D-Air Lab and Dior collaborate on protective airbag fashion for AW 22/23

D-Air Lab, an Italian startup founded in 2015 by Lino Dainese in the province of Vicenza, has partnered with Dior to integrate its D-air® airbag technology into the maison's prêt-à-porter collection for autumn/winter 2022/23. The collaboration reimagines iconic pieces like the Bar Jacket as protective armor, with airbags embedded in the garment's architecture. Capes and belts are also designed as protective tools. The collection features a suit with photoluminescent tubes that circulate liquids to heat or cool the body, developed from D-Air Lab's space equipment studies. The corset, historically a restrictive garment, is reinterpreted with airbags and back protectors, transforming its symbolic meaning from constraint to protection. D-Air Lab was established as an innovative startup to find new applications for the D-air® airbag system, originally developed by Dainese for athletes and high-risk workers. The lab has created WorkAir, the first airbag vest certified as a Personal Protective Device for workers at height, inflating in 40 milliseconds upon accident detection. Another device, E-call, is a vest that can detect falls followed by prolonged immobility and automatically send a geolocated SMS via smartphone. The Antarctica project provides suits and undersuits for scientists in extreme cold, offering thermal protection without restricting movement.