The AI family history app MyHeritage allows users to animate photographs from the past. Run a document through the app and it will seemingly bring it to life, making the subject’s eyes blink and look around. Many have been turning this technology on photographs and paintings of well-known historical figures. The accompanying hashtag #DeepNostalgia has flooded social media with the reanimated faces of Charles Darwin, George Washington, Marie Antoinette and more.
In a fast-developing technological landscape, deepfakes are becoming more and more commonplace. The term refers to images or videos of people in which their faces and voices have been digitally altered. While few would claim these subdued avatars are absolutely convincing, their uncanny tangibility can be compelling.