14 May 2026
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Mike Boland
AWE Talks: Snap Builds its Own AR Cloud
Welcome back to AWE Talks, our series that revisits the best AWE conference sessions. With AWE EU 2025 concluded, we have a fresh batch of session footage to sink our teeth into for weeks to come.
We continue the action this week with a look at Snap's work to power AR experiences that are pinned to specific locations for personal relevance and elevated functionality. This takes shape in Snap Cloud. What's it all about?
See the summarized takeaways below, along with the full session video. Stay tuned for more video highlights each week and check out the full library of conference sessions on AWE’s YouTube Channel.
Speakers
Raj ADVANI - Snap
Atley LOUGHRIDGE - Snap
Key Takeaways & Analysis
- – A key concept for AR functionality is to have cloud-delivered content that's appended to real-world locations.
- – This location-based data mesh can power the vision we all have for relevant AR experiences all around us.
- – This is the concept that AWE co-founder Ori Inbar coined nearly 10 years ago: the AR Cloud.
- – The concept has since materialized in many ways, including Niantic Spatial's VPS engine and others.
- – Snap is also developing systems that power far-flung AR experiences for its upcoming consumer Specs.
- – This becomes necessary as Snap lenses evolve from simple face filters to robust and shared experiences.
- – One enabling tech it continues to develop is Snap Cloud, which helps deliver computing-intensive AR anywhere.
- – This takes the load off local processing and storage and makes a broader range of experiences possible.
- – The latest development to Snap Cloud was to integrate open-source back-end-as-a-service, Supabase.
- – This lets developers tie Snap Lens experiences to other systems to unlock greater functionality.
- – For example, a restaurant could integrate its ordering system and back-end point-of-sale system into a lens.
- – The result would be a UX that lets diners visualize 3D menu items and order them on the spot.
- – Other app integrations through Supabase can do things like create a digital assistant for your house.
- – This could display private 3D content, such as where you left your keys and the weather outside.
- – Other possibilities include teleprompters that bring your Google Docs or presentation notes into Specs.
- – These possibilities are being developed as we speak, as we approach the launch date for consumer Specs.
For more color and depth, including live demos of Snap Cloud and Supabase, see the full session below...
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