Snap introduces a standalone AI assistant, Specs Intelligence

It works with the company's new AR glasses and in its own mobile and desktop apps.

Karissa Bell for Engadget

Unlike most of its social media rivals, Snap hasn't made many big bets on AI. The company has added a bunch of generative AI-powered features to Snapchat, but it hasn't made the technology a central focus.

Now, the company is introducing a new standalone AI assistant alongside its redesigned AR glasses. Called Specs Intelligence, the "anticipatory AI service" will feature prominently in Snap's hardware, but will also have dedicated desktop and mobile apps for those who don't have a pair of glasses.

Snap doesn't describe Specs Intelligence as an agent or assistant, but its description will sound familiar to anyone who followed Meta's recent Muse announcement. "Specs Intelligence builds an understanding of your goals, priorities, relationships, and routines from the apps and tools you choose to connect," the company explains in a blog post.

Specs Intelligence is separate from Snapchat and sounds much more productivity-focused than anything we've previously seen from the company. The assistant relies on connections to users' outside accounts, like Google, to surface timely reminders and other relevant info based on what it knows about you. For example, the company says, it could highlight "questions to ask, and things to remember" before a meeting or show travel plans ahead of a trip. It's also able to organize info into different "corners" based on the context in which you need them, like keeping family-related tasks separate from work deadlines.

Snap

If you do have a pair of AR Specs, the assistant can surface relevant info directly into your field of view. Specs owners will be able to ask it questions by saying "Hey Specs." The feature wasn't available during my demo with Specs, though I was able to launch a browser window by saying "Hey Specs," but it sounds similar to some aspects of how Meta AI works with the company's glasses.

It also seems like Snap is hoping to get ahead of some of the privacy concerns people have had with Meta's approach. The company says it won't use Specs intelligence to train its AI models or serve ads and that "Snap personnel cannot view or access the personal content you use with the service."

Snap is making a limited version of Specs Intelligence available in the US to try now via the Specs app on iOS. The preview version will allow users to connect their Google accounts to see "insights about where you spend your time and attention" but won't feature proactive suggestions. The "full early-access" version will be invite-only to start and only available with Specs' Mac app. Anyone interested can sign up for the waitlist now.