SNAP
The old Snap is getting smaller
Snap is apparently doing the corporate equivalent of cleaning out the garage: trimming 15%–20% of staff on Thursday while it leans harder into the business it thinks has a future. The target here is the “legacy” Snapchat side, not the shiny new thing.
Specs gets the spotlight
The real bet is Specs, Snap’s AR glasses subsidiary that was spun out as a wholly owned unit earlier this year. The company is reportedly hiring around the teams building Lens Studio and the broader AR ecosystem, which tells you where management wants the oxygen to go.
The Perplexity detour fell apart
There’s also a fresh plot twist: a $400 million integration deal with Perplexity AI reportedly collapsed over term disputes. So instead of a neat AI partnership, Snap is left to explain why the company is tightening belts while also trying to build a futuristic hardware business that still needs time — and cash — to prove itself.
Why investors should care
Layoffs can give margins a quick sugar rush, sure. But the bigger question is whether Snap is becoming a leaner ad platform on the way to something more ambitious, or just a company swapping one expensive moonshot for another. Big picture: the Street may cheer the cost cuts today, but the real scoreboard is whether Specs can turn AR glasses from sci-fi prop into actual business.