LOS ANGELES, April 7, 2026, 05:12 PDT
Snap Inc. is courting healthcare and pharma brands again, releasing research Monday that highlights Snapchat users’ reliance on social media for health information and treatment comparisons. According to the study, 59% of surveyed Snapchatters said content they saw on the app prompted them to shift real-world behavior.
Snap’s push to lock down bigger, more reliable ad budgets comes as advertisers gravitate to heavyweights like Meta and TikTok. Emarketer’s Max Willens told Reuters back in February the company’s ads platform “still has a long way to go in attracting big budgets from enterprise advertisers.” Reuters
Snap paid Ipsos to survey 1,500 U.S. social media users, ages 18 to 45, all daily users with an interest in health and wellness. The results: 58% of Snapchat’s daily crowd turns to social platforms for digging into complex health subjects; 61% use them to shop around—brands, treatments, comparisons.
Snap pointed to compliance, too. According to the company, advertisers are barred from transmitting health or other sensitive data via Snap Pixel, its ad-measurement tool. Snap also said it doesn’t sell personal data that comes from advertisers.
The company’s health push follows a solid holiday stretch. Snap posted fourth-quarter revenue of $1.72 billion, a 10% increase from last year. Active advertisers jumped 28%. Monthly users hit 946 million; daily active users stood at 474 million. Chief Executive Evan Spiegel called it a “strategic pivot toward profitable growth.” Snap Inc. Investor Relations
Even so, Snap keeps looking for ways to cut its dependence on advertising. Back in February, Reuters noted that the company’s direct-revenue segment—which covers Snapchat+ subscriptions, the Memories archive, plus in-app purchases—had hit an annualized run rate of $1 billion, with subscribers topping 25 million. Ads, however, still account for the bulk of revenue.
Management remains under the gun. Irenic Capital Management last week revealed it holds about a 2.5% economic stake in Snap and pressed the company to slash spending, improve artificial intelligence efforts, and reconsider its Specs smart-glasses business. “Snap should not continue doing what it has been doing. It’s not working,” portfolio manager Adam Katz wrote to co-founder Evan Spiegel. Reuters
Snap says it’s open to hearing from any shareholder and values their input. Chairman Michael Lynton pointed out steps the company’s made to lift performance, boost free cash flow, and curb dilution. Shares jumped over 12% after Irenic’s stake went public, according to Reuters.
Specs is still a flashpoint when it comes to Snap. The company launched the division back in January, aiming to pull in external capital and take on Meta with AI-focused wearables. IDC’s Francisco Jeronimo, though, argued that winning in smart glasses won’t hinge so much on hardware innovation, but on how well the ecosystem ties together and on the strength of the software.
Still, a targeted ad campaign won’t resolve the big-picture issues. Snap remains in a battle with larger rivals for enterprise ad dollars, and it’s facing an EU probe that began in March, focused on claims Snapchat didn’t adequately stop child grooming and illicit goods sales.
Snap is currently positioning Snapchat as a hub for users to research, compare, and take action on health topics. That pitch comes as the company ramps up its ad efforts, while also looking to subscriptions and alternative revenue sources outside of advertising.
