WhatsApp set to launch AI‑based profile picture generator
2:04 PM EDT, July 5, 2024
WhatsApp is developing a new feature that will allow users to generate profile pictures using their likenesses. This new option will be AI-based and require just a few selfies.
The Verge notes that WhatsApp is close to completing this feature, allowing users to generate profile pictures using artificial intelligence easily. All that's needed is to take a few "sample" selfies, which will then be used to create AI graphics. According to reports from WABetaInfo, the beta version 2.24.14.13 of WhatsApp on Android already features a draft of this new option, which utilizes Meta AI.
It will take some more time before it is implemented in the stable version of WhatsApp, but the overall process is already becoming apparent. If users want to generate new AI pictures, WhatsApp will ask them to take a few photos, which will be used to analyze the user's likeness.
This data will be stored as input for the Meta AI service, which generates "avatars" with the user's likeness in new circumstances—for example, against a forest backdrop or in outer space. Input data can be changed in the future, for instance, if the user's appearance changes noticeably, which may influence the generated AI images.
According to WABetaInfo, like many other AI-based chats, creating a new image will also result from a command given to the artificial intelligence during a conversation. Users can make a command like "Meta AI, imagine me..." and complete it themselves, verbally describing the scene where the character should appear in the final graphic. Of course, it is assumed that all unethical and inappropriate commands will be blocked.
WhatsApp will also allow users to generate images the same way during conversations, as graphics to send in chats. According to the declaration, only the command to Meta AI (initiated with the appropriate @ marker) will be sent for processing by the software. WhatsApp will still not have access to the content of conversations, as end-to-end encryption ensures privacy in this case.
