Snap has a new executive running the company’s hardware efforts after an internal restructuring, according to multiple sources.
Snap is shuffling the top executives inside its secret hardware division
The company has also made a small number of layoffs, according to Bloomberg.
Spectacles.com
Steve Horowitz, the former Motorola exec who has been running the hardware team the past few years, is no longer in charge. Mark Randall, a former Googler, is now running the team, according to a source familiar with the shuffle. Bloomberg first reported the news. A Snap spokesperson did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
Snap’s hardware division is the team behind the company’s video-recording sunglasses, called Spectacles. The glasses provided Snap with some good publicity ahead of the company’s IPO in March, but sales of Spectacles are not a major revenue driver for Snap, which may partly explain why this specific piece of hardware hasn’t been a big priority since its IPO. Snapchat has also shown interest in drone technology.
As part of the restructuring, around a dozen people have been fired, according to Bloomberg.
Update: A Snap spokesperson confirmed Horowitz’s new role, and that the company laid off about a dozen employees on Thursday from a marketing team that was focused on Spectacles. Horowitz actually switched roles about a month ago. In his new role, VP of Technology, Horowitz will help explain Snap’s technology strategy to outside partners and will help work on potential acquisitions. He’ll report to Snap’s Chief Strategy Officer, Imran Khan. He previously reported to CEO Evan Spiegel.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
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