In case you haven't heard, #ZAO is a Chinese app which completely blew up since Friday. Best application of 'Deepfake'-style AI facial replacement I've ever seen.
Here's an example of me as DiCaprio (generated in under 8 secs from that one photo in the thumbnail) ?
Here's an example of me as DiCaprio (generated in under 8 secs from that one photo in the thumbnail) ?
It's already under a lot of fire for user privacy protection under their terms and conditions. So consider this my sacrifice to demonstrate so you don't have to give up your portrait identity rights ?
It’s clear that #ZAO isn’t really going for "accuracy" per se, but rather a "subjective" good looking result. Similar to a beauty cam, it retains facial structure of the original actors, so the cherry picked results more or less always looks good and encourages users to share.
I can totally see this being applied in Films/ TV, imagine logging into your Netflix or Disney+ account - watching the latest TV show/ Marvel movie, where a stand-in actor's would be auto-replaced with your own.
The newest member of the Avengers is....YOU.
The newest member of the Avengers is....YOU.
I'm both excited and interested from a technologist/ creator perspective and morbidly cynical from a moral one :'(
Pretty soon corporations will start advertising to you using your own face.
The #ZAO app even has a built in meme gif generator...Apple is way behind the curve with Memoji’s ?
Before this gets too sensational - just to clarify: #ZAO app generates these vids from a preselected cherry-picked clips. I'm assuming they've trained an A.I. on SAID clips for generic targeting of facial features and quickly retargeting your facial features from a single photo.
It's not able to magically recompose anyone's face on any video immediately. In fact, it's not doing anything that existing platforms that allow users to post selfies can't already (or potentially) do. As cynical as I am about dangers of AI, let's not get too conspiratorial here.
Actually since this app went viral in China, the biggest focus over the past few days has been in regards to its user privacy terms - with many social media (ie. Wechat) blocking #ZAO vids from being shared and users requesting the app to delete their account/ photos.
So no, the Chinese government isn't trying to take over the world by hijacking your facial likeness through #ZAO, considering:
A. The app is only available in Chinese app stores and there's pretty much already security cams in every street corner in Chinese cities.
A. The app is only available in Chinese app stores and there's pretty much already security cams in every street corner in Chinese cities.
B. For such foul-play it's much easier to crawl existing social media for people's selfies rather than spending all this effort to build a commercial app that only requests 'one photo' from users as a selling point.
If @Pornhub isn't already working on an implementation of this to allow users to self-insert (pun intended), then management needs to have a meeting right now ? #Zao #AI #Deepfakes
My learning from this post going viral is that realistically, it's a lot scarier to become a meme than having your identity rights stolen by a company.
Once you go viral in any way your face is pretty much immediately fair game in the public domain?♂️
Once you go viral in any way your face is pretty much immediately fair game in the public domain?♂️
Taking this experiment to it’s inevitable conclusion. #KPop stans eat your heart out ? @weareoneEXO
#Zao #AI #Deepfakes #Exo #baekhyun
#Zao #AI #Deepfakes #Exo #baekhyun
A new special notice in the updated terms states #Zao will only use uploaded facial data for partial image replacement, data will be stored on servers according to relevant copyright laws. No further usage/ changes to app function unless with user's renewed permission.
For those curious about how protection of identity works in #Zao, the app verifies against a database of 'public figures' when you upload a photo. Apparently it's quite a badge of honour for some folks to be rejected by the system because they were mistaken for a 'celebrity'.
If you upload a photo vs taking a selfie, #Zao requires a second check via front facing camera to verify identity. It remains to be seen how well this system works, the running joke is that the app will be taken down as soon as someone fools the system with a photo of #XiJinping.
A video upload function exists in #Zao, but users need to be verified first to access. I have not able to get this to work. It seems like the same group of "users" uploading all the vids. I suspect this is how Zao is getting around the copyright issue.
This is truly the next evolution of #memes and we're entering uncharted territory. People might be cool with sharing memes of others, or flattered to be made into a meme, but what happens when it's millions of other faces on your body? #ZAO #DeepFakes
For now, doubts have been cast on #Zao's future. #Wechat has already blocked native sharing/ links of videos generated. Will @Twitter/ @Facebook / @instagram do the same if the app blows up in the West?
What truly remains to be see is how apps like #Zao can prevent users uploading videos of others to be #Deepfake'd without permission. Corporations can always sue, but as the #BarbraStreisandEffect has shown, the average person can't do much if they're forced to become a #meme.
For those still actually curious about #Zao’s #AI #Deepfake tech, this vid pretty much pushes the algorithm to the limit. #Coincidance
Here’s a very appropriate #Deepfake of #ReadyPlayerOne in #ZAO, how many layers of meta-narrative inception are we at now? ?
Since this all started with @LeoDiCaprio I’ll fittingly leave you with my #KateWinslet #Rose #Deepfake in #ZAO ?
@LeoDiCaprio An update on how I think #ZAO's facial replacement works in this thread (no, it's probably not AI machine learning):
@LeoDiCaprio Some further thoughts on #ZAO:
There are many techniques involved with the popular term we‘ve come to know as #Deepfakes - some more powerful than others at blurring the line between reality and fiction. 1/n
There are many techniques involved with the popular term we‘ve come to know as #Deepfakes - some more powerful than others at blurring the line between reality and fiction. 1/n
It's important to continue informing ourselves as #Deepfake technology develops so we can have clear-headed conversations about moral/ ethical boundaries and legal regulations. 2/n
It's important to protect the rights associated with our photos, but even more so our Likeness and Identity.
With a real #Deepfake, once A.I. training is over, the base assets aren’t needed anymore & anything generated is technically an original distinct creation. 3/n
With a real #Deepfake, once A.I. training is over, the base assets aren’t needed anymore & anything generated is technically an original distinct creation. 3/n
As A.I. technology develops, a global discussion needs to be had around common sense and laws of ‘Fair Use’ and ‘Transformative Work’ to protect both creators and subjects. 4/n
nolo.com
nolo.com
Otherwise, issues such as @EllenPage's concerns around her likeness being similar to #Ellie from @Naughty_Dog's #LastofUS 5/n
forbes.com
forbes.com
Or the recent @FortniteGame lawsuits around it's emotes vs iconic dance moves or personal identities/ mannerisms? 6/n
thenextweb.com
thenextweb.com
With how quickly #memes can spread to become part of internet culture/ society, we all know the #BarbaraStreisandEffect is real.
How we can protect personal identity from being potentially eroded by A.I. machine learning algorithms is a serious question to consider. 8/n
How we can protect personal identity from being potentially eroded by A.I. machine learning algorithms is a serious question to consider. 8/n
My own words on #ZAO, it was rather uncomfortable to see my face for speculation and even misinformation. There are definitely many areas of concern when it comes to #Deepfakes, but it's a global issue we must all come together to figure out.
I'll leave you with this thought: the next time you see any tech/ China news, remember that it took 3 days and a random twitter post for all the Western major news media outlets with their expert correspondents to finally notice #ZAO. 1/2
Other than @WiredUK, most media outlets never bothered to actually download the app and research for themselves. ?2/2
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