Snapchat unveils increased use of AI to expand base

SANTA MONICA, USA—Snapchat parent Snap on Wednesday unveiled new tactics including the increased use of artificial intelligence in its struggle to expand beyond the app’s loyal user base and reach profitability.

Snap chief Evan Spiegel, who cofounded the Southern California-based company in 2011, opened its annual conference with word that an average of 750 million people use the image-centric messaging service each month.

In more than 20 countries, Snapchat reaches the vast majority of those who range in age from 13 to 34, Spiegel said. But unlike Meta, with its “family” of apps including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, Snap has never made enough money from advertising to turn an annual profit.

Last year, Snap’s net loss tripled to $1.43 billion and it laid of a fifth of its workforce.

Tools and products presented on Wednesday were intended to attract audience-winning creators to the platform, get users paying for subscriptions, and convince partners such as advertisers that the app is a place to be.

However, Snapchat must be “careful not to stray too far from its roots” as an ephemeral, fun messaging service as it seeks ways to make money, warned Insider Intelligence analyst Jasmine Enberg.

Snapchat needs to find a balance between private exchanges, “public spaces,” and the sense of “community and intimacy” that it has cultivated since its inception, the analyst added.

AI Snaps

A decade ago, Snapchat came on the scene with an intentionally ephemeral product—images that disappear after a short period, an idea that was copied by other platforms. Users invented “stories,” a way for them to put “Snaps” taken through any given day together into a visual tale.

The service was a pioneer in using images instead of words to communicate, and playfully augmenting what cameras see using artificial intelligence “lenses.”

But, “no one is talking about” Snapchat because “they are not relevant,” Creative Strategies analyst Carolina Milanesi told AFP.