蘑菇AV

The news: Snap is seeking outside funding for its AR Spectacles as it struggles to compete with Meta platforms and TikTok, per The Information. Our take: Bringing in outside capital could help Snap accelerate AR development without draining its core business. The possibility of gathering outside investment also highlights how critical Snap鈥檚 AR bet has become and how high the stakes are. Staying competitive requires Snap to prove Spectacles can evolve past a niche hardware play and compete with strong AI alternatives. If it can鈥檛, Snap may get stuck in the middle, overshadowed by platforms that are faster, bigger, and richer.

AR/VR continues to evolve as a tool for marketers and retailers to develop deeper consumer engagement. Long-term growth will be helped by AI integrations and demographic shifts. And while gaming is still the top use case, smart glasses are on the rise.

The news: ByteDance is working on lightweight mixed-reality goggles that could directly challenge Meta鈥檚 products, per The Information. Our take: If ByteDance can leverage its content ecosystem, creator network, and powerful algorithm, it could carve out a foothold with younger, social media鈥搒avvy users. Brands could sponsor AR lenses and place products within digital overlays to turn everyday activities into shoppable moments.

The news: Snap announced its sixth-generation AR smart glasses at the 2025 Augmented World Expo (AWE). The wearables will be available to the public for the first time since 2016, potentially unlocking a new revenue stream beyond ads. The lightweight consumer smart glasses, called Specs, will launch in 2026 and include an 鈥渦ltra-powerful wearable computer.鈥� Our take: Snap鈥檚 next-gen smart glasses could diversify its revenue streams and show off its AR prowess. But unless the price tag is affordable and competitive, users may continue to just use Snapchat鈥檚 AR filters on their phones.

The news: The AR and VR headset market is rebounding, led by Meta鈥檚 success. Global headset shipments grew 18.1% YoY in Q1 2025, per the International Data Corporation鈥檚 (IDC) Augmented and Virtual Reality Headset Tracker. Meta held a 50.8% market share, up from 36.2% in Q1 2024, cementing its role as an industry leader but indicating the market could be reliant on a single player. Our take: Brands should make content that鈥檚 adaptable to both headsets and smart glasses to accommodate changing consumer interests. Investing in glasses-centric content can target consumers, while MR activations could be ideal for enterprise use cases such as training employees.

AI will become deeply woven into daily life in 2025. Autonomous agents, smart devices, AR glasses, search engines, and digital twins are making AI an ambient presence in how we work, shop, browse, and interact with the world.

Snap doubles down on immersive brand tools: AI Lenses, creator events, and AR vending machines highlight its experiential marketing push.

Sponsored AI Lenses let users drop into branded scenes via selfies, offering a fast, cost-cutting alternative to AR with higher engagement potential.

AI-powered search and AR try-ons promise a smoother buying journey, but with social commerce on the rise, Google has to fight for attention.

Key stat: 66% of US adults are unaware of, haven鈥檛 used, or aren鈥檛 interested in augmented reality (AR) shopping apps as of January 2024, according to a January 2025 蘑菇AV and CivicScience study.

Despite economic headwinds and challenges faced by major players, AR and VR adoption is on the rise.

Snap faces ad revenue headwinds despite solid Q4: AI, AR, and creator investments need to deliver as brands seek better ROI in a tight ad market.

As Samsung and Google develop mixed-reality glasses, Apple and Meta refine their ecosystems. Cheaper, lighter devices could finally push AR/VR into the mainstream.

While costly headsets falter, mobile AR is seeing strong momentum. Affordable solutions like Ray-Ban Meta Glasses offer promising pathways for consumer engagement.

Snap can also lean on its AR capabilities to drive future growth. As other competitors invest in AR, Snapchat must rely on outside capital to accelerate its AR development while emphasizing its leadership in this area.

Tech savvy: Gen Xers are open to smart home tech, augmented reality (AR), and virtual reality (VR), making them a prime audience for immersive brand experiences.

The exchange rates used are as follows:. 2016: ARS 14.76 per US dollar. 2017: ARS 16.55 per US dollar. 2018: ARS 34.50 per US dollar. 2019: ARS 54.80 per US dollar. 2020: ARS 76.60 per US dollar. 2021: ARS 98.81 per US dollar. 2022: ARS 148.80 per US dollar. 2023: ARS 401.88 per US dollar. 2024鈥�2029: ARS 979.82 per US dollar.