Snap has announced a new partnership between its AR-glasses-focused subsidiary, Specs, and chipmaker Qualcomm, as the company revs up for the release of its wearable later this year.

The Snapchat creator has been teasing the release of the glasses — dubbed Spectacles, or merely Specs — for a long time and, earlier this year, it spun off a new company to specifically focus on the business venture. In February, the company abruptly parted ways with Scott Myers, its SVP of Specs, over a reported “blow-up” between himself and Snap CEO Evan Spiegel.

The newly announced partnership with Qualcomm shows signs of life for the project. Specs will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR platforms, which are its systems-on-a-chip designed to power augmented and virtual reality devices, a press release states.

The two companies will develop “on-device AI, cutting-edge graphics, and advanced multiuser digital experiences” as part of a multi-year strategic agreement, a press release claims.

“Our work with Qualcomm provides a strong foundation for the future of Specs, bringing developers and consumers advanced technology and performance that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible,” Spiegel said.

The saga of Specs has been a long one. Snap originally began developing the product over a decade ago. The last consumer-facing version of the glasses was released in 2019. Since 2024, the glasses have been a developer-only product — giving Snap the opportunity to work on seeding new kinds of programs that the company hopes will draw users to it upon launch.

Meta released its new Muse Spark AI model on Wednesday as part of a major overhaul of its AI efforts. It’s do-or-die time for Meta — the company cannot afford investing billions of dollars again into something that doesn’t pan out, like the metaverse. Well, maybe they literally can afford it, but it’d be pretty damaging, not to mention embarrassing.

Speaking of embarrassing: Imagine a bunch of your friends, family, and strangers you met once in college getting a notification that you use the Meta AI app. I have lived this humiliation, and I am here to warn you that it could happen to you, too.

Meta’s Muse Spark model might be new, but the Meta AI app is not. It came out last April, and at the time, I wrote an article about the app’s launch. As one does when reporting on an app, I downloaded the app. I used it.

At some point, Meta started sending people Instagram notifications about which of their friends were using the Meta AI app, presumably to encourage them to download it. It has been almost a year. I continue to get texts from my friends in which they alert me that Instagram told them I am on the Meta AI app. This is generally considered to be uncool behavior.

In its first month and a half in the App Store, only 6.5 million people had downloaded the app, market intelligence provider Appfigures told us at the time. That’s a lot of people, but not for a company that counts an estimated 42% of the entire world as daily users of at least one of its apps.

Perhaps that’s why in the early days of the Meta AI app, I stuck out on my friends’ Instagram notification feeds. (Yes, your friends will get a whole notification devoted to your use of the app, displayed as prominently as a new follower.)

Things are looking up for the Meta AI app, though. It is seeing a spike in downloads after releasing its revamped chatbot, now charting at No. 5 on the U.S. App Store, up from No. 57, per Appfigures. That’s also why I must warn you now about the horrors you may face if you use this app and Instagram tells your friends.

As much as I don’t want people to know I installed an app with an AI-generated “vibes” feed, this issue runs deeper. Meta’s apps are so interconnected that it’s hard to keep up with what data we’re sharing, where, and with whom. Why would I think that my Instagram mutuals would know I’m on the Meta AI app? (At least X didn’t tell people that I used Grok’s anime waifu — which was also for work.)

In order to access the Meta AI app, you have to log in with a Meta account — so, I joined using the same account I’ve had since I was a teenager, which connects to my Instagram and Facebook. Meta will continue to use whatever I do on Instagram, Facebook, and yes, now even the Meta AI app, to show me targeted ads. So, if I were to confide in Meta AI about an issue with my menstruation, Instagram might show me ads for period panties.

The Meta AI app never asked permission to notify people about my use of the app, nor has it asked if I want my AI chats to be used as advertising fodder. But it doesn’t have to, because I probably implicitly opted into it in some terms of service agreement that I never actually read. I mean, I also learned via Instagram that my brother was weirdly invested in Eurovision last year, since we can all see each other’s liked Reels. We all know too much about each other, and yet, Meta knows even more.

In a sense, I’m lucky that the only thing that people knew about my Meta AI usage was that I was on the app. Some users had unwittingly shared much more incriminating information about themselves: their AI chatlogs.

As a grizzled veteran of the Meta AI app, I can tell you that back in my day (over the summer), Meta experimented with a Discover feed on the app. Meta did not account for the fact that a lot of boomers use its app, and they are sometimes bad at using technology. Combine that with the fact that, since AI is not real, people will use chatbots to discuss things that they find too intimate or embarrassing to share with others. Then, you have a disaster on your hands.

Soon, people like a16z partner Justine Moore began to notice that the Meta AI discover feed was mostly filled with older users who didn’t realize that they were sharing their AI conversations with the world.

Sometimes, these shared conversations were benign: at the time, I encountered a man with a Southern accent who asked, “Hey, Meta, why do some farts stink more than other farts?” In other cases, we saw people share their personal home address, information about medical issues, and intimate concerns about their marriage.

To give Meta some credit, these users did have to manually press publish on these chats. But enough people seemed to accidentally share private information that, clearly, there was a design issue to address. (Meta has since removed this Discover feed.)

At least if using the Meta AI app turns out to be a hot new trend, I will get to rub it in my friends’ faces that I was there first. But I would not bet on that future. There is still that “Vibes” feed, after all.

This is it. The clock is running out. Tonight is your last chance to lock in savings of up to $500 for your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass. These discounts end at 11:59 p.m. PT.

Register here to secure yours with the limited-time offer.

What Disrupt delivers year after year

This year, Disrupt takes over San Francisco’s Moscone West from October 13–15, bringing together 10,000 founders, VCs, operators, and tech leaders for a tightly curated, three-day experience focused on real outcomes.

Attendees return for:

• High-signal access to people actively building and investing.

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• Tactical insights you can use immediately.

• A front-row view into the future of tech before it breaks mainstream.

With 300+ startups expected to showcase their innovations across the venue, the intensity of the live pitch competition Startup Battlefield 200, and curated networking designed to drive results, Disrupt isn’t just another conference. It’s where momentum is built.

A more curated way to experience a tech event

Disrupt isn’t about wandering between sessions. It’s about intentional connections and curated experiences designed for how people actually grow in tech. If you’re hands-on in tech, Disrupt was built for you.

Founders meet investors actively backing breakthrough ideas. VCs cut through the noise to discover startups aligned with their investment focus. Operators exchange real-world lessons on building, scaling, and shipping what’s next. Aspiring innovators get a front-row seat to tomorrow’s tech.

Insights delivered straight to you from tech’s top voices

Each Disrupt brings together 250+ of the most influential names in tech, leaders who have shaped the industry and continue to define what’s next. Keep an eye on the Disrupt 2026 event page as the agenda goes live to see who will take the stage this year. Past speakers include:

Final warning: Only hours remain for this discount

At 11:59 p.m. PT tonight, prices go up and this opportunity will be gone. Disrupt will still be filled with the same founders, investors, and operators you’ll meet. The only difference is what you paid to be there.

If Disrupt is part of your 2026 strategy, make the move now. Secure your pass, lock in the savings, and step into the conversations that move your business forward. Register before today ends.