Kylie is the real influencer. She just caused Snapchat a whole lot of dollars.
Since it launched in 2011, Snapchat has been seen as the most likely challenger to Instagram’s throne when it comes to photo-based social media. This has been in no small part due to the tremendous lure of Kylie Jenner, whose account is reportedly the most-viewed one on the platform.
But Jenner’s huge social influence seems to have suddenly backfired for the app — via a tweet she posted on Wednesday that suggested her opinion of Snapchat has soured:
sooo does anyone else not open Snapchat anymore? Or is it just me… ugh this is so sad.
— Kylie Jenner (@KylieJenner) February 21, 2018
Jenner’s ambivalence regarding the app appeared to have an immediate effect on Snapchat investors. By Thursday at the close of trading, Snapchat’s stock had dropped 6 percent — an estimated loss of between $1.3 billion and $1.6 billion in market value.
As a result, Jenner made headlines for her seeming ability to singlehandedly deal a huge financial blow to a tech industry giant, all with a casual tweet. But there are plenty of factors in play that could have contributed to Snapchat’s stock collapse, and Jenner’s tweet was most likely a tipping point rather than the cause.