'Go beyond smartphones': Snapchat director Saket Jha Saurabh bonds with creators
Telegraph | 3 July 2025
The future of digital is beyond the smartphone, said a man at the helm of content at multimedia messaging app Snapchat.
“Our focus is on looking beyond smartphones. We believe the future of content consumption and experiencing digital is not going to be tethered to the smartphone,” said Saket Jha Saurabh, director of content and AR (augmented reality) partnerships, Snap Inc.
Snap Inc is the California-based tech company that has developed Snapchat, the popular app primarily used for sharing photos and videos designed to disappear after a short time. It also includes features like chat, stories, and AR filters and lenses.
India is among Snap Inc.’s biggest markets globally, with 200 million active users per month.
Saket was in Calcutta for a Creator Connect — an engagement with content creators and strategic partners in eastern India, including some media and entertainment companies.
On the sidelines of the interactive session at a Park Street hotel on Monday, Saket spoke to The Telegraph on a wide range of topics. Excerpts from the conversation:
Look East
“Calcutta in particular and the east of India in general have always been an epitome of art, music, literature, and community in the country,” said Saket.
“It’s truly fitting that we bring Snapchat Creator Connect to Calcutta, a city that perfectly embodies the region’s rich cultural and content legacy,” he said.
“We see tremendous potential in the region and believe it will play a significant role in accelerating the growth of Snap’s creator ecosystem. Whether it is Bengali, Bhojpuri, Odiya, Assamese, or other northeastern languages, content diversity and depth in this region is remarkable,” he said.
Spectacle
Snap Inc CEO Evan Spiegel has already announced that the company’s new Specs glasses will be brought to consumers in 2026.
The company spent 11 years and billions of dollars to invent a new type of computer for augmented reality, designed to enhance the physical world with digital experiences.
“We call them Specs, an ultra-powerful wearable computer integrated into a lightweight pair of glasses with see-thru lenses, and they’re coming next year,” the company has said.
A couple of pairs of glasses were on display for demonstration at the Creator Connect.
“So far, we are building the developer side of it. Next year, we will build the consumer side. You may experience everything you do online without actually touching a phone,” Saket said.
These Specs are meant to be a complete AR device. They don’t need wires, phones, or external processors.
“AR seamlessly blends into your physical reality. It could have used cases that range from content consumption, games, travel, fitness or any other form.
“Education, for example. Let us say you have a situation where the teacher and the student are in two different places. They are connected, both wearing specs. The teacher can say, ‘here is the planet Jupiter. She can pull Jupiter close, and the student can watch that happen. The experience of consuming content will change in a transformative way,” he said.