Snapchat Unveils Generative AI Video Lenses, Pushing Boundaries in AR and AI Integration

Snap introduces AI Video Lenses powered by its in-house generative model | TechCrunch

Snapchat is introducing its first ever video generative AI Lenses, the company told TechCrunch exclusively. The Lenses are powered by Snap's in-house built generative video model. The three new AI Video Lenses are available to users on the app's premium subscription tier, Snapchat Platinum, which costs $15.99 per month. The launch comes as Snap unveiled an AI video-generation tool at its Partner Summit last September. A spokesperson for Snap said the new AI Video Lenses leverage later versions of this underlying technology. Snap has been seen as a leader in AR, but has also been investing in AI over the past few years alongside nearly every other tech company. With these new AI Video Lenses, Snap is adopting AI to stay competitive and provide its users with features that aren't yet available on its rivals' platforms, including Instagram and TikTok. While Snapchat is starting with three AI Video Lenses at launch, it plans to add more every week. The initial Lenses include "Raccoon" and "Fox," both of which animate furry friends cuddling up with you. The third "Spring Flowers" Lens generates a zoom-out effect revealing the person in your Snap holding a bouquet. You can access the new Lenses through the Lens carousel. You can then select the Lens, then capture a Snap through either your front or back camera. The AI video will generate and then automatically save to your Memories. "These Lenses, powered by our in-house built generative video model, bring some of the most cutting edge AI tools available today to Snapchatters through a familiar Lens format," the company wrote in a blog post. "We have a long history of being first movers to bring advanced AR, ML and AI tools directly to our community, and we're excited to see what Snapchatters create." As Snapchat notes, it makes sense for the company to bring generative AI to Lenses, given that it's a format users have embraced for years. While Snap has tapped AI tools from OpenAI and Google in the past to power some of its features, it's now also building its own in-house models. Last month, the company unveiled an AI text-to-image research model for mobile devices that will power some of Snapchat's features in the coming months. Snap said at the time that by implementing in-house technology, it will be able to offer its community high-quality AI tools at a lower operating cost.

Snapchat's New AI Video Filters Add Foxes and Flowers

Katelyn is a writer with CNET covering social media, AI and online services. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in media and journalism. You can often find her with a novel and an iced coffee during her time off. We're long gone from the days when the most popular Snapchat filters were the simple, adorable puppy dog face and the iconic early 2010s rainbow-vomiter. Much like other social media companies, Snapchat is diving deeper into AI and releasing new generative AI-powered video lenses for its premium users, parent company Snap said Wednesday. The announcement of the new filters isn't what's noteworthy, since any aspiring developer can use Snapchat's Lens Studio to create and share AR filters. What's interesting is that these new lenses are powered by Snap's own in-house generative AI video models. Rather than augmenting something that already exists, like many filters do, the lenses are using generative AI to add completely new objects to your videos and animate those objects. Three new AI filters are available now as part of the launch: a raccoon filter and fox filter (which create and add animals to your shot) and a spring flowers filter, which is a zoom-out feature that reveals a bouquet of flowers. It's a step forward for a social media company that's shown itself to be invested in AR and AI. The new filters are available to folks on Snapchat's premium plan ($15 per month). Paying for a premium version of Snapchat might seem unnecessary, but people who are already subscribed may have an interest in taking advantage of Snap's AI tools. The platform has added -- and paywalled -- a number of AI tools in the past few years. Snap's AI chatbot, powered by ChatGPT, is available to everyone, but if you have a paid subscription, you can customize it. Generative AI lenses like these are also part of Snapchat Plus' premium plans. Snapchat is one of the only social media companies that also has smart glasses (alongside Meta, with its Ray Ban smart specs). The compatibility of the glasses with the Snapchat app on phones is one thing that sets Snap apart from its smart glasses competitors, CNET reviewer Scott Stein noted. But the design is unpolished, Stein wrote: "The Spectacles in their current form are chunky and much odder than any glasses I'd ever put on my face." The release of the new AI lenses is another example of how the integration of AI across social media is ramping up. Meta flooded Instagram and Facebook with its Meta AI when it was released last year, and it continues to use the public content from its US users to train its models. Google teased its AI video capabilities with a newly released AI video background generator on YouTube Shorts. TikTok, despite its many recent legal challenges, also has introduced new AI avatars for creators.

Snapchat is rolling out AI-powered video lenses

Jay Peters is a news editor covering technology, gaming, and more. He joined The Verge in 2019 after nearly two years at Techmeme. Snapchat Platinum subscribers will now be able to use video lenses featuring AI generated animals or flowers, Snap announced today. There will initially be three of the lenses, which Snap calls "AI Video Lenses." The fox lens, for example, can have a fox snuggle on your shoulder, while the raccoon one can have raccoons scamper over your head. With the flower lens, flowers will appear in front of you and the camera will zoom out. Snap says it will be adding new AI-powered lenses every week. "These Lenses, powered by our in-house built generative video model, bring some of the most cutting edge AI tools available today to Snapchatters through a familiar Lens format," Snap says in its blog post. "We have a long history of being first movers to bring advanced AR, ML and AI tools directly to our community, and we're excited to see what Snapchatters create." Last year, Snap showed off an on-device AI model that can transform a user's background and clothes in real time.

Snapchat launches generative AI video Lenses

But they're exclusively available to Snapchat Platinum subscribers. Snapchat's future includes generative AI video Lenses, wherein users can watch themselves cuddling with virtual animals on screen. The first three Lenses the app has launched include the Racoon and Fox, which animate the animals into a Snap. Meanwhile, the third one called Spring Flowers will generate a bouquet of flowers and use a zoom-out effect to reveal who's holding it. All three Lenses, as well as future ones Snapchat releases, are powered by a generative video model the company built in-house. Snap says it will be adding more every week to expand users' options. "We have a long history of being first movers to bring advanced AR, ML and AI tools directly to our community, and we're excited to see what Snapchatters create," Snap said in its announcement. The company added an OpenAI-powered chatbot to its app back in 2023, and it has released more AI features since then. Last year, Snap introduced an AI video-generation tool for creators that allow users to create videos from text prompts. The tool was released to a small subset of users, but it showed that the company was working on AI video for the app. For now, only users paying for the $16-per-month Snapchat Platinum subscription tier will have access to the app's new AI video Lenses. The new Lenses will show up first in the carousel for subscribers and will work with both front and rear cameras. Any AI video a user creates will be automatically saved to Memories, and they can then share them directly with friends, to their Stories and with the public through Spotlight.

Snapchat's first-ever generative AI Lenses for video are here

Summary Snapchat is rolling out its first generative AI Lenses for video, making AR even more interactive. The first batch includes a shoulder-perching fox, scurrying raccoons, and a blooming floral scene with a cinematic zoom. Only Snapchat+ Platinum subscribers ($15.99/month) get early access. Snap is doubling down on AI-powered creativity, this time bringing generative magic to video. After showing off an on-device image diffusion model that powers real-time AR effects, the company is now rolling out its first-ever generative AI Lenses for video. Built on Snap's own AI model, these new Lenses promise a more immersive and interactive experience, pushing the boundaries of what's possible in augmented reality. Related How to create AI images in SnapChat+ Create an AI image on Snapchat right now Posts The first batch of AI Video Lenses brings some wild and whimsical effects (via The Verge). One lens drops a virtual fox right on your shoulder, while another fills your view with raccoons scurrying across the screen. And for a more scenic touch, the spring flower lens surrounds you with blooming flowers and a cinematic zoom effect, according to Snap's announcement. Users start by picking a Lens, then record a Snap using their front or back camera. Once sent for processing, Snapchat's AI works its magic, generating context-aware animations that perfectly match the chosen effect. The final creation is then saved to Memories, ready to be shared or revisited later. More AI Video Lenses on the way Snap is kicking things off with three AI Video Lenses, but it's planning to drop new ones every week to keep things fresh. You can find these new lenses right in the Lens carousel. For now, though, this feature is rolling out as a Snapchat+ Platinum exclusive. That means only subscribers to the premium tier, which costs $15.99 a month and comes ad-free, will get first dibs on these shiny new lenses. Prior to this, Snap showed off its mobile-friendly AI text-to-image model, which will power future Snapchat features. The company made it clear that it's using its own tech to roll out top-tier AI tools to users, all while keeping costs down. While these AI Video Lenses are definitely a step forward for Snapchat, their impact feels pretty subtle for now. Existing lenses already pull off similar tricks. The big difference here is the extra layer of personalization these AI-powered features bring to the table.

Snapchat introduces AI-generated Lenses for premium subscribers

Snapchat on Wednesday announced a new feature for its users - at least for some of them. Starting today, Snapchat Platinum (the platform's premium subscription) members will have access to new AI-generated Lenses. For those unfamiliar, Snapchat Lenses are essentially AR filters available in the app, so that users can take photos and videos with these live AR effects. Thanks to artificial intelligence, the Lenses will now look even more realistic. Snapchat says it's using an "in-house built generative video model" to power the new AI Video Lenses. Users will find three AI Video Lenses for now. Two of them, Raccoon and Fox, will "animate furry friends" by making them interact with the person. The other new AI filter called Spring Flowers generates a zoom-out effect as if the person is holding a bouquet of flowers. Snapchat Platinum subscribers can find the new Lenses in the carousel along with the other AR filters. Since generating videos with AI takes a while, users can continue browsing the app while the video is being processed. The company says that more AI Video Lenses will be added in the future. Coincidentally or not, Instagram announced in December that it has also been working on realistic AI-based filters, which will replace the current AR filters. However, Instagram is yet to release these AI filters to users. Snapchat is available for free on the App Store. It requires an iPhone or iPad running iOS 14 or later.

Snapchat's new lenses add AI videos to your Snaps at a steep fee

Snapchat is bringing generative AI videos to its social platform. The company has today introduced what it calls Video Gen AI Lenses, which essentially add an AI-powered video effect to your Snaps. The new video AI lenses are currently limited to Platinum subscription tier, which costs $14.99 per month. "These Lenses, powered by our in-house built generative video model, bring some of the most cutting edge AI tools available today to Snapchatters through a familiar Lens format," Snap says in a press release. Recommended Videos In the early phase, there are only three AI video lenses available to paying users. The Raccoon lens adds a bunch of furry raccoons to your video, while the Fox preset puts a curious a red fox peeking over the shoulder. Please enable Javascript to view this content Finally, there's a Spring Flowers option, which adds a bunch of photorealistic flowers in a variety of colors with a zoom-out running effect to your Snaps. The selection is pretty narrow, for now, but the company assures new video AI lenses will be added on a weekly basis. It is unclear whether Snapchat will let users create their own video AI lenses down the road. The platform already offers a free toolkit called Lens Studio, which allows users to create their own lenses and custom face filters, and share them other people across the world. Snap offers generative AI capabilities in the Lens Studio, which allows any person to create custom lenses using a text or image prompt. Think of it as telling Gemini or ChatGPT to generate an image through text descriptions. Notably, it also comes with its onboard AI assistant to help users with their projects. How Snapchat's video Gen AI Lenses work? As mentioned above, you will need a Snapchat+ Platinum subscription to access the AI video lenses. This tier offers an add-free experience across the Lens and Story section, and doesn't push any sponsored Snaps either. These new generative AI video lenses will be the first to appear when users launch the Lens carousel in the Snapchat app. As usual, they can be applied to media captured by the front as well as rear cameras. As the AI videos are being prepped, users can switch to other tasks such as messaging or recording new clips. Once a Snap with AI video lenses is ready, it will be saved within the Memories section automatically. Just like regular content, media with a video AI Lens applied can be freely added to the Stories and Spotlight section, or directly shared with acquaintances. To avoid any confusion here, Lenses are not the same thing as Filters. The former adds a bevy of augmented reality (AR) effects to Snaps, while the latter is more like an artistic color overlay over your photos and videos. The Snapchat app offers two kind of lenses. The Face Lenses turn the users' face into something fun, like a cute puppy or make them wear a flower crown. The World Lenses, on the other hand, add animated effects to the world around you.

You Can Now Use AI Video Lenses on Snapchat And Create These Effects

Currently, Raccoon, Fox, and Spring Flowers AI Lenses are available Snapchat introduced a new artificial intelligence (AI) feature on Thursday that uses its in-house foundational video models. Dubbed AI video Lenses, the new Lens format combines Augmented Reality (AR) and generative AI elements to create unique and immersive video effects. Currently, these features are only available on the platform's premium subscription tier. Users will see three new Lenses to begin with, and the company plans to add new Lenses on a weekly basis. Notably, these Lenses can be used similar to the existing ones, and the videos created using them can be shared with friends or on Stories and Spotlight. In a newsroom post, the social media platform detailed the new AI feature. These AI Lenses are powered by the company's in-house generative video model. The company first unveiled these models at the Snap Partner Summit in September last year. At the time, the AI tools were available to a small group of creators in beta. The company is now expanding the technology to a larger user base. These new AI video Lenses will be available to Snapchat Platinum subscribers. Platinum is the most expensive subscription tier by the company with the price of Rs. 99 a month. The subscription offers an ad-free experience as well as other exclusive features. Coming to the AI video Lenses, Snapchat highlighted that three new Lenses are being added currently. Two of them are called "Raccoon" and "Fox" which adds the respective animals to a Snap, giving the appearance that they are moving around the user. The third is "Spring Flowers" and the Lens generates a zoom-out effect revealing the person in the frame holding a large bouquet of flowers. While there are just three for now, the company said that it will be adding more Lenses in the coming days. Snapchat Platinum subscribers can find these Lenses at the beginning of the Lens carousel. They can also be searched using the above-mentioned names. To see the effect, users will have to select the Lens and then capture a snap with either the rear or the front-facing cameras. The company said there is a slight delay before the videos are fully rendered, but during that time users will be able to use the platform and won't have to wait on the loading screen. Once generation is complete, the AI video will be automatically saved to Memories. These videos can then be shared with friends, or be added to Stories and Spotlight.