Designing Augmented Reality for Live Performance (with Snapchat Spectacles)

Designing Augmented Reality for Live Performance (with Snapchat Spectacles). In this talk, Lien will discuss projects she worked on that use lightweight heads-up displays as a tool for live music performance. Drawing from concrete examples—including her role as a supporting musician and developer behind Imogen Heap’s improvisation performance for Snapchat SPECS launch in September 2026—she will present design and technical considerations when working with this new class of augmented reality hardware. She will also discuss the creative potential that augmented reality brings to music as these lightweight devices become more accessible to artists and the public.

About Lien Tran: 
Lien Tran is a Vietnamese musical artist and technologist focused on imagining the future of music and technology. She is a singer, songwriter and music producer behind the alt-pop project/persona LIÊNA. Leveraging her software engineering and design background, Lien is constantly exploring new tools & technologies to bring new dimensions to her music. With lightweight augmented reality glasses becoming increasingly accessible (such as Snapchat Specs and Meta Ray-ban Displays), Lien is focusing her design and prototyping work on creative applications for this new hardware form factor through personal and collaborative projects with other creatives.