Snapchat raised $1.8B in a Series F round
People need to stop focusing their criticism on how stupid the app is or how they&#x27;re going to lose all their users. It&#x27;s almost a meme by now of how people say this every time Snapchat is brought up. By now it&#x27;s a foregone conclusion, and requires active ignorance and not really caring to keep an open mind, to continue to hold onto that belief in the face of tremendous evidence that 1) Snapchat is very popular, 2) Snapchat has been around for 5 years now and hasn&#x27;t gone anywhere, and 3) Users of Snapchat use it very actively.<p>Personally, I think one good way to see why people use the product is to 1) be in a relationship, and 2) regularly send pictures of what you&#x27;re doing &#x2F; funny things you&#x27;ve encountered &#x2F; your face, back and forth with your partner.<p>Where I feel like there is legitimate criticism of Snapchat is their <i>ability to monetize</i>. Unlike Google, there is no purchasing intent. Unlike Twitter or Facebook, there is little ability to target users beyond age&#x2F;gender&#x2F;location (and no amount of computer vision in the short term will change that). Their Discover &#x2F; Live products (which allow you to see snippets from brands &#x2F; news channels &#x2F; publishers) are promising but unlike the core product, I think there is legitimate reason to be doubtful about the appeal of these products because they have nothing to do with chatting with friends.