Snap Inc. and Niantic’s New Partnership: A Major Leap for City-Scale AR Positioning and Experiences

Oh man, Snap Inc. and Niantic getting all cozy together is a trip. So, Snap—you know, the Snapchat folks and the Spectacles, those AR glasses that I still can’t figure out if they’re super cool or just kinda weird? Anyway, they’re teaming up with Niantic Spatial. Yeah, Niantic—the folks who made us all wander around parks catching imaginary creatures on our phones. They’re all about turning real-world maps into shared digital playgrounds.

I mean, crazy stuff, right? AR devices are already kinda smart; they can figure out where they are. You put on a headset, it’s like, “Oh, I see a couch, moving past it,” which is wild. But when you want multiple devices vibing together in one space? Like, really vibing? They gotta share the same map. It’s like both of them saying, “Hey, I see the pizza place on 5th Avenue, do you?” And both of them saying, “Yup.”

So, enter Niantic’s Visual Positioning System—VPS if you wanna sound fancy. GPS isn’t good enough for AR stuff, it’s like trying to use a map from a cereal box to navigate New York City: wild guesswork. Instead, Niantic wants all the AR gadgets to link up and share this mega-map so everyone sees the same magic. They’ve done a lot with games before, but now they’re diving into more serious waters. Or maybe they’re just looking for new ways to make us addicted to our screens.

Now, Snap’s jumping onboard because, well, why not? You can already imagine the crazy stuff—like walking downtown and suddenly there’s a digital concert in the middle of the plaza just for you and your friends to see. Or you walk up to a cafe, and bam, a virtual puppy runs out to play fetch. Other folks would see it too. It’s like, reality but with bonus features.

Anyway, the partnership’s not just a friendly “let’s share ideas” kind of deal. There’s money involved, of course, because nothing in tech happens without some serious cash exchanging hands. And user-generated data? Oh boy, they’re gonna love that. Niantic’s been doing this since people started hunting down digital monsters in their neighborhoods. They get players to scan stuff, update their maps—like letting them do the hard work while having some AR fun. It’s sneaky-clever, right?

Snap’s got that Snapchat army—millions of folks—so when Niantic and Snap combine forces, it’s like this supercharged AR data monster. While Snap’s Spectacles are still finding their spot in the world (or on your face, I guess?), those Snapchat users could help make the most epic AR mapping thing ever.

So, yeah. The future’s looking kinda wild. Or maybe it’s already here and I just need to update my software. Who knows?