A new AI-powered service called ‘Deep Nostalgia’ is gaining traction online for its ability to bring still photos to “life.”
The service is being offered by online genealogy company ‘MyHeritage,’ which says the service can “animate the faces in your family photos with amazing technology.”
The company notes that the feature “can very accurately apply the drivers to a face in your still photo, creating a short video that you can share with your friends and family. The driver guides the movements in the animation so you can see your ancestors smile, blink, and turn their heads. This really brings your photos to life.”
MyHeritage outlines that some people love the feature while others find it creepy. The company has acknowledged that some results can be controversial, but that it invites users to create videos with the tool and share them since it’s intended for nostalgic use.
“It makes me so happy to see him smile again!” Try our new #DeepNostalgia #PhotoAnimation feature for yourself and prepare to be AMAZED!!! https://t.co/p3h600G3MX pic.twitter.com/YdAn9IxyW0
— MyHeritage (@MyHeritage) February 28, 2021
However, MyHeritage states that the videos don’t include speech in order to prevent misuse. The feature is only meant for users’ own historical photos and not on photos of people without their permission.
Users have to sign up for a free account and then upload a photo to use the service. The site then enhances the image and creates a GIF to bring it to life.
The service’s FAQ page says all images that are uploaded to the site are automatically deleted and that they aren’t shared with any third parties.
The AI is pretty entertaining and many people have put it to the test and shared their results on social media. However, fair warning, the results can be quite uncanny.
Image credit: MyHeritage
Source: MyHeritage
