# Specs are designed to move computing back into shared spaces

Markdown copy of https://realalpha.app/s/specs-are-designed-to-move-computing-back-into-shared-spaces/ on Real Alpha, the best minutes from long interviews with the people building AI. Cite and link the page, not this copy.

- Speaker: [Evan Spiegel](https://realalpha.app/people/evan-spiegel/) · Evan Spiegel is co-founder and CEO of Snap. · Co-founded Snapchat at Stanford and has led Snap as CEO since 2011, building Stories and the Specs AR glasses.
- Host: [Lenny Rachitsky](https://realalpha.app/people/lenny-rachitsky/) · Host, Lenny's Podcast · Spent seven years at Airbnb; his product newsletter has over 1M subscribers.
- Show: Lenny's Podcast
- Episode: [How to win when software is not a moat | Evan Spiegel (Snapchat CEO)](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/), Apr 26, 2026
- Moment: 12:53 to 18:01 of the episode (5 min), playing on https://realalpha.app/s/specs-are-designed-to-move-computing-back-into-shared-spaces/; the episode from there: https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=773

## Quote

> “We have built a new computer that **brings people outside**, that helps them connect together with their friends”
> — [Evan Spiegel](https://realalpha.app/people/evan-spiegel/) at [15:32](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=932) · Lenny's Podcast

## Takeaways

1. Spiegel sees phones as pulling people out of social moments.
2. Specs evolved from a wearable camera to a developer platform.
3. He expects shared AR experiences to matter more than notifications.

## About this segment

Evan Spiegel traces Specs from a wearable camera to an AR platform and explains why he wants computers to keep people grounded in the real world. He favors shared, anchored AR experiences over face-mounted notifications.

From “How to win when software is not a moat | Evan Spiegel (Snapchat CEO)”, Apr 26, 2026. [Watch the full episode](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/)

## Transcript

Transcribed by machine (Whisper) from the episode’s audio, so a word may be off here and there.

[13:02](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=782) uh maybe you've already answered it why this is something you're so passionate about but why why this kind of ongoing investment in in hardware well i think to like take a huge step back um i love computers i grew up uh using computers all the time i built my own computer when i was in middle school uh you know i fell in love with graphic design and would spend like every lunch period in the computer lab. And I think one of the things that I noticed about computers and I think today with mobile phones is that in many ways they isolate us from one another, right? They actually take us out of our social interactions. They took me off the, you know, playground at recess and, you know, you know, put me into the computer lab. Or, you know, if I look at our 15 year old today and his friends, right, you know, sometimes when they're hanging out, they're all

[13:50](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=830) looking down at their phones, even though they're all together. And so I think there's just such a big opportunity to build technology that actually brings us together, that keeps us grounded in the real world, rather than, you know, removing us from it. And that's something that we realized early on with Snapchat, right? We were innovating, building, you know, lenses and augmented reality, but ultimately we saw that people were using AR on these tiny little phone screens, right? That required you to use your thumbs to interact. And so, you know, it's almost like interacting with the world through like a keyhole, you know, rather than actually staying grounded and being able to interact together with friends. So it just seems so obvious that like as computers play a bigger and bigger role in our lives, you know, I think today people spend seven or eight hours a day on

[14:33](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=873) average on screens that like something has got to change to make this technology fit better into our lives. Right. We get enormous value from computers. But at the same time, I think the cost is quite meaningful. And and I think, you know, they need to evolve. So, you know, with the early with the early version of Spectacles, I guess that was back in 2014 or something like that. You know, the initial idea was just to get the camera off the phone right out of your pocket and, you know, allow you to more easily, you know, take snaps out in the world. But we then sort of built a roadmap from there, right, where we added a second camera to get depth. We added a display to be able to overlay, you know, digital objects into the world and help you interact with them.

[15:14](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=914) And then with the last generation in 2024, we released our operating system, which now allows developers to build full featured software inside of specs, you know, in preparation for the consumer launch. So I don't know. I think the time is right for a new type of computer. I think people are frustrated, you know, with the cost of using phones and computers today. They're kind of all hunched over like gremlins. And, you know, we can build a new computer. We have built a new computer that brings people outside, that helps them connect together with their friends, that frees them up to actually use their hands to interact with the world. And, you know, that to me is really exciting. I think it's a whole new chapter. And gosh, I mean, what, it's been 20 years or something since the iPhone. So it's about time for something.

[16:00](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=960) new i think so i i got an early preview of the specs and it's extremely cool uh i learned how to be an airbender i put uh plants all over my house uh just drawing all over the place and it's and there's multiplayer features which is very cool which i think is part of the idea right is you're connecting with people versus sitting like a vr environment on your own like i worry about the being connected all the time so i imagine that's like a new thing we have to figure out how do we not just get hooked on just watching things on the side instead of looking at someone with uh do you have any thoughts there just like is there a solution to that other than just like social norms i do think social norms will play a a big role but i also think one of the things people experience with ar you know specs unlike you know these heads-up display glasses they don't

[16:45](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=1005) just put an annoying like you know little screen that's stuck to your face uh on the glasses they actually like anchor content in the world um which is really different right they they um you know put that content directly in your field of view rather than requiring you to like look down at some little screen or like get some text alert or notification. So I think, you know, frankly, I don't think those use cases are very compelling. Like I don't think receiving phone notifications on your face is like, you know, a valuable, you know, proposition for most folks. So I don't think we necessarily have to worry about that because I think most people don't want that. I think like what is going to be really important with specs is showing people all the incredible new ways they can hang out and connect together with their friends wearing specs. But I don't think it'll

[17:32](https://realalpha.app/v/-7Yol5vX5xw/?t=1052) be disruptive or notification based or something like that. One of the things that I really dislike about the heads up display glasses is when you're looking at the little heads up display in the corner, you're actually looking at your friend's crotch while you're talking to them if you check the heads up display. So the position is just very strange. And I don't think that that's something that really is resonating with customers, nor do I think that's something that's going to become