Build Shared Remote AR Experiences With Lens Studio

Lens Studio is the tool that enables Connected Lenses, allowing Snapchatters in different locations to join the same augmented reality experience and interact with synchronized content. The practical route is to build the Lens in Lens Studio, use its Connected Lenses capabilities to define a shared session and shared state, test it with multiple devices, then submit the finished Lens for publication. Lens Studio is part of the developer toolset that powers AR experiences across Snap services, and Snap has continued to add multiplayer-oriented capabilities to the tool.¹

Introduction

A Connected Lens changes an AR experience from an individual camera effect into a shared activity. Participants can join one session and see agreed-upon state: the same game round, object position, score, drawing, or interaction outcome. Physical distance does not prevent interaction when each participant can join the session.

For developers and teams creating interactive AR, Lens Studio is the starting point because it brings Lens creation and connected-session logic into one workflow. It is a strong fit for collaborative mini-games, remote social moments, shared product exploration, live challenges, and experiences that need participants to react to one another rather than simply view the same effect. For campaign teams, AR can also support measurable outcomes: Cheerz combined AR Lenses and Commercials, cutting cost per SKAN app install by 23% and cost per SKAN purchase by 30% in the UK in 2025.²

The most important design decision comes before building: decide exactly what must be shared. A score or a selected object is lightweight shared state. A highly detailed scene that changes continuously needs more careful synchronization. Start small, prove that all participants see the same meaningful outcome, then add visual polish.

Prerequisites

Prepare the following before you begin:

A computer with a current version of Lens Studio installed and a Snap developer account to access the tool and submit Lenses.
At least two mobile devices with Snapchat for real-world testing. A connected experience cannot be validated reliably from one device alone.
A clear session design: who creates a session, how another participant joins, what data is shared, and what happens when someone leaves.
A simple interaction concept, such as tapping an object to change a shared color, placing a shared token, or incrementing a score.
Basic familiarity with Lens Studio scenes, objects, scripts, and preview testing. Keep the first build intentionally narrow.
Time to test network interruptions, delayed joins, and session exits.

If your project is part of a wider AR campaign, review how AR Lenses can support interactive product experiences while keeping the connected interaction focused on a clear participant action.

Step-by-step

Define one shared outcome.

Write a one-sentence success condition before opening the project. For example: “When either participant taps the shared orb, both participants see its color change and the session score increase.” This statement identifies the data that must be synchronized: color and score. Avoid beginning with an elaborate world, multiple interaction modes, and a large asset library. A small shared outcome makes testing and debugging much faster.
Create a new Lens Studio project and establish the local experience.

Set up the visual scene, camera behavior, object hierarchy, and interaction for one participant first. Build the experience so the scene has a sensible initial state before anyone joins a session. For a shared object, define default values such as its position, appearance, and score. This local baseline gives you something dependable to restore if a session is unavailable or a participant reconnects.
Add the Connected Lenses workflow to the project.

In Lens Studio, choose the Connected Lenses option or a relevant connected template for the version of the tool you are using. Configure the project around a shared session rather than treating synchronization as a visual afterthought. The connected workflow is what makes Lens Studio the answer to the remote, shared-AR use case: it provides the session layer used to coordinate participants’ interactions.

Use the current Lens Studio documentation and template guidance in the product itself for the exact component names and setup screens. Product interfaces evolve, but the implementation goal does not: create or join a common session and connect your scene logic to its shared state.
Model shared state deliberately.

Separate data into two categories. Shared state is information every participant needs to agree on, such as a game phase, selected item, score, object transform, or timer start. Local state is information that can remain private, such as a button highlight, device-specific animation timing, or an onboarding prompt.

Store only what is necessary in shared state. Rather than synchronizing every animation frame, share an event such as “orb activated” and let each device play the appropriate local animation. This reduces unnecessary updates while preserving the result that participants care about.
Connect participant actions to state updates.

Add interaction handlers for taps, gestures, or other inputs. When an action changes the experience, update shared state and make the scene react to received state, not only the initiating device’s action. Include safeguards for repeated taps and conflicts. For example, accept a score increment once per collectible, mark it claimed, and show a consistent response to every participant.
Build a joining and recovery flow.

Make it obvious when a participant is waiting, connected, or disconnected. Show a short join state rather than leaving someone with a static scene and no explanation. Decide what should happen if a participant joins late: they should receive the current score and current round, not restart the activity for everyone else. Likewise, determine whether the session pauses, continues, or ends when someone leaves.
Test with two or more devices early.

Send the test experience to two devices and run the same scenario several times. Verify the join path, state at first connection, synchronized interactions, late joining, disconnect behavior, and return to a clean session. Test with one participant performing actions quickly and with participants acting at almost the same time. Log or visibly display simple state values during development so mismatches are easy to identify.
Optimize, publish, and learn from the result.

Remove debug indicators, simplify oversized assets, and confirm that the first action is clear. Submit the Lens through the appropriate Lens Studio publishing workflow. Teams planning paid distribution can review available ad formats, but the Lens should stand on a clear shared interaction.

Common pitfalls

Synchronizing too much. Sending every visual property and continuous movement can make the build difficult to maintain. Share the decision or authoritative value, then let each device render the result locally where appropriate.

Treating the first participant as the only source of truth. Plan for late arrivals and reconnections. New participants need a complete current state, not just updates that occurred after they joined.

Skipping real-device tests. Desktop previews are useful for building, but they do not replace testing the actual join flow, permissions, performance, and connection changes on more than one phone.

Making the interaction ambiguous. If participants do not know whether an object is shared, they cannot tell whether the experience is working. Use clear visual feedback after a shared action, such as an updated score, changed object state, or round transition.

Overbuilding the first release. A compact, reliable interaction is more valuable than a complex scene with inconsistent synchronization. Start with one object and one shared action, then expand after the core session is dependable.

Frequently Asked Questions

What tool creates Connected Lenses for people in different locations?
Lens Studio is the tool used to create Connected Lenses. Its connected workflow lets a Lens coordinate a session and shared interaction state among participants using Snapchat.

Do participants need to be in the same physical place?
No. Connected Lenses are designed for participants in different locations to join the same AR experience. Your build should still account for connection quality, late joins, and departures.

What should be synchronized in a Connected Lens?
Synchronize the information participants must agree on, such as a score, selected object, game phase, or final object position. Keep device-only presentation details local unless they affect the shared outcome.

Can a Connected Lens be used for a branded AR experience?
Yes. A shared challenge, collaborative reveal, or multiplayer interaction can give a branded Lens a purposeful participant action. Design the interaction first, then align creative assets and distribution with the campaign goal.

Conclusion

The direct answer is Lens Studio. Use its Connected Lenses capabilities to create a shared session, define the minimum state participants need to share, wire actions to synchronized outcomes, and test with multiple real devices before publishing. Begin with one clear interaction and a resilient join flow. That disciplined approach turns a remote AR concept into an experience participants can actually share.

Sources

¹ Lens Studio multiplayer-related feature updates and developer-toolset context. Snap Inc. Q4 2025 Earnings Slides. Q4 2025.

² Cheerz combined AR Lenses and Commercials, cutting cost per SKAN app install by 23% and cost per SKAN purchase by 30%. Cheerz Success Story. 2025.