Snapchat+ gets AI Bitmoji pets and group wallpapers as the company fights to retain users

Snap is rolling out new personalization and customization features for its subscription-based social media platform Snapchat+, aiming to boost retention among its paying user base in an intensely competitive market.

The updates, which include expanding its AI-powered pet avatars Bitmoji Pets, collaborative and group chat wallpapers, add to the existing customization features of Snapchat+, the company exclusively told Reuters on Tuesday.

Squeezed between dominant platforms, such as TikTok and Meta-owned Instagram, in a crowded social media landscape, Snap is counting on new personalized features to deepen user engagement and attract paying subscribers.

CEO Evan Spiegel has said Snap is in a "crucible moment," and aims to reaccelerate revenue growth and improve gross margins. In August, the company stumbled to its slowest quarterly revenue growth in over a year.

Spiegel is aiming to boost revenue by expanding Snapchat+ with premium features and has a target to make direct revenue "a durable multi-billion-dollar growth driver for Snap."

Snapchat+ has topped 16 million subscribers, more than doubling since early 2024, with over half of its members aged 21 or older, the company said.

Internal data shared with Reuters shows Snapchat+ subscribers who utilize customization features, such as custom app icons and personalized chat wallpapers, have retention rates more than 10 percentage points higher than other users.

The company said that features centered on friendship and self-expression are especially popular, with nearly 80% of Snapchat+ subscribers having set a custom wallpaper for at least one chat with a friend.

"Our strategy is to improve what's working and really double down there, while also exploring new opportunities," Snapchat+ product lead Swetha Dhamodharan said.

Among the new features, subscribers will soon be able to name their Bitmoji Pet and display it on their Snapchat profile.

The Bitmoji Pets, which are exclusive to Snapchat+, already appear alongside users' Bitmoji on the app's Snap Map feature — a map showing friends' location — and within individual chats.

Snap's Bitmoji feature allows users to create their personalized digital avatar or emoji.

Another update is Wallpaper Remixing, which allows both participants in a one-on-one chat to customize their shared chat wallpaper. Previously, only one person could control it.

Snap said custom wallpapers are being extended to group chats, enabling friend groups to design a collective wallpaper that aligns with their group's identity.

The features follow Snap's announcement to charge users who store over 5 gigabytes in its Memories storage, a photo and video archive feature launched in 2016.

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