Snapchat’s AI chatbot may not be to everyone’s liking, but at least the app’s latest updates sound like fun.
The messaging service just debuted a new filter that lets you try on nail polish colours. It’s also giving paying subscribers the ability to pose with pets on its live location feature, Snap Maps.
To be clear, the augmented-reality (AR) nail polish filter is just a glorified advert for Calabasas nail salon mainstay OPI. Nevertheless, it’s probably eye-catching enough to wow your friends — and that’s all that matters with Snap’s virtual graphics.
You can use the filter to apply a range of nail polish lacquers to your fingernails, using your phone’s front-facing and selfie cameras, which boast quirky names like Tickle My France-y and Suzi Without a Paddle.
The filter was created by Paige Piskin, a digital makeup artist whose Instagram and TikTok AR designs have racked up hundreds of billions of impressions, and even been used by celebs like Kylie Jenner and Grimes. Piskin also appeared as a judge on an episode of the BBC’s reality competition series Glow Up: Britain’s Next Make-Up Star.
Meanwhile, Snap is promising a total of 10 cartoonish pets that will be visible alongside your Bitmoji avatar on Snap Maps. You’ll also be able to choose from five car icons in the near future, the company said.
In addition, Snapchat is offering subscribers a host of new custom chat wallpapers and Bitmoji backgrounds. If you don’t like the pre-made designs, you’ll be able to create your own using generative AI, the company announced.
The app’s subscription service, Snapchat+, costs £4 per month, and is currently the only way you can get rid of its AI chatbot. Snap launched its custom version of ChatGPT, called My AI, in February. Just weeks later, users were accusing the bot of tracking their location, and complaining that they couldn’t manually switch it off.
