Deepfakes for fun: When deepfakes become entertainment

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• September 23, 2022

Insight summary

Deepfakes are transforming how we interact with media, allowing users to alter faces and scenes in photos and videos with ease. This technology, increasingly found in everyday social media apps and software, raises concerns due to its potential misuse in creating misleading content and violating privacy. While offering creative possibilities in entertainment and personal expression, deepfakes also prompt critical discussions about ethical implications and the need for responsible usage.

Deepfakes for fun context

Deepfakes are synthetic media that use artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) technology to process photos and videos of a person or scene and combine, replace or augment them with the likeness of another person or scene. The technology is currently used to produce videos of well-known people, but it is increasing in popularity on social media app filters. Deepfake technology is often featured in popular smartphone and desktop applications that allow users to alter the facial expression of people in photographs and videos.

Accordingly, this technology is becoming more accessible via intuitive interfaces and off-device processing. For example, the widespread use of deepfakes in social media was led by the popular face swap filter where individuals exchanged each other’s faces on their mobile devices. 

Deepfakes are made using a Generative Adversarial Network (GAN), a method in which two computer programs fight each other to produce the best results. One program makes the video, and the other attempts to see mistakes. The result is a remarkably realistic merged video. 

As of 2023, deepfake technology is mainly accessible to the public. People no longer need computer engineering skills to create a deepfake; it can be made in seconds. There are several deepfake-related GitHub repositories where people contribute their knowledge and creations. According to the 2023 State of Deepfakes report by cybersecurity service provider Home Security Heroes, there are approximately 15 deepfake creation community websites and forums with a collective membership of over 609,464 individuals. 

Disruptive impact

Deepfake technology is quickly gaining traction in the entertainment industry to improve existing video quality. Because deepfakes can replicate the movements of a person’s lips and facial expressions to match what they are saying, it can assist in film enhancements. The technology can improve black and white films, enhance the quality of amateur or low-budget videos, and create more realistic experiences for international audiences.

For instance, deepfakes may produce cost-effective dubbed audio in multiple languages by employing local voice actors. Additionally, deepfakes may assist in generating a voice for an actor whose vocal ability has been lost due to sickness or injury. Deepfakes are also beneficial to use if there are problems in sound recording during film production. 

Deepfake technology is gaining popularity among content creators who use face-swapping apps like Ukraine-based Reface. The company, Reface, is interested in expanding its technology to include full-body swaps. Reface developers claim that by allowing this technology to be accessed by the masses, everyone can experience living a different life one simulated video at a time. 

However, ethical concerns are raised by the increasing number of deepfakes videos on social media. First is the use of deepfake technology in the porn industry, where people upload pictures of clothed women to a deepfake app and “strip” them of their clothing. There’s also the use of altered videos in numerous high-profile misinformation campaigns, notably during national elections. As a result, Google and Apple have banned deepfake software that creates malicious content from their app stores.

Implications of deepfakes for fun

Wider implications of deepfakes for fun may include: 

• A reduction in special effects costs for content creators filming scenes that involve high-profile individuals or featuring remote or dangerous scenery. 
• Increasingly sophisticated apps and filters copying mannerisms and speech patterns, leading to an increase in misinformation and illegal use of real-life identities.
• Big Tech firms flagging apps that violate data privacy and encourage online identity theft through deepfakes.
• Governments initiating a crackdown on malicious apps, sites, and content that promote national instability, like insurrections.
• Brands vetting their partnerships with influencers, including background checks, to ensure they are not misled by fraud.
• The entertainment industry using more deepfakes to include deceased actors in current films, which may lead to lawsuits and ethical concerns.

Questions to consider

• How can people protect themselves from deepfake misinformation?
• What are the other potential benefits or risks of deepfake technology?