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Deepfake videos are getting shockingly good
Researchers from TikTok owner ByteDance have demoed a new AI system, OmniHuman-1, that can generate what appears to be the most realistic deepfake videos to date. It’s no longer necessary to imagine the potential consequences of such advanced technology.
Deepfaking AI is now a commodity. There’s no shortage of apps that can insert someone into a photo or make a person appear to say something they didn’t actually say. However, most deepfakes – and video deepfakes in particular – fail to clear the uncanny valley. There’s usually some tell or obvious sign that AI was involved somewhere. Not so with OmniHuman-1, at least from the cherry-picked samples the ByteDance team released.
Here are a few examples: a fictional Taylor Swift performance, a TED Talk that never took place, and an Einstein lecture. According to the ByteDance researchers, OmniHuman-1 only needs a single reference image and audio, like speech or vocals, to generate a video. This means that with this new technology, it’s now possible to fabricate videos that seem entirely genuine.
The implications are frightening. While some social networks and search engines have taken steps to limit the spread of these deepfakes, the volume of such content online continues to grow at an alarmingly fast rate. In a May 2024 survey from ID verification firm Jumio, 60% of people said they had encountered a deepfake in the past year. Furthermore, 72% of respondents to the poll indicated that they were worried about being fooled by deepfakes on a daily basis, with a majority supporting legislation to address the proliferation of AI-generated fakes.
It’s time to take notice and consider the potential consequences of this rapidly evolving technology.
Source: techcrunch.com
