The two companies have signed a multi-year agreement to bring Snapdragon XR chips to Snap’s long-awaited Specs platform.
Snap‘s upcoming consumer AR glasses will be powered by a Snapdragon XR chip from Qualcomm, the two companies confirmed Thursday, announcing a multi-year strategic agreement ahead of the product’s expected 2026 launch.
The partnership is not a new one. Snapdragon chips have powered multiple previous generations of Snap’s Spectacles, the company’s camera-equipped smart glasses line, which dates back to 2016. The earlier iterations were straightforward camera glasses; more recent models have been AR-capable, layering digital experiences over the real world — though those have not been available to general consumers.
In a joint statement, the companies said they would work together on on-device AI, graphics, and multiuser digital experiences for the Specs platform.
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Snap has been working toward a consumer AR glasses product for a decade. Earlier this year, it spun off its smart glasses division into a separate company while reaffirming the 2026 launch target.
The AR glasses market is growing increasingly crowded. Meta is also developing AR glasses and could bring them to consumers as early as 2027. Google and Samsung are collaborating on a competing product, and Apple is reportedly working on its own AR glasses as well.
