Snap is exploring plans to let users present NFTs as a filter

Snap is exploring plans to allow users to showcase non-fungible tokens on its app as social media platforms increasingly turn to digital collectibles to attract influencers and their fans despite the crypto crash.

The Los Angeles-based social media platform is preparing to test a feature that would allow NFT artists to showcase their designs on the Snapchat platform as an augmented reality filter, according to two people familiar with the situation.

The test, which will be conducted with a handful of “creators,” is scheduled to begin in late August, one of the people said.

Snap has built a list of developers using its platform to create playful AR filters for users, called lenses, that can be overlaid on real images.

Developers can mint or create NFTs using a third-party service outside of the platform before transferring them to Snap as Lenses. The technology would ensure that these filters are associated with that creator.

While the NFT effort is still in its early stages, this is the first foray into the freewheeling world of digital assets for Snap, which offers private messaging and cute photo features to its largely millennial and younger Gen Z audience.

Social media companies are increasingly vying to attract online talent, hoping to boost user numbers and engagement amid increasing competition from newer Chinese entrant TikTok.

Snap has no plans to charge creators for showcasing NFTs, one person said, but it is exploring partnerships with third parties that could help creators monetize their designs.

In particular, Snap rival Meta plans to give its 3 billion users access to digital collectibles over time to attract developers to its apps, fintech chief Stephane Kasriel told the Financial Times last week. It hopes to build a world filled with online avatars, known as the metaverse, where users use NFTs to create and trade digital goods and services, Kasriel said. Meanwhile, smaller rival Reddit announced plans on Thursday to launch its own NFT avatar collection.

NFTs use blockchain technology to certify the authenticity and ownership of digital art and goods.

Digital collectibles have exploded in popularity over the past year, becoming a $40 billion global market, used primarily as a tool for retail speculation. But as the hype has died down, prices have fallen over the past two months in line with a broader flight from crypto assets.

Like other social media groups, Snap has invested in new features to help creators make a living directly from the platform. This included, for example, sharing some advertising revenue with certain influencers and offering cash prizes for the most successful posts.