Apple Purchases Software Company To Read Users' Expressions (thestack.com)

An anonymous reader writes: Apple's first disclosed acquisition of 2016 is software company Emotient, which specializes in reading users' expressions while they operate computers. Emotient uses AI software to break down micro-emotions shown on each face in a video frame and quantify it into three indicators: is the subject paying attention to the advertising, are they emotionally engaged, and are they showing a positive or negative emotion? The faces are pixelated to provide user anonymity without sacrificing the expression.

Comments

Wait, what? I got camera off damn it!

[Anonymous Coward]

So... how are they gonna get the images to predict what I'm gonna do?

I hope they didn't pay too much

[vadim_t]

The implementation is a rather trivial one:

bool isUserPayingAttentionToTheAd() {
    return false;
}
 
bool isUserEmotionallyEngaged() {
    return false;
}
 
UserExpression getUserExpression() {
    return UserExpression.Neutral;
}

Re:I hope they didn't pay too much

[NoNonAlphaCharsHere]

while (isUsingAppleProduct())
return (lookOf(DISMAY));


Silly-ass Slashdot <code> block ignores leading spaces. Good Thing (TM) I'm not using Python ;-D

Re: I hope they didn't pay too much

[ememisya]

Hey! Watch those micro-aggressions!

Re:I hope they didn't pay too much

[Hognoxious]

s/DISMAY/EXTREME_SMUGNESS/

Re: I hope they didn't pay too much

[vel-ex-tech]

What about microneutrals????

Chances are you're behind a firewall. Or else microbeta! Submit! Microsubmit! Nanosubmit! Ok, fine. Femptosubmit!

Paper covers rock

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, I hope that thing can see through the piece of paper I keep taped over my camera. Remind me again why computer cameras don't come with some sort of analog switch or physical blocking piece?

Re:Paper covers rock

[gweihir]

No idea. I have black electrical tape over all of them, including ones from customers and the front-camera on my mobile phone. I would also disable the microphones, but that usually requires a lot more effort.

Re:Paper covers rock

[Anonymous Coward]

One of the Snowden leaks was of a photo of a government official naked (sexual?) taken with the phone camera. Some are self taken, some are taken covertly. I assume you're smart enough not to take pictures of yourself in a bra snorting coke if you're a politicians! Since GCHQ or NSA could simply leak that to the press if you ever pissed them off, but your phone is with you all the time. But then somehow those pictures end up on British newspapers!

People think the phone is off when the screen is off, and don't realize the camera can be recording all the time. The mic also is listening all the time, and GCHQ's "smurf" suite of software lets them turn on a phone, record video, audio, grab all data, and the "Wilson Doctrine" (a legal principle that stopped GCHQ spying on Parliament) was removed this year too.

Smurf software:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/05/14/gchq_privacy_international/

Some background on Snowden leaks on politicians photographs:

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/how-the-nsa-spies-on-smartphones-including-the-blackberry-a-921161.html

"The results the intelligence agency documents on the basis of several examples are impressive. They include an image of the son of a former defense secretary with his arm around a young woman, a photo he took with his iPhone. A series of images depicts young men and women in crisis zones, including an armed man in the mountains of Afghanistan, an Afghan with friends and a suspect in Thailand."

"No Access Necessary"

"All the images were apparently taken with smartphones. A photo taken in January 2012 is especially risqué: It shows a former senior government official of a foreign country who, according to the NSA, is relaxing on his couch in front of a TV set and taking pictures of himself -- with his iPhone. To protect the person's privacy, SPIEGEL has chosen not to reveal his name or any other details."

Re:Paper covers rock

[gweihir]

I also happen to have a phone with an easy to remove battery. No accident.

Re:Paper covers rock

[nospam007]

"Remind me again why computer cameras don't come with some sort of analog switch or physical blocking piece?"

That's what the Chiquita Banana stickers are for.

Re:Paper covers rock

[blindseer]

Black electrician tape? What if I don't know a black electrician?

Go ahead and moan over the lame joke, I won't mind.

On a more serious note I do keep in mind where my cameras are pointing. I'm thinking of upgrading my phone from a relatively stupid flip phone (it has a camera but it's almost always in a pocket or on a table) to an iPhone. An iPhone has two cameras and, assuming I use it much like my iPod touch, will rarely be in a pocket. I would be tempted to cover the cameras with tape.

I'm sure there is a market for these but I haven't looked yet, are there iPhone cases with built-in shutters over the camera lenses? I'd buy one.

Re:Paper covers rock

[gweihir]

I think the problem with shutters is that they make the phone thicker. So no, I do not know of any.

The way i parsed the headline at first

[Gojira Shipi-Taro]

I thought "They bought a software company just to see the looks on the user's faces when they did it?"

Then I started wondering what could they have bought to try to get their users to register shock or similar?

Then I realized it was just another relatively poorly phrased headline. I assume from the blog this came from.

Huh?

[the_Bionic_lemming]

Ads are still around?

I cut the cord and block them. Wish there was a way to do it while driving.

I guess Apple isn't paying attention to people asking for privacy and blocking ads? "It just works" is trying to get into "It just spies".

Happy and sad face are a given

[Ukab the Great]

But I'm interested if the software can detect the elusive "porn face"

Re:Happy and sad face are a given

[drinkypoo]

But I'm interested if the software can detect the elusive "porn face"

Mouth shape detection is relatively simple, doing the obligatory eye-roll detection is going to be the real trick

Fuck adverts

[ledow]

Tie it into the user experience.

When iCloud went down the other month, I had 500 iPads totally useless, because it forced you to sign in (even if you were already signed in or didn't want to sign in), refused any valid sign-in you gave it, and then repeated that ad nauseum. To the point that we just switched them all for the entire day.

Similar things happen all the time with app installs, even with full Cisco Meraki MDM, and the initial setup? Fuck, don't even get me started.

Maybe if it detects a confused or angry expression it should just shut the fuck up and let you carry on? Or present that hidden "Remember my answer" or "No to All" option that Apple seem to NEVER want to implement on anything.

Re:Fuck adverts

[AHuxley]

Think of eyes tracking over a long list of decades of poster art for movies. The brand likes what artwork got a person to stop scrolling, stop, start reading a synopsis and even track the "look" at the rent/buy area of the gui.
All that can help create per generation, age group or faith or region ready art or other ways of drawing people in.
Was the art work in that part of the world too graphic, new or suggestive? Was the art work too dated for an emerging demographic? A brand can then track how its products are considered not just by gui mouse tracking, touch or final actual payments.
Was a title rejected by activists but on average people seemed fine with looking at the book or movie when in private?
Is their a very real public, wide spread, national grass roots dislike over a topic or title or issue?
With face tracking that can be done for people watching political leaders, new brands, old products, using services.. the list of deep emotional feedback has value, even if no real gui interaction is made.
ie cover any webcam, turn off any mic that ships with any future computer :) Aspects of conversations in a room around the computer will be fair game soon too.

Re:Fuck adverts

[ledow]

Or you could just ask people. It's called market research.

The problem I have with modern technology is that no matter how many times I "Fix recommendations" or look for products "Similar to this" or offer up my loyalty card that tracks my purchases, I still only ever get adverts for shite I don't want, coupons for things I don't need (e.g. ladies products), and have to hunt down products I like but finding out their exact name and searching rather than going from things that attach to it, or are related to it.

I can't tell you how many times I've told Facebook what adverts I'm NOT interested in and what ones I am and still I get nothing but shite reality TV crap advertised at me rather than a range of computer suppliers or video games.

I can't tell you how long I've spent reviewing and rating products on Amazon and removing gifts-for-others from my recommended lists to get it to recommend even other series from the TV shows I do like, etc.

Even WHEN I TELL these companies what I'm looking for, I end up with shite foisted on me that I've no interest in, no purchase history of, and would never touch because they are polar opposites to my tastes.

Re:Fuck adverts

[Hognoxious]

ad nauseum

Do it properly or don't do it at all.

Re:Fuck adverts

[Anonymous Coward]

I can't tell you how many times I've told Facebook what adverts I'm NOT interested in and what ones I am and still I get nothing but shite reality TV crap advertised at me rather than a range of computer suppliers or video games.

And YOU STILL use Facebook ?

You're the idiot in this equation, and Zuckerberg the Jew is laughing at how stupid you are.

Smart people do not use Facebook, period.

Re:Fuck adverts

[KGIII]

I kid but I must say it... With that sort of attitude, maybe you should buy a douche so you can wash the sand out of your vagina! (Yes, yes I had to say that. It's nothing personal.)

Re:Fuck adverts

[Hognoxious]

Or you could just ask people.

In many cases, that's about the worst thing you can do.

I don't know whether you're playing the fool, hopelessly naïve or genuinely uninformed.

Re:Fuck adverts

[Hognoxious]

Fuck off!

FTFY.

Re:Fuck adverts

[gstoddart]

Right, asking them is a terrible idea.

So instead let's fucking video them so we can see if they liked the ads or not.

Apple wants to use everyone's bandwidth so they can tell how effective ads are.

Fuck that. It's crap like this why I don't want a smart phone -- a smart phone is just a platform for a bunch of greedy assholes to monetize everything you do, and sell it to third parties.

Who the fuck wants to be spied on so some marketing company knows how effective its ads are?

Re:Fuck adverts

[Hognoxious]

Hardly any people cheat on their spouses or steal things from work. The vast majority are prepared to pay more for higher quality, whether that's products or public services.

Well, that's what they say.

If you think you can find the truth by surveys and questionnaires then former UK Prime Minister Neil Kinnock would like to talk to you.

Apple can never sell

[Anonymous Coward]

... are they emotionally engaged, and are they showing a positive or negative emotion?

Now, Apple can never sell porn.

Re:will they be able to get the hint when..

[Anonymous Coward]

What gives Apple the right to invade your privacy while you're watching some web content? I hope it's not by adding some simple line in their product EULA.

I wonder if...

[LordHighExecutioner]

...before selling the company they used their software to read the emotions of Apple's representatives.

Yawn, more spy software.

[BrendaEM]

People love being spied on--right?