Facetags; Click or Create?

Using AI to create imaginary everyday objects that look like faces.

One of the most common arguments against AI is that it is capable of pushing many out of their field of expertise. 3D experts who painstakingly skulpt models are afraid some AI is going to do the same thing in seconds on command. Painters and Visual artists are already aware that Artificial Intelligence such as DALL·E is already capable enough to compete with them. Doctors understand very clearly that bots are going to diagnose diseases with greater accuracy with the combined knowledge of all the professionals in the medical field.

As a designer I have condensed my thoughts on Design and AI on a blogpost titled Let’s Play God.

But recently, I have been grappling the AI conundrum again about a weird hobby I have — clicking pictures of everyday objects that looks like a face.

I’ve been posting them on Instagram as @facetagger

Some of the many faces posted on Instagram as @facetagger

A few weeks ago, I tried to visualise these faces using AI, and the results were amazing.

Using AI to visualise faces in everyday objects. To see more examples, click here.

That was when I tried a few tricks with DALL·E, the AI that creates realistic and artistic imagery from text prompts.

Excited, I shared some of my original Facetag images to DALL·E and asked it to come up with variations. The results just blew my mind. it was able to come up with extremely realistic variations of the input images.

Can you differentiate the original from the variations?

Variations created by DALL·E2 and the original. Probably the only giveaway is the absence of DALL·E coloured band.

Once again, Variations created by DALL·E2 and the original. Probably the only giveaway is the absence of DALL·E coloured band.

And it was not only in creating variations that AI shined. Even when I asked it to ‘imagine’ something, the results were nothing short of magic.

Prompt: “A manhole cover that looks like a human face”. — Look at the perfection in lighting!

Prompt: “A power outlet that looks like a human face”. — Can’t believe these are not real photographs!

So, has the whole idea of ‘clicking pictures’ of faces in everyday objects just lost its meaning?

Well, it is true that technology such as these may push more and more people to disregard the power of chance encounters and make them consider many originals as doctored. But this shouldn’t stop me from clicking Facetags. Because it is not in ‘having’ a picture that I find joy but it is in ‘finding’ an object that tickles my brain to imagine a pattern!

If you too have intense pareidolia like me, check out more such stuff on my Instagram channel @facetagger

Facetagger (@facetagger) * Instagram photos and videos