Snap Inc. has made a significant shift by open-sourcing its cross-platform mobile UI framework, Valdi, which has been a backbone for Snapchat’s development for the past eight years. Offered under the MIT license, Valdi sets itself apart by compiling TypeScript directly into native views across iOS, Android, and macOS platforms, without relying on web views or JavaScript bridges.
This framework boasts impressive performance enhancements, claiming rendering speeds twice as fast and memory usage reduced by 75% compared to existing competitors. It features instant hot reload, debugging capabilities through VSCode, and support for FlexBox layouts, aiming to streamline and enhance the development experience.
Valdi’s architecture includes automatic view recycling and an optimized rendering path supported by a C++ layout engine, which are designed to further enhance efficiency and performance during development. However, its release has been met with mixed reactions amongst developers, primarily due to comparisons with React Native. The latter, with its new architectural updates, has also managed to eliminate JavaScript bridges, raising questions about the actual edge Valdi holds in the market.
In related developments, the tech ecosystem is abuzz with other updates, such as Nuxt’s introduction of an MCP server accompanied by a comprehensive implementation guide, and Next.js 16’s release featuring an Adapters API intended to simplify non-Vercel deployments while rebranding middleware.ts to proxy.ts. Concurrently, the rise of React Native’s popularity is evidenced by Bitrise’s Mobile Insights report, indicating a growth in deployments from 63% to 83% between 2022 and 2025. These movements underscore a dynamic and rapidly evolving landscape in the realm of cross-platform development tools.

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Snap Inc. open-sourced Valdi, a cross-platform mobile UI framework used internally for eight years. The framework compiles TypeScript directly to native views for iOS, Android, and macOS without web views or JavaScript bridges. Valdi claims 2x faster rendering and 75% less memory usage compared to competitors, featuring hot reload, VSCode debugging, and FlexBox layouts. The release sparked debate among developers comparing it to React Native's recent architectural improvements that also eliminated JavaScript bridges.

Snapchat Open Sources Valdi Framework for Cross-Platform Mobile Development