‘Spooky’ AI tool brings dead relatives’ photos to life

A file photo of a software engineer working on a facial recognition program that identifies people when they wear a face mask at the development lab in Beijing, China. MyHeritage acknowledges on its website that the technology can be ‘a bit uncanny’ and its use ‘controversial’, but said steps have been taken to prevent abuses. — Reuters

Like the animated paintings that adorn the walls of Harry Potter’s school, a new online tool promises to bring portraits of dead relatives to life, stirring debate about the use of technology to impersonate people.

Genealogy company MyHeritage launched its “Deep Nostalgia” feature earlier this week, allowing users to turn stills into short videos showing the person in the photograph smiling, winking and nodding.