Adding to the slew of gender-swapping, an ageing app we have a new app in town, Gradient. The app changes you into a celebrity or a historical figure.
The App
The gradient app recently rolled out its celebrity identifying the feature and became an instant hit. It offers its users to relate with celebrities by changing into them. Maybe even making them feel better about themselves.
The app went viral on social media following the footprints of FaceApp which made its users look younger or older. This app started trending on Twitter when its users started posting their celebrity selves.
The app, however, is primarily a photo editing app that has the celebrity identifying feature as a secondary one. The app claims that it uses the “Most advanced face identifying technology.” Which we can safely assume that is some kind of AI doing its job.
For checking out the feature, you only have to download the app and tap on the dedicated section to the feature. Select an image from the gallery that you want to see converted and you’re good to go! The app takes only a few seconds to process your image.
I, nonetheless, refrain from using these kinds of apps they pose serious privacy threats and the last thing that I want to be sold out of is my face.
So I went to the web and got this image of Kendrick Lamar in the Gradient app which was posted on r/Kendrick Lamar. According to the app, he apparently resembles Martin Luther King. Users also have the choice to change their matched celebrity to get the celebrity of their choice.
FaceApp and the question of privacy
While the GradientApp enjoys its flash in the pan of newfound virality what people tend to forget is that app likes these can pose a serious threat to privacy like the infamous FaceApp did which was taken down by app stores for its sketchy privacy policy. We still do not know if the gradient app has the same issue but I urge my readers to be cautious of such apps.
