Snap Acquires KeyDB to Enhance Its Infrastructure Performance and Speed
Snapchat Leverages Open Source Community for Growth
As Snapchat’s user base continues to grow rapidly, the company is seeking external expertise to
Snap Acquires KeyDB, an Open Source Database, to Enhance Its Infrastructure
As Snapchat continues to grow in popularity, the company is turning to the open source community to help improve its technology infrastructure. In a significant move, Snap announced that it has acquired Toronto-based KeyDB, the developer of an open-source high-performance database. The acquisition marks another step in Snap’s strategy to build out its underlying technologies and reduce operational costs across teams.
The Acquisition: A Boost to Snapchat’s Infrastructure
The deal involves the six-person team behind KeyDB, including co-founders John Sully and Ben Schermel, joining Snap’s infrastructure team. This team will work closely with Snap engineers to improve the company’s caching technology and handle its substantial engineering workloads. By bringing in-house the expertise of KeyDB’s developers, Snapchat aims to reduce operational costs and free up engineering bandwidth to focus on building out other core experiences.
KeyDB: A Faster Alternative to Redis
KeyDB has touted its solution as a faster alternative to Redis, focusing on aspects such as multithreading, memory efficiency, and high throughput. The company’s technology has gained significant traction in the open-source community, with over 3 million public downloads. Notably, KeyDB’s multithreaded database utilizes Redis data structures, flash storage, and replication, making it a robust solution for handling large-scale workloads.
Snap’s Plans for KeyDB: Continued Open Source Development
In a move that will be beneficial to the broader open-source community, Snap has committed to continuing the development of KeyDB. The company also plans to open source KeyDB’s Pro and Enterprise offerings following the acquisition. This allows Snap to benefit from the collective contributions of the community while establishing its presence within the open-source community.
What This Means for Snapchat and Its Developers
The acquisition is a significant step in Snap’s strategy to build out its underlying technologies. By integrating KeyDB’s technology, Snapchat can improve its caching capabilities and reduce operational costs across teams. Additionally, the move will enable Snap engineers to focus more on building core experiences, including the company’s short-form video product, Spotlight, which rivals TikTok.
Snap’s Acquisition Spree: A Focus on Underlying Technologies
This acquisition marks another addition to Snap’s growing portfolio of acquisitions focused on underlying technologies. In 2021, the company acquired several startups, including Pixel8earth for $7.6 million, Fit Analytics for $124 million, and WaveOptics for over $541.8 million. The acquisition of KeyDB is a testament to Snap’s commitment to investing in its infrastructure and building out its core technologies.
A Boost to Snapchat’s Short-Form Video Product
The acquisition also highlights the significance of KeyDB’s technology in handling large-scale workloads, particularly in the context of Snapchat’s short-form video product, Spotlight. As the company continues to grow and expand its offerings, having a robust caching technology will be crucial in ensuring seamless performance.
Snap’s Commitment to Open Source
By continuing the development of KeyDB as an open-source project, Snap is demonstrating its commitment to the open-source community. This move not only benefits Snapchat but also allows other developers to contribute to and benefit from the technology. The acquisition serves as a prime example of how companies can collaborate with open-source communities while building out their underlying technologies.
Conclusion
The acquisition of KeyDB by Snapchat marks an exciting development in the company’s strategy to build out its infrastructure. By leveraging the expertise of the KeyDB team, Snap can improve its caching technology and reduce operational costs across teams. The move also underscores the importance of investing in underlying technologies and demonstrates Snap’s commitment to the open-source community.
Related Developments
- Raspberry AI raises $24M from a16z to accelerate fashion design: This development highlights the growing interest in artificial intelligence (AI) and its applications in various industries.
- Moody’s agrees to acquire Cape Analytics, which develops geospatial AI for insurance providers: This deal demonstrates the increasing importance of geospatial AI in industries such as insurance.
By staying informed about these developments, companies can identify opportunities to leverage open-source technologies and collaborate with the broader community.
