Snapchat joins the Bluetooth SIG, may be working on AR hardware

Snapchat has joined the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), adding weight to the rumors that the social networking platform is set to enter the augmented reality (AR) field, reports The Financial Times.

The SIG industry association upholds the Bluetooth wireless standard, and membership is a must for companies that want to employ Bluetooth in any hardware devices.

According to the report, Snapchat’s move to switch from software to hardware fuels speculation that it is working on AR wearable devices (like Google Glass).

Snapchat is an “adopter” in the SIG, which is a free tier that provides member companies with a license to build Bluetooth-enabled products, and to work with other Bluetooth SIG makers on collaborative efforts.

The company’s recent acquisition of AR headset startup Vergence Lab, latest hires and a number of acquisitions in computer vision and AR software, all point in the same direction.

Analysts say Snapchat has all the reasons to make a foray into the Augmented Reality zone, as its smartphone app is seen by many as one of the most successful existing examples of consumer AR, mainly through the use of their image filters, which can be applied to live video captured by a user’s device camera.