Snapchat chose the road of independence and venture capital over dancing with Internet giants like Facebook and Alibaba, and in the process its founders may have just become billionaires.

Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers has agreed to invest $20 million in Snapchat in a round that values the ephemeral messaging service at a remarkable $10 billion, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal that cites people familiar with the matter.