--- title: Saudi Fashion Show Replaces Runway Models With Drones description: A fashion show in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia sent drones down the runway in lieu of models because the future is now. canonical: https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-06-07T19:54:44.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T09:30:03.629Z og:title: Futuristic Fashion Show Replaces Runway Models With Drones og:description: Yes, really og:url: https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3d48fd9539e53544/69893291e76ad21e2263239d/saudi-fashion-show-drones.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2000 og:image:height: 1125 og:image:alt: Catwalk Runway Show Event og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Futuristic Fashion Show Replaces Runway Models With Drones twitter:description: Yes, really twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3d48fd9539e53544/69893291e76ad21e2263239d/saudi-fashion-show-drones.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=f4428ff9-01ba-4a92-a15b-bdd3a5e5b343&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now [Watch (HLS stream): Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0XoE3JIS.m3u8) (0:26)  _Published 2018-06-07. A fashion show case in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia made a major style statement this week when they sent drones to show their clothing instead of models._  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Jun 7, 2018 7:54 PM UTC  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Jun 7, 2018 7:54 PM UTC A fashion show case in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia made a major style statement this week when they sent [drones](http://time.com/5105800/teddy-bear-drone-internet-reactions/) to show their clothing instead of models. Dresses fluttered in the air as they were displayed via drone, sans humans. In an interview with [_BBC Arabic_](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/06/07/a-saudi-fashion-show-skipped-the-models-and-showed-dresses-using-drones/?noredirect=on&utm%5Fterm=.4457f9b5f0e6), Ali Nabil Akbar, one of the organizers of the fashion event, said that the decision to use drones to show their wares was “suitable for the month of Ramadan” and was the result of much time and preparation. This isn’t the first time that drones have made an appearance in the fashion arena either; earlier this year, in February, [Dolce & Gabbana sent drones down the runway](http://time.com/5175797/dolce-gabbana-drones-handbags-fashion-show-2018/) as a tech-savvy way to show off their new line of handbags. See the flying fashion drones below. > [](https://twitter.com/MowatinTafran/status/1004667761635745792) ## Transcript [ BLANK_AUDIO ] [ MUSIC ] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/"},"headline":"Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now","datePublished":"2018-06-07T19:54:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T09:30:03.629Z","description":"Yes, really","url":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/","keywords":["Newsfeed","fashion"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3d48fd9539e53544/69893291e76ad21e2263239d/saudi-fashion-show-drones.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cady Lang","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/cady-lang/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3d48fd9539e53544/69893291e76ad21e2263239d/saudi-fashion-show-drones.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Catwalk Runway Show Event","caption":"Catwalk Runway Show Event","creditText":"Goran Jakus Photography—Getty Images/iStockphoto","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/","name":"Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Fashion Show Replaced Models With Drones Because the Future Is Now","description":"A fashion show case in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia made a major style statement this week when they sent drones to show their clothing instead of models.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/0XoE3JIS/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2018-06-07T22:44:21.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/0XoE3JIS.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/","duration":"PT26S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/5305177/fashion-show-saudi-arabia-drones-instead-of-models/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```