on-brand for both parties. Both Nothing and Charli xcx operate with a similar energy: anti-boring, internet-aware, design-led and slightly chaotic in the best possible way.
Nothing is the new AFW accessory
The timing of the announcement also landed perfectly during AFW, where fashion continues to expand beyond clothing into sound, experience, tech and identity. Between the rise of AI-generated campaigns, immersive runway presentations and designers experimenting with digital worlds, wearable technology no longer feels separate from fashion culture. It’s becoming part of the aesthetic conversation itself.
For a week already filled with exaggerated silhouettes, futuristic eyewear, sculptural accessories and conversations around what fashion looks like next, Nothing’s presence at AFW felt less like a sponsorship and more like a preview of where the industry is heading. Tech, but make it fashion.
Imagery: Supplied (Nothing)
