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XSnap Rolls Out Cameo Partnership, New Ad Feature and Original Programming
Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.

After a “challenging” first quarter, Snap is hoping that new celebrity partnerships and original influencer content can help it grow its young user base and generate more advertising revenue.
The Santa Monica-based social media firm announced several new initiatives at its NewFronts showcase on Tuesday—including a partnership with video-sharing app Cameo, a new ad format called Snap Promote and new original programming efforts. As presenters ranging from “Queer Eye” star Karamo Brown to singer Loren Gray highlighted some of the company’s recently announced features, Snap executives spotlighted how its Gen Z audience interacts with its advertisers.
The company's collaboration with Cameo, the Snap x Cameo Advertiser Program, will connect Snap’s video advertisers with the Cameo’s roster of celebrity creators, with the goal of producing short-form, custom video endorsements. Snap revealed it beta-tested the feature with Mattress Firm, which partnered with figures like sports commentator Erin Andrews and saw an increase in its ad awareness.
Snap vice president of sales Peter Naylor introduced Snap Promote, which will allow media partners featured in Snapchat’s Discover feature to expand their reach through in-app ads. The company said testing with the National Football League yielded a 7x-increase in users engaging with the NFL's Snapchat Stories. Snap Promote builds on Snap’s expansion last month of media partnerships through its Dynamic Stories feature.
If Snap’s initiatives seemed targeted toward competing with one particular social media, the unveiling of its new programming left little room for doubt about its TikTok-ian aspirations. One of TikTok’s biggest dancing stars, Addison Rae, took the stage Tuesday to promote her Snap original show “Addison Rae Goes Home,” before fellow TikTok influencers Charli and Dixie D'Amelio joined via video to announce the second season of their own Snap show, “Charli vs. Dixie.”
Snap co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel made a brief appearance onstage with Olympic gymnast Simone Biles to announce her upcoming original show, “Daring Simone Biles,” which will feature 10 episodes of the gold medalist facing challenges and fears—including one of her biggest foes, the bee. Further bolstering its sports presence, Snap also expanded content deals with the NFL, NBA and WNBA.
Head of original programing Vanessa Guthri also announced Reclaim(ed), Snap’s first Canadian original show, which will follow hosts Marika Sila and Kairyn Potts as they delve into social issues impacting indigenous populations. Guthri also discussed Snap’s Equity Partnership Pledge, which sets a three-year goal of having 50% of individuals involved in the production of Snap Originals to be women or members of historically underrepresented backgrounds.
With Snap revealing that 80% of its 600 million users are under 18, it’s no wonder that the company paraded social media influencers like makeup artist Manny MUA and TikTok star La’Ron across the stage. Whether its augmented reality ads and celebrity roster can help it compete with TikTok’s massive ad revenue advantage remains to be seen.
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Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
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This Week in ‘Raises’: Improvado Hauls $22M, Clearlake Launches $14B Fund
Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
This week in “Raises”: A pair of Web3 platforms for gamers landed funding, as did a Manhattan Beach medical startup looking to bolster primary care via nurse practitioners. Meanwhile, a Santa Monica-based investment firm launched its seventh fund with more than $14 billion in dry powder.
Venture Capital
Improvado, a marketing data aggregation platform, raised $22 million in a Series A funding round led by Updata Partners.
Web3 gaming platform FreshCut raised $15 million in funding led by Galaxy Interactive, Animoca Brands and Republic Crypto.
Medical startup Greater Good Health raised $10 million in a funding round led by LRVHealth.
Joystick, a Web3 platform for gamers and creators, raised $8 million in seed funding.
Open source data protection company CipherMode Labs raised $6.7 million in seed funding led by Innovation Endeavors .
Mobile phone charging network ChargeFUZE raised $5 million in seed funding led by Beverly Pacific, TR Ventures, VA2, Jason Goldberg and Al Weiss.
Polygon, a startup aiming to better diagnose children with learning disabilities, raised $4.2 million in seed and pre-seed funding led by Spark Capital and Pear VC.
Pique, a virtual women's sexual health clinic, raised $4 million in a seed funding round led by Maveron.
Psudo, a sneaker startup that utilizes recycled water bottles and 3D sublimation printing to create its shoes, raised $3 million in a seed funding round led by SternAegis Ventures.
Funds
Santa Monica-based investment firm Clearlake Capital Group raised $14.1 billion for its seventh flagship fund.
Raises is dot.LA’s weekly feature highlighting venture capital funding news across Southern California’s tech and startup ecosystem. Please send fundraising news to Kristin Snyder (kristinsnyder@dot.la).Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
LA Tech ‘Moves’: New Head of Originals at Snap, New President at FaZe Clan
Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
“Moves”, our roundup of job changes in L.A. tech, is presented by Interchange.LA, dot.LA's recruiting and career platform connecting Southern California's most exciting companies with top tech talent. Create a free Interchange.LA profile here—and if you're looking for ways to supercharge your recruiting efforts, find out more about Interchange.LA's white-glove recruiting service by emailing Sharmineh O’Farrill Lewis (sharmineh@dot.la). Please send job changes and personnel moves to moves@dot.la.
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FaZe Clan brought on Zach Katz as the gaming and media company’s new president and chief operating officer. Katz was previously the chief executive officer of the music tech investment fund Raised in Space Enterprises.
TikTok brand factory LINK Agency promoted Dustin Poteet to chief creative officer. Poteet was previously creative director at the firm.
Livestream shopping platform Talkshoplive hired Tradesy co-founder John Hall as its chief technology officer. Universal Music Group Nashville's former vice president of digital marketing, Tony Grotticelli, also joins the company as vice president of marketing.
Anjuli Millan will take over as head of original content at Snap after three years of overseeing production for the division.
Tech and media company Blavity hired Nikki Crump as general manager of agency. Crump joins the company from Burrell Communications Group.
O'Neil Digital Solutions, which provides customer communications and experience management for the health care industry, hired Eric Ramsey as national account sales executive. Ramsey joins from T/O Printing.
Investment firm Cresset Partners named Tammy Funasaki as managing director of business development. Funasaki previously served as head of investor relations for Breakwater Management.
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Kristin Snyder is an editorial intern for dot.la. She previously interned with Tiger Oak Media and led the arts section for UCLA's Daily Bruin.
Snapchat’s New Controls Could Let Parents See Their Kids’ Friend Lists
Christian Hetrick is dot.LA's Entertainment Tech Reporter. He was formerly a business reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer and reported on New Jersey politics for the Observer and the Press of Atlantic City.
Snapchat is preparing to roll out enhanced parental controls that would allow parents to see who their teenagers are chatting with on the social media app, according to screenshots of the upcoming feature.
Snap’s parental controls.
Courtesy of Watchful.
Snapchat is planning to introduce Family Center, which would allow parents to see who their children are friends with on the app and who they’ve messaged within the last seven days, according to screenshots provided by Watchful, a product intelligence company. Parents would also be able help their kids report abuse or harassment.
The parental controls are still subject to change before finally launching publicly, as the Family Center screenshots—which were first reported by TechCrunch—reflect features that are still under development.
Santa Monica-based Snap and other social media giants have faced mounting criticism for not doing more to protect their younger users—some of whom have been bullied, sold deadly drugs and sexually exploited on their platforms. State attorneys general have urged Snap and Culver City-based TikTok to strengthen their parental controls, with both companies’ apps especially popular among teens.
A Snap spokesperson declined to comment on Friday. Previously, Snap representatives have told dot.LA that the company is developing tools that will provide parents with more insight into how their children are engaging on Snapchat and allow them to report troubling content.
Yet Snap’s approach to parental controls could still give teens some privacy, as parents wouldn’t be able to read the actual content of their kids’ conversations, according to TechCrunch. (The Family Center screenshots seen by dot.LA do not detail whether parents can see those conversations).
In addition, teenage users would first have to accept an invitation from their parents to join the in-app Family Center before those parents can begin monitoring their social media activity, TechCrunch reported.
Christian Hetrick is dot.LA's Entertainment Tech Reporter. He was formerly a business reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer and reported on New Jersey politics for the Observer and the Press of Atlantic City.