Snap's CEO, Evan Spiegel, has revealed that the company is ramping up its investment in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. In an interview with Bloomberg News, Spiegel acknowledged that the company had lagged behind in machine learning, which had impacted its overall business performance. As a result, Snap is now bringing together its top machine learning experts to explore how to reach a state-of-the-art level and make substantial investments in this area. Snapchat, the platform developed by Snap, has faced significant changes in social media usage and the types of ads that marketers expect. In the past, Snapchat's focus was on messaging and advertisers predominantly aimed to convey brand stories rather than driving immediate purchases.

However, the company is now prioritizing investments in machine learning, AI, and augmented reality (AR) features, aligning them with its advertising and user feed strategies. During an earnings call, Spiegel emphasized the significance of AR and how it seamlessly integrates digital experiences into our daily lives, revolutionizing computing. The report highlighted that more than 70% of Snapchat users engage with AR within their first day of using the app. Rather than developing their own AI tools, Snap has established cloud partnerships with Amazon and Google, allowing them to concentrate on product innovations and enhancing Snapchat experiences. Nonetheless, the company still plans to allocate a significant portion of its budget, around $1. 5 billion annually, to infrastructure, equivalent to 84 cents per daily user per quarter. In the realm of social media influencers, AI is playing a vital role in streamlining influencer discovery, building relationships, and evaluating campaign results based on past data. This enables better-targeted campaigns that can be evaluated and executed at scale. For the latest AI news and updates, don't forget to subscribe to the daily AI Newsletter by PYMNTS.