Snap CEO Keynote Kicks off AWE 2026 Next Month on Lead-up to Consumer AR Glasses Launch

Snap Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel will give a keynote address to kick off the AWE USA 2026 event next month. This is the second year in a row that Snap has taken the headlining slot at AWE USA, and comes as the company plans to launch its first consumer-focused AR glasses this year.

AWE USA 2026 is returning to Long Beach, CA on June 15–18. As the most important annual XR event on our calendar, we’re excited to once again offer our readers an exclusive 20% discount on tickets to AWE USA 2026 as the event’s Premiere Media Partner. And those representing a company can get an exclusive 10% discount on exhibitor or sponsorship packages.

Snap, the company behind Snapchat and the Specs AR glasses, will give the opening keynote address at AWE USA 2026 in a session titled “Making Computing More Human,” on June 16 from 9:30–10:00AM PT (your timezone here). Snap will be also be livestreaming the session.

“Throughout AWE, Specs Inc. will celebrate the innovation and creativity of its developer community, unveil new tools for building the next generation of computing, and demonstrate the latest advancements across the SPECS platform,” the company said in its keynote announcement.

This comes as the company has been gearing up to launch its first consumer-focused AR glasses this year. Granted, the path to that launch has been bumpy.

Back in January, Snap Inc created a subsidiary called Specs Inc to house its AR business. While the company positioned the move as a way to focus the AR portion of its business and raise capital more effectively, it also appeared as a means of insulating the parent company from risk. A month later, Snap’s top AR executive reportedly left the company over disagreements about Snap’s AR strategy. On top of that, Snap confirmed in April plans to lay off around 1,000 employees, though this was reportedly on the side of the parent company, Snap Inc, with little direct impact on Specs Inc.

What all of this means for the 2026 launch of the Specs consumer AR glasses is unclear. The company’s keynote at AWE USA 2026 is the prime opportunity for Snap to update the industry about its plans for the second half of the year.

Update (May 14th, 2026): Corrected the time of the keynote address and adjusted wording to make it clear that Specs Inc is a subsidiary of Snap Inc rather than a separate entity.