Snapchat 'hires VR designer' to work on augmented reality

Snapchat has allegedly hired a Hollywood visual effects specialist to work on the company's augmented reality (AR) efforts.

Raffael Dickreuter posted the job title 'Concept Designer' for Snapchat on his LinkedIn page, Business Insider spotted, and he describes himself as a 'virtual reality specialist, director and creator of VR content'.

Snapchat has previously shown interest in entering the AR and VR space, with its 'lenses' also putting the central app near that category.

Product designers have already been seen using Oculus-like VR headsets, according to sources cited by Business Insider, and Oculus's head of user research, Gareth Griffiths, has already joined the company.

According to Dickreuter's profile, he has worked in Hollywood for 11 years as a virtual reality specialist, director and creator of VR content.

Facebook and Twitter already support 360-degree video, and YouTube introduced 360-degree livestream support earlier this year.

The company has also launched Snapchat Memories, a feature that allows users to save their photos and videos for later use, a big departure from the traditionally 'ephemeral' platform. Users can then search through previous snaps, even keeping some private in a 'My Eyes Only' folder.

"We realised that Snapchatters want to feel comfortable showing their Memories to friends while they're hanging out together, so we made it easy to move Snaps and Stories to My Eyes Only and avoid awkward moments when a friend stumbles upon a Snap meant just for you," Snapchat said in a blog post.

The feature will be rolling out to select users over the next month.