Snapchat Purchased the 3D Face-scanning App Seene

Messaging app company Snapchat has secretly bought company developers of Seene, an app which let users have 3D selfie images on their phones. The move has not been known for several months, and the acquisition could help Snapchat develop potential virtual reality projects.

Seene app is known for its 3D selfies, and talks about Snapchat’s plans to launch into a virtual reality projects through the startup are surfacing. According to Digital Trends, the app functions to scan and rebuild a completely 3D model of anything users snap on their smartphone device. Seene does not use on some cameras or infrared sensors, unlike Project Tango by Google, the Microsoft Kinect, and short-lived Fire phone by Amazons.

It works right through smartphone’s camera, which scans the user’s face real quick and recreated it into a 3D image and it also works on rear cameras. The company visualizes their app as an Instagram 3D version. Snapchat made the acquisition move secretly with an undisclosed cheap price.

Tech Crunch reported, Snapchat is more interested on working with the startup’s computer vision technology as well as its engineering team, which is also led by Sam Hare, the app company’s CTO and co-founder. Hare’s specialty is real time application of the technology for gaming. According to its LinkedIn profile, the company is “deep stack of mobile-focused computer vision tech for structure from motion and 3D reconstruction.”

With Snapchat’s acquisition, the team developers which are based separately on U.S and London will start to work in Los Angeles, Snapchat’s headquarters’ location. However, the members were not all hired since one of its senior engineers will not work for Snapchat.

The startup’s experience and central technology could be used in the VR hardware Snapchat is rumored to be working on, and the apps it will no doubt need to develop for said products.