Snapchat will be making augmented reality (AR) art. The multimedia messaging mobile application is set to launch a platform anchored on the emerging technology.
The AR art platform will feature Jeff Koons and a lot of other artists. It will allow the art to be pinned in specific places in AR so Snapchat users can see it when they hold up their phones in the pinned location. The app is set to ask artists to sign-up to the AR platform to have their art featured.
Snapchat is planning to launch the feature focusing on Koons' artworks around the world, specifically the United States, Australia and France. A source told TechCrunch that the new AR art platform is based on technology from an Israel-based startup company, Cimagine, which Snapchat bought in December 2016.
Koons, known for his giant balloon animal art, is the first featured artist for the platform.
"Discover Koon's innovative digital installations scattered across the world to experience them for yourself and learn a little more about them," Snapchat said.
Koons' artworks will be seen in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Toronto, Sydney, London, Paris and Rio de Janeiro.
This AR art platform from Snapchat can help revive the app's slowing user growth. The app has missed its revenue targets and the fierce competition from Facebook and Instagram Stories are just some of the factors that affected it.
If all goes well with the launch, it could get people going to physical locations in large groups just like "Pokémon GO." While people hold up their phones, the curiosity it will generate from passersby could have them potentially download Snapchat and join the AR art platform.
The task now for Snapchat is whether the feature's approach to art can fill the vastness of the physical world. Another challenge for the app is bringing the platform not just to top cities but also other urban areas with a high density of population.
Snapchat would need the help of outside developers and artists to make the Snapchat AR art platform gain traction. For this to happen, Snapchat will have to make AR art everywhere.
