New Snap AI aims to know what users need – before they even ask

AI assistants typically work reactively – they only become active when given a specific question or task. SPECS Intelligence from Snap Inc. – the company behind Snapchat – takes a different approach: The recently unveiled software is designed to learn from connected services what matters to users, which people are important to them and what tasks are coming up.

To do this, SPECS organizes a user's life into different areas such as work, family, travel or health. Before a meeting, for example, the AI could summarize outstanding decisions and important questions. When traveling, it is designed to bring together flight details, hotel bookings, reservations and appointments. If the departure gate changes, a notification could appear directly on the iPhone or SPECS AR glasses. A short introduction to the new AI has been published on YouTube:

The assistant isn't just intended to display information. It is also planned to draft messages or cancel subscriptions that are no longer needed. Before SPECS carries out an action, user approval is always supposed to be required. According to Snap, users can decide which apps and accounts they want to connect. Personal content is not supposed to be used for advertising or to train AI models. Processing takes place partly on the device and partly through a secured cloud infrastructure.

SPECS Intelligence is set to be available on Mac, iPhone and the SPECS AR glasses, although the glasses are not required to use the service. The full feature set will initially launch in closed Early Access on Mac. In the US, users aged 18 and older already have access to a limited iPhone preview that analyzes Gmail and Google Calendar. On the AR glasses, the same personal context is eventually expected to be displayed directly in the user's field of view. It is not yet known when all features will become available on the iPhone and the glasses.