Are Deepfake Apps Worth Using?

The first thought which comes across our mind while thinking of deepfake app is the computer-generated fake video that can make you resemble your favorite tinsel town diva or action hero. Deepfake technology has been growing at an exponential rate by helping create new footage for depicting statements, events, or actions that never took place by combining various events. Machine learning and digital software are used in the creation of these fake videos which can yield pretty convincing outcomes.

Deepfakes can deceive listeners or viewers into believing a false message or event. Machine learning lies at the base of Deepfakes and helps with its faster production at a lower cost. A creator would primarily train a neural network on hours of another person’s real video footage whom they wish to imitate. This offers a realistic understanding of how that person would look from different angles and under different lighting conditions. Next, computer graphics techniques come into the picture for superimposing a copy of the person on their preferred celebrity.

While most media outlets and experts only highlight the negative aspects of Deepfake technology, it houses the immense potential for delivering positively focused applications which can benefit the technology and entertainment-oriented industries to a large extent. Let’s now take a look at the inherent positives and weaknesses of the AI-generated Deepfakes:

Positives:

• Deepfakes assist in delivering engaging lessons in the education sector which transcend the boundary of traditional media and visual formats. Your lessons are bound to become more interactive and engaging as the AI-generated synthetic media brings historical characters to life within the four walls of your classroom. This can increase engagement and serve as a more effective learning tool.
• The expensive VFX technology finds its perfect competitor in Deepfakes which can come to the aid of independent storytellers at a fraction of the cost. AI-generated graphics can add inertia to game development in the video gaming industry. Synthetic voice has found usage in fields like book narration and audio storytelling with pokemon rom hacks and The author’s synthetic voice font is used for creating an audio format for the author’s book. Businesses are also increasingly relying on Deepfake apps for adding variations to actors’ synthetic voice-overs in different languages.
• Journalists and human rights activists can remain anonymous while housing protests against various oppressive and dictatorial regimes using the Deepfakes. Technology can help them report atrocities on social or traditional media by keeping their identities masked to protect their privacy. Individuals can create avatar experiences using Deepfakes for self-expression on the internet. This is also extensively used by people with mental or physical disabilities to express themselves online.
• Podcasters can now create synthetic audio with Text to Speech models with fewer errors. This helps in speeding up the entire process as it uses the podcaster’s voice font. Deepfakes are used by influencers to expand their audience and broaden their reach. Brands can increase their reach among customers by sending personalized and targeted messages using the AI-generated Deepfakes.

Dangers:

Most of the corporate level frauds are based on Deepfakes. Gone are the days when fraudsters would send fake emails to persuade an organization’s employees into transferring money. Now they place direct phone calls sounding like the CEO or CFO of a prestigious organization using Deepfakes to persuade them into shelling their funds. You might often come across videos of bigshot CEOs making false announcements. But in reality, these are manipulated with Deepfake where voices and faces are transferred to media files to depict people making false statements. Instances are not rare when the attacker threatens to post the video on social media or send it to press agencies for blackmailing the company.

Best Deepfake Applications

• Zao – While Deepfake technology was infamous for requiring a bulky setup with high-end processing capabilities, Zao imparted a complete facelift by helping create these superimposed videos right from your device within a few seconds. Users are offered the option of superimposing a video from their device gallery or choosing one from the application in the form of popular Hollywood movies and TV shows.
• Doublicat – An easy-to-use interface makes this app the perfect platform for newcomers who wish to try out superimposition. While it doesn’t allow creating videos, you can easily manage Deepfake GIFs using the application. You can choose from the app’s rich library of GIFs or import them from your collection. Doublicat renders hilarious outcomes with its Generative Adversarial Network within just 5 seconds. However, you should refrain from selecting a GIF having too many motions as that might lead to an issue with the app. Users can share the Deepfake GIFs directly across various social media channels and also create a photo collage, add filters to the superimposed GIFs or start a photo roulette.
• FaceSwap – Just as the name suggests, you can swap your face with someone else using this app which renders hilarious results. You can enjoy a variety of face wrapping functionality and customizations with FaceSwap. The USP of FaceSwap lies in its Mast Costume Mode allowing users to choose among a variety of glasses, costumes, hairstyles, masks, beards, and more. The high level of flexibility offered by this app comes in as a big advancement over peer apps which can lead to more accurate results.
• Celebrity Face Morph – Realize your Hollywood dreams of looking like Iron Man, Spiderman, Captain America, and more with this app which requires just a simple photo upload and choosing your preferred celebrity to set the process into motion. Image recognition technology is used by the app to deliver hilarious results by performing superimpositions. Some of the noteworthy features of Celebrity Face Morph are face warp, automatic face detection, and more. The entire operation takes minutes to complete, However, you cannot upload a picture directly from the gallery using this application and need to click one every time you try out the app.
• DeepFaceLab – This app is tailor-made for students and researchers and students working in computer vision. You can avail of this app if you wish to understand how Deepfakes are made. It comes with the necessary documentation which can cater to novice users. Being a Windows application, DeepFaceLab requires high power CPU and GPU.
• MachineTube – Create Deepfake videos on your computer using this app which has high-end PC requirements with a substantial amount of video RAM. Despite this, it might take a few years before the final results are processed. You just need to upload a picture of your face and select the desired video over which your face will be superimposed. Users can also choose from preloaded sets ranging from former US presidents to Hollywood actors.
• FaceApp – This ingenious app offers a plethora of features by using neural network architecture that helps superimpose a face atop others leading to pretty accurate results. You can use this app to add a few years to your current age or to make yourself look younger. There are a variety of customizations you can try out like modifying your facial characteristics in the form of a mustache, beards, adding tattoos, eyelids, applying makeup, changing the hair color, etc.; and changing your expressions. The best thing about FaceApp is that you don’t need to waste your time selecting the best makeup and hairstyle suited for your face as AI does that depending on your facial characteristics.
• AvengeThem – This app takes a cue out of the Avengers book to help users superimpose their videos on top of their favorite Avengers. You can choose between 18 different types of GIFs ranging from Spiderman to CaptainAmerica, Black Widow, Iron Man, Nick Fury, and also our beloved Stan Lee. The loophole of this app is the fact that it doesn’t create a full-fledged video but a GIF. However, the results are excellent and super-fast without inflicting too much pressure on your PC’s RAM. It is required to upload a well-lit picture where your face is visible as the app will fail to recognize the uploads otherwise and lead to imperfect results.
• DeepFake Web Beta – Churn out amazing superimposed videos with this ingenious app which requires between 4-5 hours to analyze the uploaded video and another 30 minutes to undertake the swap function. Pretty strong GPU capabilities allow carrying out most of the work on the clouds without using much of your PC resources other than a strong internet connection.

Final Words

Deepfake Technology superimposes one’s face or voice over other static videos, images, or GIFs using artificial intelligence technology and artificial neural networks. While this technology has been around for the last two decades, the process was a long and difficult one until now. Currently, there has been a surge in Deepfake websites and apps allowing even laymen to try them out sitting in the comfort of their houses.

AI-generated synthetic media can induce a positive difference in our lives by offering people a sense of purpose. This is why Deepfakes has been accepted in every field of life ranging from public safety to art, expression, and more. Irrespective of personal limitations, Deepfakes hold the potential of opening doors for everyone. However, coupled with the increased availability of media technology, Deepfakes are also inducing the risk of exploitation by fabricating evidence, smearing people’s reputations, and defrauding the public which might erode general confidence in accredited institutions.