You can now send questionable texts in addition to your naughty photos on Snapchat. The ephemeral photo-sharing app is rolling out an update today that adds texting and video call functions, putting it in direct competition with mobile messaging apps like WhatsApp. However, in keeping with Snapchat's ethos, the text messages disappear after a certain amount of time.
Company co-founder Evan Spiegel, who rebuffed a $3 billion offer from Facebook a few months ago, told The New York Times that the "goal has always been to move beyond messaging." These functions should do just that while maintaining customer loyalty to the app.
"If I'm walking around and want to show you something, why do I have to switch apps?" he asked. "It stops the conversation and makes it a transaction, rather than free-flowing."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Gizmodo has a full rundown of how both features work. --Jordan Valinsky
-
Is Andrew’s arrest the end for the monarchy?The King has distanced the Royal Family from his disgraced brother but a ‘fit of revolutionary disgust’ could still wipe them out
-
Quiz of The Week: 14 – 20 FebruaryQuiz Have you been paying attention to The Week’s news?
-
The Week Unwrapped: Do the Freemasons have too much sway in the police force?Podcast Plus, what does the growing popularity of prediction markets mean for the future? And why are UK film and TV workers struggling?
-
Australia’s teen social media ban takes effectSpeed Read Kids under age 16 are now barred from platforms including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat and Reddit
-
Google avoids the worst in antitrust rulingSpeed Read A federal judge rejected the government's request to break up Google
-
Supreme Court allows social media age check lawSpeed Read The court refused to intervene in a decision that affirmed a Mississippi law requiring social media users to verify their ages
-
Nvidia hits $4 trillion milestoneSpeed Read The success of the chipmaker has been buoyed by demand for artificial intelligence
-
X CEO Yaccarino quits after two yearsSpeed Read Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino to run X in 2023
-
Musk chatbot Grok praises Hitler on XSpeed Read Grok made antisemitic comments and referred to itself as 'MechaHitler'
-
Disney, Universal sue AI firm over 'plagiarism'Speed Read The studios say that Midjourney copied characters from their most famous franchises
-
Amazon launches 1st Kuiper internet satellitesSpeed Read The battle of billionaires continues in space
