Snap Inc. is an American technology company headquartered in Santa Monica, California, that develops products centered on camera-based communication and augmented reality.[1][2] Founded in 2011 by Stanford University students Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, the company initially launched as Snapchat, Inc., with its flagship Snapchat application introducing ephemeral messaging features that allow users to send temporary photos and videos.[3] Spiegel has served as CEO since 2012, guiding the firm through its 2017 initial public offering and rebranding to Snap Inc. in 2016 to encompass hardware ventures like Spectacles smart glasses and software expansions beyond core messaging.[4][2]Snapchat has grown to over 469 million daily active users as of mid-2025, driven by innovations in visual storytelling, interactive lenses, and short-form video content like Spotlight, appealing primarily to users under 35.[5] The platform's emphasis on real-time, disappearing content disrupted traditional social media by prioritizing privacy and immediacy, though it has sustained annual net losses amid heavy investments in advertising technology and competition from larger rivals.[1][6]Despite user engagement successes, Snap Inc. has encountered significant controversies, including a $15 million settlement in 2024 with California's Civil RightsDepartment over allegations of workplace sex-based discrimination and harassment.[7] Additional scrutiny involves lawsuits related to ad technology failures, governance lapses, and failures to curb child exploitation on the platform, such as sextortion cases highlighted in a 2024 New Mexico attorney general probe.[8][9] These issues underscore ongoing challenges in balancing rapid innovation with regulatory and ethical responsibilities in a highly competitive digital landscape.[10]
Sports and games
Snap (American football)
In American football, the snap is the backward pass executed by the center to initiate an offensive play, delivering the ball to the quarterback positioned under center or several yards behind the line of scrimmage in shotgun formation, or to a holder or punter for kicking plays. This mechanic ensures the ball is legally moved from a stationary position at the line of scrimmage, restarting the down clock and allowing the offense to advance. Originating from rugby-style scrums adapted into early gridiron rules in the 1870s, the snap evolved as a core element of play initiation; initially performed by foot until hand snaps were legalized in 1890, with foot snaps permitted as an option until 1913.[11][12]The standard under-center snap involves the center rotating the ball backward with both hands while dropping into a three- or four-point stance for stability and quick release, minimizing exchange fumbles that occur when the quarterback fails to secure the ball cleanly—such mishandlings are typically charged to the center if the snap trajectory is deemed improper. In contrast, the shotgun snap requires greater precision over distance, as the quarterback receives the ball in a pre-set drop-back position, enabling faster decision-making and improved visibility of defensive alignments, though it demands synchronized timing to avoid delays or overthrows. Long snaps, specialized for punts and field goals, propel the ball 7 to 15 yards with a sidearm motion: the snapper grips the ball laces away with the dominant hand over the non-dominant guide hand, assumes a stance with feet shoulder-width apart and knees bent, then releases in a spiral aimed at the recipient's hip-thigh region to facilitate immediate handling.[13][14][15]Empirical analysis reveals snap-related errors contribute significantly to offensive fumbles, with quarterback-center exchanges accounting for a portion of the roughly 41% of lost fumbles attributable to quarterbacks across NFL seasons, often exacerbated in shotgun setups due to velocity and arc demands. Under-center snaps enhance short-yardage efficiency, yielding higher touchdown rates near the goal line (up to 73% versus 56% from shotgun in goal-line scenarios), as the proximity allows quicker handoffs and reduced telegraphing for runs, though shotgun formations dominate modern passing offenses for their superior yards-per-carry in extended drives (e.g., 4.3 yards in short-yardage shotgunsnaps versus 3.2 under center). Innovations like refined snap cadences and protective stances have reduced turnover risks, but persistent challenges include velocity inconsistencies in long snaps, which can lead to blocked kicks if the holder mishandles the exchange.[16][17][18]
Snap (card game)
Snap is a fast-paced matching card game primarily played by children to develop quick observation and reaction skills. The game uses a standard 52-card deck, where suits are irrelevant, and players compete to spot identical ranks turned up in a central pile.[19] It originated in Britain during the 19th century, with early versions known as "Easy Snap," involving players alternately revealing cards from personal piles and claiming matches by calling out first.[20]The basic rules accommodate 2 to 6 players: each receives an equal share of the deck face down, with any extras set aside. Players take turns flipping the top card from their pile onto a central discard pile. If two consecutive cards match in rank (e.g., two 7s), the first player to shout "Snap!" claims the entire central pile, placing it beneath their own pile. In case of simultaneous shouts or disputes, the cards may form a "snap pool" that the next matcher wins. The game ends when one player collects all cards, typically lasting a few minutes due to its reliance on speed rather than strategy.[19] This simplicity distinguishes it from skill-based games like poker, focusing solely on reflexes and attentiveness without elements of betting or complex tactics.[19]Commercial editions emerged in the early 20th century, such as Spear's Games' version from the 1920s, which used a 40-card deck featuring repeated pictorial designs instead of standard ranks for thematic appeal.[21] These adaptations maintained core mechanics but often incorporated illustrations of animals, vehicles, or characters to engage young players, suitable from age 3 or 4 onward.[22] Variants include adding jokers as wild cards that trigger snaps with any match, or themed rules where groups of more than two identical cards (e.g., families in Happy Families-style decks) prompt calls, though disputes over call timing remain a common minor issue resolved by house rules.[19][23] The game's brevity and lack of depth make it ideal for short play sessions, promoting basic coordination without competitive pressure.[19]
Entertainment
Music
Snap! is a German Eurodance act formed in 1989 by Frankfurt-based producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti, who created the project under pseudonyms and incorporated elements of hip-house, techno, and rap.[24] The group's debut single "The Power," released in late 1989, reached number one in several European countries and introduced their signature blend of high-energy beats and sampled vocals to international audiences.[25] Their follow-up "Rhythm Is a Dancer," issued in March 1992, became a global hit, topping charts in the United Kingdom for six weeks and peaking at number five on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, contributing to the mainstream breakthrough of Eurodance outside Europe.[26] Snap!'s success helped popularize producer-driven dance music projects, influencing subsequent acts in the genre through infectious hooks and club-oriented production.[27]Snap music, a hip-hop subgenre originating in Bankhead, West Atlanta, during the early 2000s, evolved from crunk with lighter, dance-focused rhythms emphasizing finger snaps over heavy bass and chants.[28] Key artists including Dem Franchize Boyz and Yung Joc drove its rise, with tracks like "Lean Wit It, Rock Wit It" (2006) exemplifying the style's party-centric appeal and simple, repetitive hooks tailored for club and street dancing.[29] Producers such as Lil Jon, a crunk pioneer, indirectly shaped snap through collaborations like "Snap Yo Fingers" (2006), bridging aggressive energy with more accessible, snap-driven percussion that peaked in popularity from 2003 to 2006 within Atlanta's regional scene. This innovation highlighted Southern hip-hop's adaptability, prioritizing viral dances and minimalistic beats amid broader debates in hip-hop circles over lyrical depth versus commercial viability.[30]While Snap! faced critiques for prioritizing formulaic, market-driven formulas over artistic innovation—evident in their reliance on sampled elements and rotating vocalists—such commercial strategies enabled widespread adoption of Eurodance.[31]Snap music similarly drew scrutiny for its perceived simplicity, with detractors in hip-hop discourse arguing it favored catchy, violence-tinged party anthems over substantive storytelling, though empirical analyses indicate comparable violent references across genres like pop.[32] These elements underscore snap's cultural footprint in regional innovation and global dance trends, substantiated by chart performance rather than anecdotal acclaim.
Fictional characters and entities
Snap is a central fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated series ChalkZone (2002–2008), depicted as a blue-skinned, superhero-like drawing brought to life in the chalk-drawn realm of ChalkZone. Created by young artist Rudy Tabootie as a comic strip hero, Snap exhibits a hyper-enthusiastic, zany demeanor, often leaping into action with exclamations like "Look out!" while aiding Rudy in adventures involving erased drawings and magical chalk portals. The series, produced by Frederator Studios, spanned 74 episodes and emphasized themes of creativity and imagination, with Snap's design evolving from simple sketches to a fully animated companion.[33]In advertising lore, Snap serves as the eldest of the three gnome-like elf mascots—alongside Crackle and Pop—for Kellogg'sRice Krispies cereal, first illustrated by Vernon Grant in 1933 following a radio ad's onomatopoeic inspiration. Portrayed as a confident leader wearing a baker's hat and sporting a red scarf, Snap embodies reliability and initiative among the trio, who personify the cereal's signature "snap, crackle, pop" texture in print ads, commercials, and packaging across decades. The characters' debut aligned with the product's launch, contributing to its enduring brand recognition through animated shorts and voice work by talents like Daws Butler.[34]The Snap denotes a pivotal fictional event in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, occurring in Avengers: Infinity War (2018), wherein the villain Thanos activates the assembled Infinity Gauntlet to instantaneously disintegrate half of all universal life forms, an act framed as balancing overpopulation. Referred to in-universe as "the Decimation" in Marvel's tie-in materials, this phenomenon—popularly termed the Snap—affects characters across interconnected films, driving subsequent narratives in Avengers: Endgame (2019) and series like WandaVision. Its visual effects, involving particle disintegration, drew from real-world physics simulations for realism, underscoring causal chains in the franchise's multiversal storyline.[35][36]
Technology and computing
Snap (package management system)
Snap is a software packaging and deployment system developed by Canonical Ltd. for Linux kernel-based operating systems.[37] Introduced as a feature of Ubuntu 16.04 LTS on April 21, 2016, it allows developers to package applications and their dependencies into self-contained "snaps" that operate independently of the host distribution's libraries.[38] In June 2016, snap support expanded to multiple Linux distributions beyond Ubuntu through the open-source snapd daemon, enabling cross-distro compatibility.[39]The system relies on the snapd daemon, a background service that installs, updates, and manages snaps via a REST API, pulling packages from the Canonical-operated Snap Store.[40] Snaps employ container-like isolation using SquashFS for read-only mounting and AppArmor profiles for mediated access to system resources, providing sandboxing to limit potential security impacts from malicious or buggy software.[41] Automatic updates occur transactionally in the background, with rollback capabilities if issues arise, and snaps bundle all dependencies to resolve version conflicts common in traditional package managers like APT or DNF.[42] This design supports desktop, server, cloud, and IoT deployments, with examples including Nextcloud for self-hosted services and Vulkan drivers for graphics.Adoption has grown within Ubuntu ecosystems and select enterprise environments, where snaps simplify consistent software delivery across heterogeneous Linux setups; for instance, Canonical reports increased snap installations on devices by 59% in analyzed periods up to 2018, reflecting broader usage trends.[43] By 2020, popular snaps like browsers and media players showed deployment across distributions including Fedora, Debian, and Arch Linux.[44] Developers benefit from streamlined publishing via Snapcraft tools, reducing maintenance for multi-distro support.[45]Criticisms center on practical trade-offs: snaps exhibit larger bundle sizes—often hundreds of megabytes—due to embedded dependencies, contributing to disk bloat compared to native DEB or RPM packages.[46] Startup times can exceed 30 seconds for some applications owing to sandbox initialization and filesystem overlay mounting, impacting perceived performance on desktops.[47] Community resistance persists over Canonical's centralized control of the Snap Store for distribution and assertions, raising open-source purism concerns despite snapd's GPL licensing; alternatives like Flatpak gain traction among users prioritizing decentralized repositories and lighter footprints.[48] Empirical analyses confirm snaps lag in update frequency for certain packages, potentially exposing systems to unpatched vulnerabilities longer than distro-managed alternatives.[46]
Snapchat and Snap Inc.
Snapchat, a multimedia messaging application, was founded on September 16, 2011, by Stanford University students Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown, with the core innovation of ephemeral messaging where sent photos and videos automatically delete after viewing to encourage candid sharing without permanent records.[3] The app's initial prototype, developed in Spiegel's fraternity house, emphasized temporary content to differentiate from persistent platforms like Facebook, prioritizing user privacy through self-destruction timers typically set at 1-10 seconds.Snap Inc., the parent company rebranded from Snapchat Inc. in 2016 to reflect broader hardware ambitions, went public via initial public offering on March 2, 2017, pricing 200 million shares of Class A common stock at $17 per share, which valued the company at approximately $24 billion upon debut trading.[49] By 2024, Snap Inc. reported annual revenue of $5.36 billion, driven primarily by advertising on Snapchat's platform, marking a 16% increase from $4.61 billion in 2023, though the company continued to post net losses exceeding $698 million amid heavy investments in augmented reality (AR) infrastructure.[50]Key features evolved to include Stories in 2013, allowing users to post 24-hour temporary photo and video sequences viewable by friends, and Discover in 2015, a section for curated publisher content and branded videos to monetize through ads.[51] AR lenses, interactive overlays using facial recognition and computer vision, became central by the mid-2010s, with over 300 million daily active users engaging them as of 2025, powering effects like virtual makeup or animations that blend digital elements with real-world camera feeds.[52] These tools have driven user retention, with Snapchat reaching more than 400 million daily active users globally by 2025, particularly among younger demographics favoring visual, short-form communication over text-heavy alternatives.[53]Snap Inc. has pioneered AR integration in consumer tech, investing billions in lenses and hardware like Spectacles AR glasses; the company announced plans for lightweight, consumer-grade Specs launching in 2026, featuring standalone AR capabilities powered by Snap OS 2.0 for immersive experiences without tethered devices.[54] In 2025, Snap sought at least $1 billion in funding to support a potential spinoff of its AR glasses unit, aiming to accelerate development amid competition from Meta and Apple, with CEO Evan Spiegel emphasizing AR's role in redefining social interaction through overlaid digital content.[55] This trajectory underscores achievements in visual-first communication and AR innovation, influencing industry shifts toward ephemeral, immersive formats.Criticisms include privacy vulnerabilities, such as the December 2013 breach where hackers exploited a third-party app to leak 4.6 million usernames and phone numbers, highlighting flaws in Snapchat's friend-finding feature that allowed easy data harvesting despite claims of secure, disappearing content.[56]AR filters have drawn scrutiny for exacerbating body dysmorphia, with studies linking frequent use to distorted self-perception, increased anxiety, and desires for cosmetic surgery mimicking idealized filtered appearances, as users internalize unattainable enhancements promoting unrealistic beauty standards.[57]Empirical research correlates higher Snapchat usage among teens—particularly females—with elevated anxiety symptoms and mental distress, including self-harm risks, as platforms' addictive, comparison-driven design amplifies vulnerability during developmental years, countering narratives of benign entertainment.[58][59]
Government and social programs
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), originally established as the Food Stamp Program under the Food Stamp Act signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson on August 31, 1964, provides federal funding to low-income households for purchasing eligible groceries.[60] The program was renamed SNAP through the 2008 Farm Bill to emphasize its role in broader nutrition assistance.[61] In fiscal year 2025, SNAP served an average of 42.5 million participants monthly, with federal outlays projected at approximately $110 billion.[62][63] Eligibility generally requires household gross monthly income not exceeding 130 percent of the federal poverty level, along with asset and net income tests, though states may apply broader categorical eligibility.[64]SNAP benefits are distributed via Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards, which function like debit cards for approved retailers.[65] Eligible purchases include fruits, vegetables, meat, poultry, fish, dairy, breads, cereals, and certain non-alcoholic beverages and seeds for food production, but exclude hot or heated prepared foods, alcohol, tobacco, vitamins, supplements, and non-food items.[65] States administer the program under federal guidelines from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), with the federal government covering 100 percent of benefit costs and roughly 50 percent of administrative expenses.[66]In 2025, ongoing government funding disputes led to shutdown threats, prompting warnings from multiple states that SNAP benefits for November could be delayed or halted for millions of recipients starting November 1, absent congressional action.[67] Additionally, USDA efforts to collect and centralize personal data on SNAP participants via a proposed National SNAP Information Database sparked controversies, including lawsuits from 21 states and the District of Columbia alleging privacy violations and inadequate rulemaking; a federal judge temporarily blocked data collection in September 2025 amid concerns over potential sharing with law enforcement or immigration authorities.[68][69]Empirical studies indicate SNAP participation correlates with reduced short-term food insecurity, with USDA Economic Research Service analyses estimating a roughly 30 percent lower likelihood of food insecurity among recipients compared to eligible non-participants.[70][71] This effect is attributed to increased food spending and access, particularly for households with children, though long-term poverty reduction remains limited, as program exit rates show persistent reliance for over half of participants across multiple years.[72]Critics highlight issues including improper payments, estimated at 11.7 percent of benefits ($10.5 billion) in FY 2023 by USDA, encompassing over- and under-issuances as well as fraud like trafficking, though intentional recipient fraud is reported as rare.[73][74] SNAP participants exhibit higher obesity rates than income-eligible non-participants (e.g., 44 percent versus 38 percent for adults), potentially linked to allowable purchases of calorie-dense items and limited incentives for nutritious choices.[75] Expansions via relaxed work requirements, including widespread waivers and COVID-19 suspensions, have boosted participation by reducing barriers but also enrollment by 3-4.5 percent when reinstated, per state-level analyses.[76]Debates center on SNAP's efficacy as an anti-poverty tool versus alternatives like the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), which evidence shows increases employment and reduces child poverty without fostering dependency.[77] Proponents, often from left-leaning analyses, emphasize hunger alleviation, while right-leaning critiques point to administrative inefficiencies (totaling about 6 percent of spending) and fiscal pressures, exemplified by 2025 legislative proposals for $100-200 billion in cuts over a decade through stricter work rules and state cost-sharing, underscoring concerns over long-term sustainability amid rising caseloads.[78][79][80]
Science and engineering
Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP)
The Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power (SNAP) program, initiated by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) in 1955, aimed to develop compact radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) for reliable electricity production in remote environments, particularly space applications.[81] These devices harnessed the decay heat from plutonium-238 (Pu-238) fuel, converting thermal energy into electricity via thermoelectric materials with efficiencies typically ranging from 5% to 7%.[82] Output powers varied by design, generally spanning 10 to 100 watts electrical (W_e), sufficient for uncrewed spacecraft requiring sustained operation without solar access or mechanical complexity.[83] Collaboration with NASA intensified in the 1960s, focusing on space-qualified units to enable long-duration missions beyond Earth's magnetosphere.[84]SNAP RTGs featured modular designs with Pu-238 oxide pellets encapsulated in iridium or graphite claddings to withstand launch stresses and reentry ablation. For instance, the SNAP-19 variant delivered approximately 30 W_e per unit at end-of-mission for outer planet encounters, while SNAP-27 provided about 70 W_e for lunar surface experiments.[83][85] The program's reactors, such as SNAP-10A, represented an extension to fission-based systems but emphasized RTGs for their simplicity and half-century lifespan, limited primarily by Pu-238's 87.7-year half-life.[86] Development emphasized safety through general-purpose heat source (GPHS) precursors, mitigating risks from fuel dispersal during accidents.[87]Key deployments included SNAP-27 RTGs powering the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Packages (ALSEP) on missions from Apollo 12 (deployed November 19, 1969) through Apollo 17 (December 11, 1972), transmitting seismic and heat flow data until 1977 shutdowns.[88] SNAP-19 units equipped the Voyager 1 and 2 probes, launched in 1977, providing multi-decade power for instruments still operational as of 2025, yielding data on Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and interstellar space.[89] Earlier applications powered Transit navigation satellites and Nimbus weather satellites from 1960 onward.[90] The technology's lineage influenced later RTGs, such as the GPHS-RTG on New Horizons, enabling the Pluto flyby on July 14, 2015, and Kuiper Belt observations.[89]A notable incident occurred on April 24, 1964, when the SNAP-9A RTG aboard Transit 5BN-3 failed to achieve orbit, reentering and releasing approximately 1 kilogram of Pu-238 oxide into the upper atmosphere, dispersing globally as submicron particles.[91] This event elevated stratospheric Pu-238 levels, detectable in surface soils and ice cores, but empirical assessments found no verifiable increase in human radiological doses beyond background, as Pu-238's alpha emissions posed limited external hazard and rapid deposition minimized long-term exposure.[92] The accident prompted enhanced containment designs, eliminating subsequent atmospheric releases in over 30 RTG missions post-1965.[87]SNAP's achievements facilitated over 20 NASA deep-space and Earth-orbit missions, providing causal enabling for data collection unattainable by solar or chemical alternatives, such as Voyager's interstellar boundary crossings.[90] Criticisms centered on potential proliferation risks from Pu-238 handling, though its non-fissile nature (predominantly alpha decay, unsuitable for weapons without isotopic separation) and strict safeguards under AEC/DOE protocols rendered such concerns unsubstantiated by declassified records.[81] Environmental advocacy highlighted reentry vulnerabilities, yet post-SNAP-9A redesigns achieved zero fuel failures in operational launches, underscoring iterative safety improvements over initial risks.[91] The program concluded in the 1970s, transitioning to Multi-Mission RTGs, but its empirical success validated nuclear auxiliary power for autonomous exploration.[93]
Aviation (snap maneuvers)
A snap roll, also known as a flick roll in some regions, is an aerobatic maneuver in which an aircraft executes a rapid, complete revolution around its longitudinal axis while maintaining an approximately level flight path or slight nose-up attitude. The maneuver is initiated by abrupt full-deflection inputs on the elevator and rudder to stall one wing partially while the opposite wing continues to generate lift, inducing autorotation at rates significantly faster than a standard aileron roll.[94] Unlike a spin, which involves sustained rotation, a snap roll completes one or more turns before recovery via opposite controls and power reduction.[95]Historically, snap rolls emerged as part of early aerobatic development following the Wright brothers' initial rolls in 1904, evolving into formalized stunts by the 1910s amid growing interest in stunt flying. While not explicitly documented as a primary tactic in World War I dogfights—which emphasized turns, stalls, and dives—rapid rolling maneuvers akin to snaps contributed to evasive tactics in aerial combat, with pilots like those in the Royal Flying Corps experimenting with high-rate rolls for disorientation. Post-war, snap rolls became staples in competition aerobatics, with U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations under 14 CFR Part 91 restricting such maneuvers to approved aircraft below 10,000 feet mean sea level and outside controlled airspace, emphasizing structural limits and pilot certification.[96][97]In execution, snap rolls demand precise entry speeds—typically 1.2 to 1.5 times the stall speed—to avoid excessive loads, with aircraft like the North American P-51 Mustang capable of initiating them due to responsive ailerons and torque effects from high-power engines. Rotation occurs via asymmetric stall, producing yaw and roll rates that can exceed those of slow or barrel rolls, classified as the fastest pure roll variant in aerobatic taxonomy. However, the maneuver imposes non-uniform stresses across the airframe, combining roll with pitch and yaw forces that may approach or exceed 6G in metal structures, risking fatigue cracks or permanent deformation if entry exceeds maneuvering speed (Va).[98] Recovery requires neutralizing controls promptly to prevent over-rotation into a spin.[95]Snap rolls enhance pilot training by simulating high-angle-of-attack departures and improving control authority under stall conditions, particularly in military curricula for fighters prone to accelerated stalls. Yet, empirical data from National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigations highlight elevated risks, with snap rolls implicated in accidents due to improper entry speeds, low-altitude execution, or structural overload—such as in cases where no designated speed limit existed, leading to in-flight breakups. Aerobatic incidents overall show fatality rates around 83-88%, often from loss of control during aggressive rolls, underscoring the need for aircraft-specific limitations and waiver approvals. Mishandling can propagate wing torsion or tail failure, as non-aerobatic airframes lack reinforcement for such loads.[99][100][101]