Snapchat’s ‘Reals’ joke mocks Instagram’s many ripoffs

It’s April Fools’ Day, and Snap is using the occasion to “announce” that it’s switching the name of Snapchat’s Spotlight feed, the app’s Instagram Reels-like feed of shortform vertical videos, to “Reals.”

In a video featuring co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel, Snap also includes a description of “Reals” as a place where “real people share real moments. Really.” Spiegel adds that “People feel free to be their full selves and to keep it Real on Snapchat” (In the video’s captions, Snap capitalized “Real”).

Spiegel also used the video to remind users about its ephemeral Stories format — which, like TikTok’s vertical video feed, Instagram ripped off. “For years, people have used Snapchat for visual communication, and self-expression, to watch Stories of their friends, and that authenticity and connection is what’s made Snapchat so special.” Snap got to Stories — name included — first, although I should also note that Spotlight followed both TikTok and Instagram’s shortform video feeds.

Again: it’s April Fools’ Day, so I’m guessing the switch to “Reals” is a joke. The number of “real” puns in Spiegel’s video seems like pretty good evidence, too. Just to make sure, I’ve reached out to Snap to confirm. But for now, “Reals” seems to be real; in the Snapchat iOS app, the feed has switched over to the “Reals” name for me already.