Snap spins off smart glasses unit into Specs Inc, AR glasses launch in 2026

The new subsidiary will handle development, partnerships and branding for Snap's AR glasses as the company prepares to bring its Specs wearable to the public later this year

Snap is reorganising its smart glasses efforts into a standalone unit. The company has announced the creation of Specs Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary that will oversee product development, partnerships, and commercial strategy for its smart glasses business. Snap has also confirmed that it is preparing for the public debut of its ‘Specs’ augmented reality (AR) glasses later this year.

A separate company for smart glasses

Snap says the decision to set up Specs Inc. is aimed at giving its smart glasses business sharper operational focus and greater flexibility. Housing the effort under a separate entity is expected to make it easier to form partnerships, explore minority investments, and develop Specs as an independent brand, distinct from Snapchat’s core social media platform.

 

The company added that the new structure also brings more clarity to how the smart glasses business is valued as it moves closer to launch. While Snap has been working on smart glasses for years, this marks the first time the effort has been formally separated into its own company.

Snap’s long-running smart glasses push

Snap’s interest in smart glasses goes back to 2016, when it introduced the first-generation Spectacles, which were mainly focused on capturing photos and videos for social sharing. Since then, the company has steadily evolved the idea, moving beyond simple cameras towards more capable augmented reality hardware.

In recent years, Snap has made experimental AR glasses available to developers, allowing digital elements to be layered onto the real world through transparent lenses. These devices are designed around natural interaction methods such as hand gestures, voice commands, and spatial awareness, rather than traditional screens.

 

Last year, Snap also offered a preview of a newer generation of glasses that it says are intended for consumers, with a broader public release currently expected in 2026.

Snap Specs: What to expect

Snap introduced its consumer-facing augmented reality glasses, called ‘Specs’, at the Augmented World Expo (AWE) 2025. Unlike earlier versions of Spectacles that were limited to developers, Specs is planned as a publicly available product.

 

The company has described Specs as a powerful wearable computer built around see-through lenses that place digital information directly into the user’s view of the real world. At the time of the announcemt, Snap said that these glasses will change how people interact with computers, blending digital content more naturally into physical environments, rather than being confined to phones or laptops.