Here's brief guide on how to create deepfake videos along with a list of top deepfake creation tools and websites

Top 10 deepfake websites and apps to create videos online

While it enables entertainment, AI face-swapping technology can also lead to spread of misinformation and fake news.

Beyond fun and games: The dangers of AI face swapping technology

TikToker @haleyparkerstyle took to the platfork to share her experience with opting out of painting her brick house and using limewash to give it a different look. Though initially the couple's plan was to paint, they scrapped that idea and went with limewashing instead, documenting the process on TikTok.

Woman Explains Why Limewashing Brick Is the Best Way to Reface it

Most notably, the popular Reface app includes the 90s yearbook filter, allowing users to give their photos the quintessential 1990s high school yearbook look. If you're comfortable uploading your ...

How to Try the AI Yearbook Photo Trend

Days after TikTok announced a new developer-facing feature, Direct Post, that makes it easier for third-party apps to publish videos to its platform, Meta has announced that its own Sharing to Reels widget for mobile apps is now available to all developers.

Instagram's 'Sharing to Reels' feature opens up to all app developers

The closely watched case targets the AI app called Reface, which allows users to digitally paste their face over the faces of athletes and actors in images and videos. The lawsuit is one of the first to confront the legal implications of AI technology ...

MrBeast, Tom Hanks Stung by AI Scams as Law Rushes to Keep Pace

Now comes Kyland Young, a reality TV celebrity and the plaintiff in today’s case, suing NeoCortext on what the court in that case believes is firmer ground – that the company’s use of his likeness in its AI-driven “Reface” app violates his rights ...

AD-ttorneys@law - October 2023

Fortunately, AI-powered tools and apps make it possible to quickly create a young version of yourself. Media.io, Photor AI, FaceApp, and Reface App are popular tools to achieve this. Let's look at how you can use them to your advantage. Method 1 – Use ...

5 Ways to Create a Young Version of Yourself Using AI

In the bustling world of modern technology, it seems that a rising tide of apprehension is washing over US workers, particularly those armed with a college degree. This morphing landscape is igniting fears that the accelerating march of technology might ...

Tech Tsunami Hits American Workforce: “Hopeless” College-Educated Americans on the Brink of Job Apocalypse

Visit picsart.com. If you have only one of two images to edit, you can certainly opt for Unboring by Reface. It does the job pretty fast and well. As usual, you need to upload the face and base ...

Top Free Face Swap Online Tools

Reface

reface

How to Survive the AI Apocalypse

7 Content Loops to Accelerate Sustainable Product Growth

A few weeks ago, I got a notification, Drake and The Weeknd may have just released a new track! Truth be told, these are 2 of my favorite music artists and with those 2 in a music collaboration. So, I rushed to Spotify and listened to "Heart on my Sleeves" and truly, it did sound amazing, only to find out a day or 2 later that this just happened to be AI-generated/Deepfake music. In interviews which involved several music analysts and musicians, they expressed their shock at how good this Deepfake music was, leaving no clue whatsoever of it being fake. conducted by CBC News technology has been on the rise for decades and in recent years, deepfakes have become more accessible and advanced, thanks to the development of powerful and versatile generative models, such as autoencoders and generative adversarial networks. But this only makes it harder for us to distinguish between what is real and what is unreal. Deepfake In this article, we will explain what Deepfake Technology is, the rise of the technology, how it works, and its positive and negative impacts on individuals and society. Let's explore! The section How Deep Fake Technology Works was improved by AI Disclaimer: What is Deepfake Technology? DeepFakes are AI-generated videos and images that can alter or fabricate the reality of people, events, and objects. This technology is a type of artificial intelligence that can create or manipulate images, videos, and audio that look and sound realistic but are not authentic. Deepfake technology uses machine learning algorithms to analyze and learn from real data, such as photos, videos, and voices of people, and then generate new data that resembles the original but with some changes. Deepfake Technology Overview Deepfake technology works by using Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs), which are computer systems that can learn from data and perform tasks that normally require human intelligence. ANNs can analyze and learn from real images, videos, and audio of people, and then generate new data that resembles the original but with some changes. To create a deepfake, a developer usually needs two types of ANNs: a generator and a discriminator. The generator creates fake data, such as a new face or a new voice, based on the input data, such as a source video or image. The discriminator evaluates how realistic or fake the generated data is, and gives feedback to the generator to improve its output. This process is repeated until the generator produces convincing data that can fool the discriminator. This combination of generator and discriminator ANNs is called a . Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) For example, to create a deepfake video of someone saying something they never said, a developer would need a source video of the person, a target audio of what they want them to say, and a GAN system. The GAN system would use the source video to learn the facial features and expressions of the person and use the target audio to generate lip movements that match the speech. The generator would then create a new video that combines the original face with the new lip movements, while the discriminator would check how realistic or fake the new video is. The generator would keep improving its output until it passes the discriminator's test. Types of Deepfake Technology This can be classified based on the input and output modalities, such as images, videos, or audio. Some of the types of deepfake technology are: This type of deepfake technology replaces the face of one person in an image or video with the face of another person. Face-swapping can be done for various purposes, such as entertainment, parody, satire, or impersonation. A face-swapping deepfake can show a celebrity's face on a porn star's body, or a politician's face on a comedian's body. Face Swapping: This type of deepfake technology creates a new face from scratch or based on some attributes, such as age, gender, or ethnicity. Face synthesis is often carried out for purposes such as art, education, or identity protection. A face synthesis deepfake can show a realistic-looking person that does not exist or a person with a different appearance than their real one. An example is Dall-E. Face Synthesis: This type of deepfake technology modifies the lip movements of a person in a video to match a given audio input. This can be done for various purposes, such as dubbing, translation, or manipulation. Lip Sync: This type of deepfake technology generates a synthetic voice that mimics the voice of a given person, often done for entertainment, communication, or fraud. AI can be used to create realistic and convincing visual content that can be used for various purposes, such as education, entertainment, art, and communication. Some of the ways AI can create visual content are: Voice Cloning: To understand this concept better, let's consider the following scenarios where deep fake technology was used; A giving a speech that he never gave, created by comedian Jordan Peele. deepfake video of former US president Barack Obama A boasting about having billions of people's data, was created by artists Bill Posters and Daniel Howe. deepfake video of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg doing various stunts and jokes, created by TikTok user @deeptomcruise. Deepfake videos of actor Tom Cruise A allows users to swap their faces with celebrities in videos and gifs. deepfake app called Reface A allows users to make themselves or others sing and dance in videos. deepfake app called Wombo The Positive Impacts of Deepfake Technology Although Deepfake technology is widely criticized for its potential to spread misinformation, harm privacy, and damage reputations, there are still some positive impacts that are worth considering, some of which include: Creation of stunning visual effects for movies, TV shows, games, and other forms of entertainment by helping filmmakers and 3D artists create realistic and immersive scenes, characters, and effects. Deepfakes can be used to revive deceased actors/stars, de-age or age actors, dub voices in different languages, or enhance facial expressions. An example is bringing back Peter Cushing in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, or creating realistic digital avatars of celebrities, such as Tom Cruise on TikTok. Protection of personal identity by concealing or altering one's identity online, such as using a different face or voice for video calls, social media posts, or online gaming. This can help protect one's privacy and security from unwanted attention or harassment. Creation of realistic scenarios for professional training purposes, such as medical simulations, emergency drills, or language learning. An example is generated AI avatars that can interact with trainees and provide feedback. Generation of synthetic data for scientific experiments, like testing new drugs, studying human behavior, or exploring new phenomena. It can create virtual patients that can protect the privacy of real ones. Minimizing the cost and time of producing high-quality content, such as advertising, education, or entertainment. For example, it can replace expensive actors, models, or locations with cheaper alternatives. In politics, deepfakes can help politicians and activists communicate their messages and causes. The technology can be used to create persuasive speeches, campaigns, or public service announcements, or to translate speeches into different languages or dialects. In education, Deepfakes can help teachers and students enhance their learning experiences. It can create interactive lessons, simulations, or demonstrations, or bring historical figures or events to life. The Negative Impacts of Deepfake Technology Notwithstanding the positive impact of this amazing technology, there are some pronounced negative impacts that can generate ripple effects in any scenario. These negative impacts include: Undermining the trustworthiness and reliability of information sources and media platforms; making it harder for people to distinguish between real and fake content. Manipulation of public opinion or influence elections by spreading false or misleading information about political figures or events. Extortion of money or favours from people by threatening to expose them with fabricated evidence of wrongdoing or compromising situations. Creation of non-consensual pornography of celebrities or ordinary people; violating their privacy and dignity. Creation of fake identities or accounts, such as bots, trolls, or impostors, using the likeness of real or fictitious people. It can be used to scam people by impersonating their relatives, friends, or authorities. Final Thoughts Deepfake technology is a powerful and versatile tool that can create realistic and convincing synthetic representations of speech and actions. This technology has had a long history with more and more efforts dedicated daily to creating better ways to make the products of the technology much more believable and almost identical. Deepfakes have some positive implications, however, it also poses significant challenges and risks for individuals and society. Hence, more research is needed to trim down the negatives of this technology. In our next article, we will be looking explicitly at the dangers of Deepfake Technology and the steps made to cut down on its excesses.

The Rise of Deepfake Technology: Navigating the Realm of AI-Generated Images & Videos

No, seriously, why not? It’s cool to be a designer, a creative person who DJs vinyl sets in a funky club at night and starts the morning with a double-filter coffee and a vegan croissant overlooking the sea to get inspired for the next advertising campaign. Not a bad stereotype, right? A brand designer is a visual communicator with the user. The same user who has to pull money out of their pocket and give it to the founder for using their SaaS product. It’s a very interesting task, isn’t it? That’s why I think it would be very useful for a tech founder/CEO to possess design skills to learn a couple of extremely important competencies that will help their business grow steadily. Creativity and Innovation Unfortunately, internet culture and ignorant people in pursuit of money have desecrated these concepts, making them clichés. This is a shame because creativity and innovation are two of the main drivers of progress, which are linked by a simple logic: creativity is the ability to generate new ideas, approaches, and concepts that help solve existing problems in ways that did not exist before. is the process of transforming new ideas or concepts into real products, services, or processes. It’s very simple and complex at the same time. Innovation and the ability to are the main tools of a designer. Let me give you a simple example: a large IT company approached us to create an identity for a low-code platform brand, which was meant to be an alternative to expensive full-code developers in large enterprise projects. But in the course of our research, we found that the challenge is not competition or usability, but the presence of so-called “citizen developers” — marketers, accountants, HR specialists who know how to create software using low-code platforms. Instead of highlighting the product’s advantages, we offered to sell the product along with a course on low-code for employees of different departments to help them become more efficient. Now it’s not just a product, but a new hard skill for the next generation of employees. This is how designers’ creativity leads to business innovation. Creativity innovate Knowledge and Understanding of Branding Some tech founders make the mistake of thinking that a brand is a logo and colors created in 15 minutes with the help of the first service in Google search results based on artificial intelligence. is, of course, top of the line, but it is more of a designer’s assistant than a full-fledged founder’s vendor. AI A brand is a set of associations, emotions, and feelings associated with a product. Spotify is a cool selection of music and a playlist of the week’s discoveries. — art, fast, magic, prompt. — bitcoin, trading, reliable. These are my very first associations with the products of these brands. Pause for 1 minute and think about the tech products you use every day. What associations and emotions do they evoke in you? These are brand assets. Midjourney Binance Brand assets help to form a unique brand identity that will help it stand out from the competition and take its place in the market in the user’s mind. Positioning, corporate visual identity, website design, the style of music in a commercial, and even the way your sales managers communicate with customers — all of these are tech brand assets, not just the logo, colors, and name. For example, there’s a recent Tik Tok campaign for the UK. It’s a good example of how a brand is trying to take a bite out of Google’s core brand asset “the place where I go if I need some information.” And this is branding too, yes 🙂 The Semiotic Triangle Principle What is the difference between art and design? Design necessarily has a function, whereas art has only meaning and form. That is, design is visual communication based on a combination of meaning, form, and function. And when working with your tech brand, it is very important to interpret “function” as a question: “who is this for?”, “why are we doing this?”, “what do we want to achieve with this design?”, etc. And this is where a huge problem for young tech startups opens up because when I received briefs on brand identity development from founders, I noticed that 80% of them do not pay attention to user research at all. “Our audience is marketers.” Are you sure your product can help every marketer? Or maybe just a digital marketer? Or maybe only a digital marketer of a DTC brand? Or maybe only a digital marketer of a DTC brand who does their job on experience but pays for seven different marketing services just to justify their luck to the CEO at the end of the project? A thorough understanding of the brand’s audience, communication goals, and desired outcome is all about “function” from the same semiotic triangle that we, as designers, keep in our pockets at all times. How can a startup founder use a designer's approach? Reface, a Ukrainian startup that creates an app with face swap videos, prepared a funny one-minute video featuring the most popular video memes for each pitch, showing the product in action. What's so creative about it? All the faces from the memes were replaced with those of investors, who were simply delighted. As a result, they raised 5.5M in investments. Use creativity as a tool to solve your business problems. A few years ago, Tinder began to feel that competitors were breathing down its neck, and the user base was not growing. After speaking with users, they discovered that millennials (aged 25-35) were no longer using the app because it didn't help them find more serious relationships. In response, Tinder upgraded its features with "Tinder Explore," which allows users to sort matches by interests, and launched the "You're Not For Everyone" ad campaign. These changes resulted in an 8% uplift over the campaign period and an increase in revenue of $17M quarter-on-quarter. Stay in constant touch with users and test new product ideas and features with them. Mailchimp was not bought for the monkey on the logo; rather, it was purchased for taking the monkey off the entrepreneur's back and offering to do business--not operations--by sending thousands of emails automatically. Perceive the brand as an emotional and associative connection between the product and the user. meaning (what am I doing?), form (how do I do it?), and function (why am I doing it?). Design business tasks according to the semiotic triangle principle: By the way, the founders of Instagram, YouTube, Canva, and Airbnb are good examples of billion-dollar companies with designer founders, and it's likely that their design skills contributed to their success.

Tech founder, Why Haven't You Become a Designer Yet?

If you're wondering how the future of simulated reality might look, you should watch . This movie has one underrated character whose true meaning we don't even fully catch behind the pretty picture — the idealized and portable hologram Joi, with a custom avatar and options for changing her appearance in real time. In fact, Joi is an AI companion app that can be played in 3D with the help of additional devices, but the photorealistic 3D model makes her seem real. The only drawback is that Joi cannot be fully materialized in the real world. Blade Runner 2049 However, her hyperreality means she is much more than just a simulation — for the movie’s protagonist, she's a real person. She’s his girlfriend. And, watching her in the movie, we also ignore her artificiality. Joi might be the best example of what many people would like to be in immersive spaces — perfect, endowed with the ability to create, and hyperrealistic. Virtual spaces that imitate reality already exist, but there is still no unified solution for how to transfer your personality to them and maintain a high-quality representation. It takes time, costs a lot of money, and, as a result, is not available to the average user. But how do we get there? Yet, achieving hyperrealistic virtual experiences — especially hyperrealistic avatars — is within our grasp. We just need a better understanding of how our virtual and digital identities are connected to the concept of hyperreality, how to create hyper-realistic versions of ourselves for the digital space, and why solving the problem goes beyond the high-quality visualization of objects and spaces. What is Hyperreality? We consider as digital objects that are visibly indistinguishable from physical reality. But because of their digital nature, these objects also have properties and capabilities that may not exist in the physical world. This definition applies to avatars or other representations of people (like Joi from ), as well as to any photorealistic digital content — movie stunts, games, and special effects. Hyperreality is more than just augmented reality that deceives the senses because we don’t--or prefer not to--feel the difference. hyperreal things Blade Runner 2049 For a better explanation, let's place hyperreality on the spectrum between real and artificial. This spectrum also includes augmented and virtual reality, each providing a different experience of human perception. is a complete digital representation of an imaginary world that the user experiences as independent knowledge, an alternative to the real world. Virtual reality is a mixed reality with elements of either the digital world \or the real world. It is perceived by the user as an experience of interaction with the digital world for greater immersion and creating the effect of presence. Augmented reality is an experience of a digital (artificial) origin that imitates reality but is not perceived by the user as a game. On the contrary – it expands the perception of reality. Hyperreality Hyperreality is Real Life, but Better ​​I believe hyperreality will be a key aspect of certain experiences in the metaverse and in the future internet overall. I agree with Tom Graham, CEO and co-founder of Metaphysic, who because it allows more authentic and emotionally engaging experiences. This transition is necessary to open up a metaverse beyond gaming and entertainment, to include more ordinary daily affairs like visiting doctors or family gatherings. notes that people prefer hyperreality For as long as the web has existed, people have imagined what a true virtual reality would look like. Almost 25 years ago, for example, using the term MUD (multi-user dungeons), which today we call the metaverse: “MUDding is more than just a computer game; it is hyperreality in full force.” psychologist Sherry Turkle described the future of human identity in the internet world And when a person finds themselves in a virtual space, how do they perceive that world? Who or what are they? “They are as real as my real life,” responded one of Turkle’s research subjects. “I can now have a portfolio of lives in which my real life is but one; RL [real life] is just one more window, and it's not usually my best one.” Amazingly, people in the late 1990s described their sense of virtual space as similar to what we feel today. According to , people feel more included in the metaverse than in real life. The to fill in three core aspects of life: inspiration, individuality, and inclusion. a global study by Momentum Worldwide from July 2022 report also found that consumers look to the virtual experience Transferring a digital copy of yourself into the virtual world and having everyday human experiences is the next breakthrough to be made on the way to building the metaverse. In fact, many people believe that real-world experiences will eventually be replaced by virtual ones, and they are expecting a hyperreal future. In June 2022, and found that two-thirds are excited about transitioning everyday activities to the metaverse, especially when it comes to connecting with people, exploring virtual worlds, and collaborating with remote colleagues. McKinsey surveyed more than 3,400 consumers around the world However, any given environment will only feel hyper-real if it reflects the real world as much as possible. Not fictional and cartoonish, but . Like a work Zoom call but in a 3D office with colleagues, or like a festival with friends but in an immersive 3D space. We already have gaming environments where the user can become anyone from a princess to a monster; there is nothing technologically complicated about them. real People, Places, and Things The next challenge is learning how to recreate the real world and integrate ourselves into it. A major part of , of course, is our physical appearance. However, unlike with modern incarnations of social media, where users struggle over the need to look perfect or to look “real” (while, of course, still looking good), hyperreality should serve as a form of stress reduction. We should be able to modify our digital avatars without trying to make our literal selves seem perfect — whether you'd like to look like a celeb or stay yourself by preserving your personal features. ourselves Maintaining the very ability to do what we want with our avatar is another key — grow fangs or choose any hair color, put on clothes that we like, or even change our shape to a zoomorphic one. Ideally, in virtuality, it's just the way we like it. But our belongings also define us in real life, and they will in the metaverse, as well. So we will strive to transfer our belongings into the digital world – for example, our houses, cars, sneakers, or even favorite cups. Such services already exist. , a metaverse agency specializing in creating hyperrealistic customized house models, allows clients to add digital assets, their favorite furniture, or art to make their virtual home a unique place. Verse Estate Even better is if your avatars, belongings, and general digital identity are interoperable as you transition between worlds or environments. Some enabling technologies to do this already exist, including , which makes virtual identities interoperable with various platforms. Ready Player Me Between Static and Expressive Lies an Uncanny Valley Achieving true hyperreality will be difficult, though, even as some of the fundamental capabilities are shaping up to some degree. Solving all of its requirements and challenges — the technological ones as well as the business ones — is beyond the scope of any one company or field. The quest to perfect human graphics functions as a microcosm of the greater field. When of its metaverse platform , for example, not everyone was satisfied with the quality, detailing, and realism of Mark Zuckerberg’s cartoon avatar. In fact, most, if not all, current visualization attempts in the metaverse are far from hyperreal and cannot compare to those in, say, massively multiplayer online role-playing games. There’s a simple reason for this: We don't yet know how to render the myriad human emotions and expressions that should be available in lifelike virtual environments, where avatars are responding to unpredictable stimuli in real time. Meta announced the launch Horizon Worlds However, there a bunch of tools on the market for creating digital avatars – from the cartoonish like and the aforementioned Ready Player Me to the most hyper-realistic provided by character studios like and . These studios showcase the highest quality of hyperreal humans for the metaverse, leading with Unreal Engine’s , which can import face scans of real people and automatically generate a digital face. Although to fully reproduce someone's digital copy in 3D, you need to spend a lot of time playing with skin color, hair, and other details, even if you're a pro designer. are CloneX Reblika Hyperreal latest MetaHuman release I would compare these beautiful realistic digital humans to a very expensive car that is the best in its class but one you can only drive on holidays and on a straight, flat road. We won't be able to use the same tools and approach to create hyperrealistic digital humans for a fast-changing, dynamic environment as we do with static realism. It is still too heavy and complex to meet all the challenges of real-time rendering at scale within the metaverse. Just recently, though, Meta's Reality Labs its latest improvements in the Codec Avatars 2.0 project – prototype VR avatars using advanced machine learning techniques. The new avatars look , but they are not the result of the work of neural networks alone. For example, such quality still requires scanning with 3D cameras, which, for a number of reasons, are unlikely to reach mainstream adoption anytime soon. teased very hyperrealistic and are even able to express emotions Overall, the main hurdle is computation because the closer you get to hyperreality, the more power and time you need. For example, to gain a 1% increase in realism, you need to do five times the computation. So the real challenge for companies in the metaverse is to solve the uncanny valley of facial representation, which results in humans that look real, but also unnatural and creepy because something is just . off The uncanny valley effect is even more noticeable when we’re experiencing the metaverse via an immersive device like a VR headset. We can forgive some bugs in video game graphics on a flat screen but trust me, you don't want to witness someone’s leg separate from their body (unintentionally, at least) while using an XR headset or see facial movements that do not keep up with direct speech. Therefore, the technology — from the network to the device itself — must be highly optimized to allow rendering on the device in real time. We have to find a workable tradeoff between user habits, device capabilities, and maintaining a hyperrealistic immersion effect. Neural Rendering Shows Promise When speaking about lower-quality but faster technological solutions for creating realistic 3D characters, we should look at the neural radiance fields (NeRFs) method. The by researchers from Google Research and UC Berkeley in 2020 at the annual European Conference on Computer Vision. In 2022, a new wave of conversation about this technology appeared after – a neural rendering model that has the capability to turn multiple 2D images into 3D scenes without camera scanning. In contrast to classic polygonal modeling, neural rendering reproduces a 3D scene based solely on optics and linear algebra. , it can be used to “create avatars or scenes for virtual worlds, to capture video conference participants and their environments in 3D, or to reconstruct scenes for 3D digital maps.” NeRF methodology was first described Nvidia officially showcased its Instant NeRF According to Nvidia The main advantage of neural rendering is its scalability. So far, the model has taken a long time to learn, and its render speed remains the main gatekeeper to entering the market, but AI is much more flexible in terms of optimization. Neural networks just need more time and data to produce progressively better results. I think we'll soon observe the emergence of new ways to optimize and commoditize neural rendering so that everyone can take a few selfies on a smartphone and get their virtual 3D copy to participate in a hyper-real 3D space. It is more complex technologically, but I believe there will be a large market for future virtual worlds that are hyperrealistic, in addition to those that are cartoonish or game-like. And although we are talking about a future that isn't quite here yet, machine learning is once again proving itself in a new field. It could play a significant role in creating the hyperreal magic of the metaverse. If you want to explore the topic a little deeper, I made a list of interesting articles on digital identity creation, graphics evolution, neural rendering, and more: : For CGI geeks. A piece by Dan Sarto about how VFX expert Paul Lambert created the holographic Joi and other cyberpunk stuff and visuals for Blade Runner 2049. Double Negative Delivers the Joi of ‘Blade Runner 2049’ : A solid explanation of the digital face evolution. My article about how technology is changing our faces and why these transformations are needed today. For starters, the mystery of whether AI can create an image worthy of the trust of millions. Synthetic Faces are Building a New Market — and it’s Terribly Good : In-depth research done in 2021 focused on improving virtual characters' realistic expressions and non-verbal communication channels to create a more customized experience. Individual’s Social Perception of Virtual Avatars Embodied with Their Habitual Facial Expressions and Facial Appearance : This piece covers how William Wiebe rethinks avatars generated for the infrastructure of the metaverse, revealing its embedded preferences in the process. Blaine O'neill’s Minting Faces in Latent Spaces : A great article by my colleague and Reface co-founder Oles Petriv that explains the tech aspects of neural rendering on the path to instant creation of photorealistic 3D objects. Why Advances in Neural 3D Rendering Aren’t Reaching the Market This is more about solving AI and is almost off-topic, but while structuring my article, I enjoyed exploring DeepMind's proof-of-concept demonstration of deep reinforcement learning, addressing one of the key challenges in AI research. : Human-Centered Mechanism Design with Democratic AI

Hyperreal or Cartoonish: The Keys to Lifelike Identities in the Metaverse

হাইপাররিয়েল বা কার্টুনিশ: মেটাভার্সে লাইফলাইক আইডেন্টিটিসের চাবিকাঠি

Hyperreal oder Cartoonish: Die Schlüssel zu lebensechten Identitäten im Metaversum

Hiperreal o caricaturesco: las claves de las identidades realistas en el metaverso

Hyperréel ou caricatural : les clés des identités réalistes dans le métaverse

हाइपररियल या कार्टूनिश: मेटावर्स में आजीवन पहचान की कुंजी

超現実的または漫画的: メタバースにおけるリアルなアイデンティティの鍵

초현실적이거나 만화 같은: 메타버스에서 실제와 같은 정체성을 얻는 열쇠

Hiperreal ou caricatural: as chaves para identidades realistas no metaverso

Hipergerçek veya Karikatürize: Metaevrendeki Gerçekçi Kimliklerin Anahtarları

Hyperreal hoặc Cartoonish: Chìa khóa để nhận dạng sống động như thật trong Metaverse

超现实或卡通化：元宇宙中栩栩如生的身份的关键

In the late nineties, every teen hanging out in the first online games couldn’t even imagine that our fave Lineage and FIFA were just the beginning of a new age in virtual entertainment. Crappy visuals and character limitations didn't stop us from immersing in the game — having multiple goal-scoring as a one-dimensional in FIFA ’98 was as cool as making super weird pixel in Minecraft. David Beckham mega builds And as the quality of computer graphics has evolved and virtual worlds have become more complex and impressive, user requests have grown in scale. More fun, more realism, and more immersive interaction — that's what we want in the metaverse once we get access to it. Gaming realism tries to keep up with films, but classic CGI still has many drawbacks and limitations despite the rapid advances made in recent years. It takes time and costs a lot on a large scale to make 3D characters on the screen look lifelike, and the results of transferring a realistic human appearance into the virtual world still look imperfect. In 2020, the industry's attention was drawn to a new solution for 3D representation – the NeRF method, which uses a neural network to recreate realistic 3D scenes. In short, the invention of neural rendering may be as disruptive as Open AI’s GPT-3 release was. And although the NeRF technology still needs improvement, many industries are already waiting for it to enter the real market. A sexy explainer of the NeRF methods in action, which has already been illustrated in most NeRF-related news: https://youtu.be/5jKry8n5YO8?embedable=true NeRF: what's the point? Classic CGI, which provides modeling of objects and spaces thanks to the approach of polygonal rendering, is constantly balancing the quality and speed of the result. After all, the more complex the scene, the more time and production capacity are required to reproduce it. Two years ago, the new neural radiance fields method (NeRF) broke into the industry, giving it significant advantages over all previously used 3D reconstruction tools. Neural rendering allows you to get a photorealistic 3D character or scene quickly with maximum quality: a set of pictures of the same object from different angles is enough for the neural network to finalize the result. Even though the quality of neural rendering is impressive, there are significant problems in terms of rendering speed, as it remains computationally heavy. These are the primary gatekeepers preventing the technology of neural rendering from entering the real market. So while developers from various tech companies are trying to optimize neural rendering, I want to share my thoughts on where the implementation of hyperrealistic virtual imagery is most expected. Games: more options for transferring identity After the rise of face-swap technology, billions of synthetic media have been created worldwide. Until recently, face-swap closed the need for users to become anyone in the virtual world, but neural 3D rendering opens up even greater prospects for self-expression. And the gaming industry will be the first to offer new options for transferring digital identity. Let’s check out some examples. 3D Celebs Famous people are often invited to create game characters, but production studios still pour multi-million budgets and months of hard work into reproducing well-known faces in the game environments. Thanks to scaling neural 3D rendering in the market, transferring appearances from the real world to the game space will open up new genres and create a unique kind of storytelling. Would you be able to resist having personalized gameplay of The Witcher as your fave 3D celeb, or hyper-realistic Luke Skywalker, whose avatar you buy and play to save the galaxy? I don’t think you could. Sports simulators will have the same opportunities, where real athletes, whose faces have been used for many years in a row, will look hyper-realistic without extra costs for production. Advanced character customization Many role-playing games allow you to customize characters by adding unique details such as hair, make-up, clothes, or artifacts. Customization has become very detailed but is still based on templates and can’t completely copy realistic features. The modern FPS games have mostly originated with Wolfenstein 3D — a rude male Caucasian avatar, with a military background. Whether you like it or not, military and related backgrounds are still one of the exclusive providers of FPS avatars, but now avatar capabilities are expanding far beyond military aesthetics. BTW, here's of how the avatar customization in the FPS genre such as gender, race, background, and additional features have changed thanks to tech development and different events. a geek vintage explanation Transferring yourself into your fave games with just a few selfies — one of the upcoming options in gaming available with neural rendering. Modeling your character based on your true appearance will help personalize the gaming experience to the maximum. Such pioneers already exist; their methods and the quality of the results still , though. fall short Communication: hyper-realistic digital avatars and emojis Expressing emotions in digital communication has evolved over the past couple of decades. In the late nineties, releasing wordless language to express feelings became priceless for users — remember creating the first emoticons from brackets? And this shrug-face guy ¯\ /¯, a kaomoji made in Japan, is still a favorite among the old geeks. (ツ) In the following years, many tech companies customized their emoji sets, and once Apple added emojis to iOS messaging apps for its products in 2011, a new age of emojis began. Emojis for almost every taste appeared in messengers — considering gender, hobbies, race, and unique features. The language of emojis has developed alongside technology, and now animated avatars are at the peak of this evolution. The possibilities for neural 3D rendering will soon allow us to look less like animated cartoons and more like natural people, opening a new stage of online communication. Expressing your emotions by leaving reactions with hyper-real 3D memes starring yourself, and generating your own 3D realistic sticker pack in a few taps will refresh our vision of social media. Video production: simplify and make the process cheaper Many novelties in the film production are created with the help of game engines — powerful real-time 3D creation tools predominantly used in the game industry. With their help, some episodes of Love, Death & Robots, 1899, Space Sweepers, The Mandalorian, and many other things were filmed in Star Wars and much more. Previously, it took the VFX team months and incredible budgets to reproduce fantastic worlds and characters on a large scale and simulate lighting, physics, and movements. In recent years, Deepfake technology has helped simplify and make the process cheaper. The next step is to make film production even better with neural 3D rendering, maintaining the quality of the final product and reproducing 3D characters and environments without the need to shoot in the real world. Tools for creating realistic digital humans in the Metaverse It’s no surprise that the gaming industry was the first to present the creation of realistic digital humans in 3D. At the beginning of 2021, Unreal Engine launched a – a browser-based app that empowers game developers to build digital humans in less than an hour with the highest level of quality. The quality of the drawings is truly imposing. MetaHuman Creator MetaHuman works as a very advanced editor in which you can mold a character from dozens of ready-made presets. To quickly turn yourself into a digital personality though, you would need to be a game designer or professional. However, this is what we expect from future interactions in the Metaverse: everyone should be able to create a digital twin of themselves to continue doing the things they are used to doing in the real world. Today, hundreds of millions worldwide enjoy AI tools for instant content creation and want to achieve even more in representing their identity in the virtual space. Each breakthrough technology that was once complex and expensive becomes cheaper, more straightforward, and possible to fit in your pocket. Once machine learning brought editing 2D images to a new level of accessibility – now everyone can make a face swap on their phone in a few seconds or generate a new kind of AI art with the help of text input. In the same way, AI will help to make the creation of 3D images and characters widespread, including transferring users into digital humans to interact in the Metaverse. We at are working on new solutions for neural rendering optimization and looking forward to hearing more news from the market on how we can meet together in the 3D space. Reface

Why We Urgently Need to Optimize Neural Rendering

The Problem of Philosophy, by Bertrand Russell, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. Read this book online for free on HackerNoon! Title: The Problems of Philosophy Author: Bertrand Russell Release Date: May 2, 2009 [EBooks 35817] Last Updated: February 7, 2013 Language: English Table of Links P﻿REFACE CHAPTER I. APPEARANCE AND REALITY CHAPTER II. THE EXISTENCE OF MATTER CHAPTER III. THE NATURE OF MATTER CHAPTER IV. IDEALISM CHAPTER V. KNOWLEDGE BY ACQUAINTANCE AND KNOWLEDGE BY DESCRIPTION CHAPTER VI. ON INDUCTION CHAPTER VII.ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF GENERAL PRINCIPLES CHAPTER VIII. HOW A PRIORI KNOWLEDGE IS POSSIBLE CHAPTER IX. THE WORLD OF UNIVERSALS CHAPTER X. ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF UNIVERSALS CHAPTER XI. ON INTUITIVE KNOWLEDGE CHAPTER XII. TRUTH AND FALSEHOOD CHAPTER XIII. KNOWLEDGE, ERROR, AND PROBABLE OPINION CHAPTER XIV. THE LIMITS OF PHILOSOPHICAL KNOWLEDGE CHAPTER XV. THE VALUE OF PHILOSOPHY About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Bertrand Russell (2009). THE PROBLEMS OF PHILOSOPHY. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022, from https://www.gutenberg.org/files/5827/5827-h/5827-h.htm This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org , located at https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html .

The Problem of Philosophy, by Bertrand Russell - Table Of Links

”. “ ” is a series of workshops and lectures held by international artificial intelligence experts to support the development of Ukraine’s tech community during the war. Yoshua Bengio (Mila/U. Montreal), Alex J. Smola (Amazon Web), Sebastian Bubeck (Microsoft), Gaël Varoquaux (INRIA), and many other well-known specialists have joined the initiative. This is a non-commercial educational project by AI HOUSE –  a company focused on building the AI/ML community in Ukraine and is part of the tech ecosystem. All proceeds collected upon registration will be donated to the biggest Ukrainian charity fund “ AI for Ukraine Roosh Come Back Alive It’s been five months of a completely new reality for every single Ukrainian, one with sirens, bombings, pain, and war. The AI community has also changed a lot, with many now on the front line, and others dedicated to volunteer work. One thing is for certain, this war will end with Ukraine’s victory after which the country will need to be rebuilt in every aspect. comments Yoshua Bengio, a famous computer scientist who received the Turing Award in 2018 and is called as one of the “Godfathers of AI”. "War is one of the most tragic types of collective human behavior, and democracy is a defense against tyranny and the key to improving people's lives. It is essential to maintain and develop the flame of research and knowledge even in such a dark period, thinking about the post-war times and the importance of science and innovation to achieve progress." – The global AI community has been and is continuing to actively support Ukraine and its tech sector. The “AI for Ukraine” project is aimed at connecting international experts with the local AI community, sharing insight, and helping Ukraine on its journey of becoming Europe’s AI hub in the near future. adds Gaël Varoquaux, ML researcher and data scientist. "Ukraine must continue its path to a modern democratic country, economically prosperous, with free and educated people. Supporting the AI ​​community in Ukraine will contribute to the development of the economy, increasing the value of local talent." – AI for Ukraine aims to: Provide Ukrainian talents with access to quality education in artificial intelligence Collect funds to support the Ukrainian people Involve global AI leaders in the development of the Ukrainian AI community Strengthen ties and expand the network of Ukrainian and international specialists "In the Roosh ecosystem, AI HOUSE is responsible for developing educational programs and network-building that helped to implement the AI for Ukraine initiative. emphasizes Serhii Tokarev, Founding Partner at Roosh. We develop artificial intelligence in Ukraine in all aspects, the most fundamental of which is education. Education is the foundation and driving force for every professional who seeks success. Thus, our goal of creating this initiative is primarily to provide access to unique knowledge from the best experts in the industry. We gathered world-renowned specialists that are keen to help Ukraine and its AI community. Together, we will be able to promote the field of artificial intelligence in Ukraine at a qualitatively new level and form conditions for the further development of technological talents." - Speakers Professors from Stanford, Cornell, Berkeley, and other renowned educational institutions, along with engineers and specialists from leading IT companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Hugging Face have all joined to support the initiative and host educational sessions. Register now: . The first lecture with Joshua Bengio will take place very soon, on August 17. https://aiforukraine.aihouse.club – Professor at the University of Montreal, founder and scientific director of the Quebec Institute of Artificial Intelligence, head of the CIFAR Learning in Machines & Brains program, and one of the leading experts in the field of AI. In 2019, Yoshua was awarded the prestigious Killam Prize and in 2022, became the computer scientist with the highest h-index in the world. He is most known for his pioneering work in deep learning, earning him the 2018 A.M. Turing Award, “the Nobel Prize of Computing,” with Geoffrey Hinton and Yann LeCun. – VP of machine learning at Amazon Web Services, Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, and one of the world's top experts in the field of machine learning. Alex is also a prolific and widely cited author in the academic research community, having authored and contributed to nearly 500 papers. – Sr.Principal Research Manager, leads the Machine Learning Foundations group at Microsoft Research Redmond. He has won several awards at machine learning conferences for his work on online decision making, convex optimization, and adversarial robustness. – Research director working on data science and health at Inria (French Computer Science National research). His research focuses on statistical-learning tools for data science and scientific inference. He co-founded scikit-learn, one of the reference machine-learning toolboxes, and helped build various central tools for data analysis in Python. Yoshua Bengio Alex J. Smola Sebastien Bubeck Gaël Varoquaux How to participate The educational sessions are available to all and can be accessed via the AI for Ukraine . Upon registration, participants will be required to make a deposit of any amount ($1 minimum) to receive full access to all upcoming lectures and workshops. All collected funds will be donated to Ukraine’s largest charity fund . website comebackalive.in.ua Format and topics In a series of online lectures and workshops, speakers will cover current AI topics. Some of the topics that will be covered in the hands-on workshops are compression of models for deep learning, AutoML, evaluation of machine learning models and their diagnostic value and much more. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions, interact with the lectures, and join discussions. The first lecture will be held on the 17th of August with Yoshua Bengio talking about "Bridging the gap between current deep learning and higher-level human cognitive abilities.” About AI HOUSE AI HOUSE is the AI ​​community in Ukraine that brings together talents, experts, and investors and provides quality education in artificial intelligence and machine learning. We research the most exciting and prospective vectors of AI and ML and establish a partnership with key stakeholders locally and worldwide. About Roosh is a Ukrainian company that creates and invests in AI and ML-focused projects. Its business-ecosystem is composed of venture studio , venture firm , Ukrainian AI/ML community , tech university , and startups and . Roosh aims to build Ukraine as the European center for artificial intelligence. Roosh Pawa Roosh Ventures AI HOUSE SET University Reface ZibraAI

AI for Ukraine is a new educational project from AI HOUSE to support the Ukrainian tech community

My name is Oleksandr Yaroshenko. I am Ukrainian, Kyiv-borne, and I work on investor relations and strategy development for tech product startups with Ukrainian roots. Like many of my Ukrainian colleagues, I woke up on February 24, 2022, not to the alarm clock but to the sounds of bombing and air raid sirens. Russia had started a full-fledged war against my country, destroying our civilian districts, entire villages, and children and maternity hospitals. Though my life and the lives of all Ukrainians have drastically changed, we all stay strong and fight for our country on various fronts — from military to informational and cybersecurity. And what is more, the majority of Ukrainian tech businesses keep on with their work. In this article — I’m writing it between my apartment and a bomb shelter in Kyiv — . I will tell you how my life and the lives of my Ukrainian colleagues have changed and how we manage to carry on business during these turbulent times The day that changed everything For the last three years, I have been working at the largest startup ecosystem of Ukraine called Genesis. And for about a year, as a Head of Investor Relations, I have been fully focused on , a global EdTech startup with Ukrainian roots, with the R&D department in Kyiv, and the recently opened office in London. 2021 was remarkably fruitful for our startup — Headway had x2 year-over-year growth, the number of paid subscribers of our app has increased three times, and our team grew more than twofold. We have been on a steep growth trajectory, starting a non-deal roadshow for investors and entering new markets while maintaining profitability. Headway On February 24, I was supposed to go to work, finalize our usual update on the financial model, and transfer the data into the pitch deck. After work, I planned to get a ride on the bicycle to prepare for the IronMan 70.3 this summer. But that day went totally different. Many people were talking about how Russia was ramping up its forces near the Ukrainian borders over the past several weeks, but nobody believed they would start bombing Ukraine. Therefore, the beginning of a full-scale invasion caught us all by surprise. We kept on working and joined the fight Headway developed a contingency plan prior to the Russian invasion, so the company helped our team with relocation to safer places. As for me, I stayed in Kyiv, a decision I made primarily because of my parents, who were against leaving their house in these uncertain times. My family bond is strong, and I realized that I wouldn’t be able to focus on work if I left them behind. The feeling of safety is quite relative in Kyiv, but I believe people can adapt and overcome nearly everything. Just take a look at how my house is constantly transforming into a light fortress. On the first day of the war, I managed to grab my work set up, including my laptop, two screens, and the mount for them. So now I can keep working comfortably, except that work is accompanied by the "soundtrack" of air raid sirens and explosions outside my window. My colleagues were lucky to escape the great danger just in time, especially those who lived in small villages in the suburbs of Kyiv, where thousands of young families have settled in recent years. The Russians demolished nearly all the houses there, left people without food, water, heat, and connection, and killed some civilians on the streets. Fortunately, none of our team was there, and nobody was hurt. Finally safe, our Ukrainian unit was divided and settled in different parts in the west of Ukraine and abroad. Some people were relocated in organized groups, some went to their relatives in locations without active hostilities, and others went abroad. We are now physically apart but act as one. As soon as the company secured our safety, we all teamed up to resume our work to ensure business continuity and development. Readily-available emergency plans and established operations enabled Headway to conduct business as usual and fulfill previously set KPIs. From the first days, we created a collection of content about the war in a new format, which we were to launch later in 2022. This new type of content on hot topics generated a boost in users’ engagement in our app. So, it not only spreads the truth about current events but also has a positive impact on business and product metrics. Also, as a business, we have donated UAH 1M to support Ukraine. Ukrainian tech companies don’t stop The startup scene of Ukraine is underrepresented in the global arena, but Ukrainian IT talents are already well known and hunted by the world’s dominant tech players like Meta and Google. The IT industry is the third-largest category of foreign exchange earnings in Ukraine and has generated more than $6 billion in export revenue in 2021. There are some success stories, like the unicorn with Ukrainian roots — , the viral face-wrap app — , which has been famously tweeted by Elon Musk and Hollywood superstars, the security hardware company — formerly known as purchased by Amazon for $1 billion, — a leading pan-African classified that conquered markets from OLX and my personal source of pride — an EdTech company providing fun and easy educational content suiting busy adults’ lives. Grammarly Reface Ring Jiji Headway Many of these startups became global IT companies with teams distributed across several countries but leveraging the access to tech talent and maintaining development R&D centers in cost-efficient cities of Ukraine. Having an R&D center in Ukraine has already become an “efficiency rule” for global tech companies. with headquarters in Tel Aviv, with their head office in San Francisco, from Montreuil, and from Paris are among them. Wix JustAnswer Ubisoft Gameloft CEOs of these companies condemn the war, focusing on the security of their employees over the past few weeks. Many IT businesses in Ukraine established temporary offices in the west of Ukraine or started relocating their employees to EU countries. For example, , a company developing Mac utility apps, ensured its infrastructure, user data, and cloud operation were outside Ukraine, their team was safe, and the business would operate uninterrupted. Ukrainian security systems company is relocating not only its team but the whole factory to continue fulfilling its obligations to customers and partners. Even those companies whose employees stayed in Kyiv continue working, like , turning from a fun face-swapping app into a tool of information resistance. MacPaw Ajax Systems Reface Now all Ukrainian IT companies are among the leading domestic financial guardians of Ukraine. They have already to support the Ukrainian Armed forces and the whole country. donated almost $25M When even the war does not interfere with business results, the situation shows that Ukrainian businesses focused on international markets can be lucrative in terms of risk/return investment and, after the breakout of the war, can be considered even with the ESG-angle. I believe that in the upcoming weeks and months, more and more investors will try to approach our “tech gems” — Ukrainian startups. Moreover, a range of world-known investors has already expressed their stance supporting Ukraine. The world stands united against the Russian aggression Ukraine has clearly won the information side of the war. The world is watching a real representation of the ongoing events in my home state. , this victory became possible primarily due to the vast presence of reporters from the leading world media who have been in Ukrainian cities starting from late 2021, allowing the reality to be truthfully depicted in news outlets free from “pro-Russian narratives.” According to Anders Åslund The international community reaffirms its support for democratic values and peace and continues giving . generous donations to humanitarian, military, and infrastructure-rebuilding charity funds supporting Ukraine On the other hand, Russian affiliation is becoming a tremendous reputational risk for businesses. Therefore, more and more companies are cutting their ties with the aggressor state. Leaving Russia is a part of the necessary Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) factors compliance and is simply a matter of ethics. Corporations are taking care of ESG, and investors are increasingly applying these non-financial factors as part of their analysis process to identify material risks and growth opportunities. And in this case, I believe that the weights have significantly shifted to the ban of Russian ties sending this country ages back in its development. “As an investor, you have to consider not just the company, but the environment in which they operate” — said , managing partner at research firm Sustainable Market Strategies in Montreal. Felix Boudreault The balance should be restored in terms of investment for the sustainable future of Ukrainian companies. It's not only about donations but also about that can be considered part of the ESG mandate from the perspective of the investment funds. taking a closer look at the Ukrainian gems Ukrainian unity and the world’s support will help Ukraine thrive Though the life of each Ukrainian was separated into “before” and “after” the Russian invasion, the “after” doesn’t mean the devastation, decline, and stagnation of Ukraine. The unity and power of Ukrainians fighting against the enemy will indeed transform into unity and power for rebuilding the country and its rapid and steady development. We’ve already seen such a tendency after the Revolution of Dignity in 2013-2014. It became a robust push for the flourishing of Ukrainian business in various sectors — from tech to hospitality — providing a lucrative risk/return ratio for investments. So, after the war, Ukraine will expectedly experience an even stronger boost for the future development of businesses and the economy. As Ukraine has been brought to the spotlight, funds are being gathered to rebuild its cities and combat the humanitarian catastrophe taking place in a range of Ukrainian cities. , , , , , , and have also joined to support Ukrainian startups and IT specialists. Index Ventures BlackRock Mirova Insight Partners Flyer One Ventures Atmos Ventures s16vc Donations from all over the world are flooding into Ukraine and already total hundreds of millions of dollars, ensuring everything will be restored after the war, and Ukrainian cities will return to everyday life with even more energy to overcome new daily challenges. You can also support Ukraine via the following initiatives National Bank of Ukraine Humanitarian aid to Ukraine: https://bank.gov.ua/en/about/humanitarian-aid-to-ukraine You can find more international initiatives to help Ukraine and our people in tough conditions via this link: https://how-to-help-ukraine-now.super.site

Ukrainian Tech Startups Carry On: How We Are Enduring The Invasion

Las nuevas empresas tecnológicas ucranianas continúan: cómo estamos soportando la invasión

Russia has started a full-scale war in Ukraine, a country of 44 million people on February 24, 2022, shelling cities and towns across all of the country. Russian troops moved across the Ukrainian border in multiple areas at once and have caused devastating consequences for the independent country and the continent's entire security structure. In six days the Russian army massacred several Ukrainian cities, killing dozens of civilians, injuring almost thousands, and destroying infrastructural and cultural objects. Following the Russian invasion of an independent country in Europe, a number of tech companies started to support Ukraine and gather funds for Ukrainian soldiers, refugees, and all citizens affected by the ongoing war. Starlink satellite internet service is now available in Ukraine and more terminals to use it are on the way to the country. In response to the Ukrainian minister of Digital Transformation on February 26, Elon Musk made the statement on with readiness to provide Starlink services to Ukraine. Starlink Twitter Meta has introduced of measures regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The company established a special operations center consisting of experts from across the company, including native Ukrainian and Russian speakers, who continuously monitor the platform. Meta is fighting the spread of misinformation and disinformation by expanding their third-party fact-checking capacity in Russian and Ukrainian. In addition, the company also works on the increase of transparency around state-controlled media outlets with the prohibition of ads from Russian state media and demonetizing their accounts. Meta is also helping users protect their digital presence, adding the ability for people to lock their Facebook profile, removing the ability to view and search friends lists, and additional tools on Messenger. Meta a list Reface , a viral face-swap app from Ukraine added push notification to inform its 200 million user-base about a Russian invasion of Ukraine and watermarked all face-swapped videos created with the app. The Ukrainian flag and the #StandWithUkraine hashtag are now being watermarked on every in-app video. In addition, Reface has targeted its Russian users and sent them to push notifications urging them to go to anti-war protests in Russian cities. Reface ***Image Credits:*** *Reface* Visa & Mastercard Payment card firms Visa and Mastercard have multiple Russian financial institutions from their network, complying with the sanctions imposed over Russian invasion of Ukraine. In addition, both Visa and Mastercard promised to donate $2 million for humanitarian aid for Ukrainians. blocked Disney & Warner Brothers Hollywood studios Disney and Warner Brothers to pause theatrical releases of upcoming films in Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine and the humanitarian crisis which it had caused. committed YouTube YouTube responded to Russian propaganda by blocking Russian state media accounts from running ads on their platforms. UkraineDAO UkraineDAO is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) established to gather funds for Ukrainian soldiers protecting their country from the Russian invaders. The DAO has already raised over 3 million dollars in Ethereum-based tokens. The organization issues a 1/1 NFT of the Ukrainian flag, minted by CXIP, to generate donations for the Ukrainian army and civilian groups. RELI3F is a web3 initiative to support Ukrainians, utilizing crowdfunding through NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain. The community of over 37 artists and NFT leaders, within 30 seconds of the initial launch, gathered over a million dollars. To this date, the NFT collection crossed over 620 ETH (​​USD 1,702,676.44) in trading volume, with its primary sales going towards the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine. RELI3F Unchain.fund a charity project created by blockchain activists to support people in Ukraine during this crisis time. All donations stirred in a multi-signature wallet before being distributed to the chosen effective NGOs. Each signatory to this wallet is active in the larger crypto sphere, with all transactions being publicly readable on the blockchain. Unchain.fund The goal of the project is to break the chain of war and scatter its links far away from each other so that they could never meet again. And through direct donations and the sale of NFT, it has already raised more than $1,800,000. DMarket Ukrainian-born startup cut all relationships with Russia and Belarus due to the invasion of Ukraine. The registration on the platform is prohibited for users from Russia and Belarus, with accounts of previously registered users from these areas being frozen. All assets and skins remain on user accounts, but access to their use will be restricted till the Russian invasion stops. Russian Ruble is also removed from the platform. DMarket TechForUkraine The offers an opportunity for tech entities to provide tech support to build resilience and strengthen civil society in Ukraine by helping to design digital solutions that matter. They're looking for support in areas of improving cybersecurity, resource distribution, safe messaging, embedded payments, data-driven decision making, and others. platform StandWithUkraine is an app that contains aggregated lists of resources to support Ukraine with funds, medical supplies, shelter, asylum requests, journalism efforts, technology, legal advice, and more. StandWithUkraine HackenProof - a web3 bug bounty platform with Ukrainian roots, part of Hacken.io. HackenProof's launched 2 bug bounties to help Ukraine in this cruel war and defend global democracy and right, free Russians from Putin's regime. The first is bug bounty called to defend Ukrainian media and critical infrastructure from Russian cyber attacks. The second is directed against Russian propaganda and critical infrastructure. Cybersecs and ethical hackers can report vulnerabilities through the platform and cyber forces will fix them. HackenProof Airbnb is dedicated to help Ukrainian refugees solve housing problems and is working with their Hosts to house up to 100,000 refugees fleeing from Ukraine for free. Hosts from nearby countries, including Poland, Germany, Hungary, and Romania, can help Ukrainian refugees on the . Airbnb platform 🇺🇦 How You Can Help Ukraine 1. Donate to Ukrainian army The National Bank of Ukraine opened official accounts to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Please use the following details to make payment preferably: transfer the funds from your card requisites for or make donations in cryptocurrency: a wire payment BTC — 357a3So9CbsNfBBgFYACGvxxS6tMaDoa1P ETH and USDT (erc20) — 0x165CD37b4C644C2921454429E7F9358d18A45e14 TRX and USDT (trc20) — TEFccmfQ38cZS1DTZVhsxKVDckA8Y6VfCy DOT — 1x8aa2N2Ar9SQweJv9vsuZn3WYDHu7gMQu1RePjZuBe33Hv 2. Spread the word on the war in Ukraine 3. Join the peace protests all over the world sharing Ukraine’s demands The latest information on peaceful protests in the UK, Germany, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Spain, and other countries to support the people of Ukraine is published . here 4. Check additional on how you can help resources

Stories, News & Mentions about REFACE

Reface’s Stories on HackerNoon

Reface's News & Mentions