Snapchat AI gets even weirder: Introducing AI pets
Snapchat was one of the first social media apps to implement generative AI, adding its "My AI" chatbot to double as an "AI friend." Now, nearly a year later, Snapchat is reportedly adding another weird AI feature -- a generative AI pet.
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User screenshots originally spotted by SocialMediaToday show that Snapchat+ subscribers are now being given the option of creating "Custom Bitmoji Pets" as part of their subscriptions' early access to exclusive, experimental, and pre-release features.
With custom Bitmoji Pets, users will be able to "Use AI to create real or imaginary pets on the Map," as seen in the screenshots.
Essentially, the pet you create will show up next to you on the Snapchat map, allowing your friends to see not only your Bitmoji but also one of the pets you created every time they look at your geolocation.
If you are wondering what the point is, so are we.
Since its initial implementation of generative AI last February, Snapchat has been guilty of implementing generative AI for the sake of it, and not solving a real problem.
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As a result, many users have expressed a desire to remove My AI entirely from their chats since it doesn't help much and is actually a tad creepy. Unfortunately, there is only one way to remove it, and it's by buying a Snapchat+ membership for $3.99 per month or $29.99 per year. No word yet on what you'll have to do to rehome an AI pet.