Deepfakes: Where is the future of technology headed?

Barack Obama calls Donald Trump “a total dipshit.” Yeah, that happened. Well not really. It was actually a deepfake that went viral. There’s been a lot of them ever since they resurfaced on the internet. The first one ever to be seen was on Reddit in 2017 and since gained attention. My first deep fake experience was a video I saw of Joe Biden where his mouth was moving all weird in different directions. It was wild, to say the least.?

Before I explain deepfakes and why it’s so big right now, your girl’s going to tell you a small intro on it. A deepfake is an AI program that can be used to create a false video image of a person that can mimic to spread false information. Does that make sense? Oh, and deepfakes can also imitate the person’s voice very well. The internet thought it would be a great idea to use the AI as hilarious personations of celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Margot Robbie, Donald Trump, Gal Gadot, and so on.?

I had the time of my life when I went down the deepfake rabbit hole, coming across this Reddit thread that does deepfakes of celebrities from different movies and tv shows. Man, I would highly suggest you check this out. I guarantee it’s going to make your day, or freak you out.

Okay, so this program was intended for the purpose of dubbing in movies which would allow movie sequences to sync seamlessly with the actor’s lip motions to make the transition appear more realistic. As technology is habitual of advancement, new-age technology made it possible for the general public to superimpose images and videos onto source images and videos using a generative adversarial network technique. This fortunate -or unfortunate- advancement, depending on how you want to look at it, made it easy to create fake videos for political or pornographic purposes. From what I can gather, this was made for improving entertainment, but alas, this is what happens when you release something for the public domain. You can’t really expect people not to meddle in something that’s easily available. So far, only the entertainment industry benefits.?

The Consequences of Deepfakes?

Are there any consequences or can we let this off the hook for being a “toyable” program? Well, let's see the damage its done so far, we all remember Mark Zuckerberg's video announcing stolen data. Right now we’re looking at celebrity pornographic content, deepfakes of politicians releasing false information, and the general public using it for giggles. But think about it for a second, what if in due time someone uses this as a weapon to create mass hysteria? We all know it takes a small spark to ignite chaos in the masses. Whether initiated by an individual or by a political party, imagine the havoc it could create with the technological boom that we’re facing. Sure seems as if this AI program could reach a level of seamlessness, but what then? Should it be available to the public or should it be banned? Recently, the FBI made a PSA regarding the false use of deepfakes in the tech industry as it, where people were using this AI technology to get hired at remote jobs. ?Also, deepfakes are a severe form of identity theft. I mean, come on, how can you not see this one coming? You’re literally using people’s identities to spread false information or spread malicious news about them.?

Another example of this can be the recently launched Dall-E mini which generates 9 distorted images when combined with the textual message that you put in, after its success, OpenAI decided to come out with an updated version of the software called Dall-E 2 which lets you generate realistic images that will now contain faces. The reason for mentioning this is it runs too close to home. With all these realistic images and videos it’s getting harder and harder to differentiate, and that’s never a good sign. If you think that’s a little far-fetched, notice how AI is getting better in our phones.? Recognizing us with our masks on, Snapchat coming came with these animated and face-swapping filters. Oh! Remember those aging apps that went viral a few months ago, yeah that too. So, come to think of it, we’re basically living in an AI-programmed world as it is. We just tend to ignore it now because it’s harmless to us at the moment. Alright, now, that’s given you enough chills, let me remind you of the fun factor that comes with it. Any Star Wars fans here? If you haven’t seen the deepfake, it’s awesome. Or, check out the Wonderwoman deepfake that has stunner, Lynda Carter, playing the lead role.?

It’s only just begun

?My take on this would be Que sera sera! I mean honestly, you can’t stop the evolution of technology, but yes you can choose whether or not you’d want to be a part of it. Right now, as I’m writing this, I feel some technical programs are necessary for human interaction and entertainment, though I would have to halt my social media presence if I ever felt unsafe. I think I understand now why certain techs or even governments tend to hide their identities or documents because they don’t want something profoundly damaging in the hands of those to intend to use them for the wrong reasons. This is all a bit freaky to me since as I experience this happening right in front of my eyes, I can’t help but wonder what this world and its people will be like in the future. What do you think?

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