--- title: "Dystopian Google AI Tool Turns Still Images into Creepy Talking Videos" description: "Google researchers say a new AI model called Vlogger can transform a single still image of a person into a moving, talking avatar." date: "2024-03-19" modified: "2024-03-19" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/google-ai-turns-images-into-videos" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Google" tags: - "ai" - "deepfakes" - "Google" - "the digest" --- # Dystopian Google AI Tool Turns Still Images into Creepy Talking Videos ![Google researchers say a new AI model called Vlogger can transform a single still image of a person into a moving, talking avatar.]() *\Image: Enric Corona et al.\* ## Image-to-Video Google researchers have developed a new AI model that can transform a single still image of a person into a moving, talking avatar. It's called Vlogger, and its surprisingly realistic outputs are nothing short of freaky. In a [white paper](), the Google team describes Vlogger as a "novel framework to synthesize humans from audio," adding that "it is precisely automation and behavioral realism that what we aim for in this work... a multi-modal interface to an embodied conversational agent." This "agent," they continue, is ultimately "designed to support natural conversations with a human user." So, in other words, the goal of these researchers is absolutely to create realistic-looking fake people that interact in a "human"-feeling way with actual human beings on the other end. In the paper, the researchers propose that this model — which requires just one image and a desired audio clip as inputs — could be used to "enhance online communication, education, or personalized virtual assistants." Vlogger can also edit moving videos, which the researchers claim will "ease creative processes." They do not, however, mention that a tool that could generate entirely synthetic, moving-and-speaking video clips from just one image feels ripe for abuse by bad actors. https://twitter.com/heyronir/status/1770000793825116215 ## Anyone, Anywhere Indeed, it's the advancements that Google purports to have made in its creation of Vlogger that make it so hypothetically dangerous. AI deepfakes, for example, are [already]() a [growing]() [issue](). But while generating a deepfake is easier than ever due to the public availability of generative AI tools, creating a particularly convincing video deepfake generally requires a combination of multiple AI tools. Right now, when using the Vlogger model, users still need to provide the desired audio for the video. Still, Vlogger would likely streamline the process overall. What's more, according to the paper, Vlogger "does not require training for each person" that its tech animates. The researchers also say that it "generates the complete image" and "considers a broad spectrum of scenarios" that "are critical to correctly synthesize humans who communicate." Put simply, that means Vlogger doesn't require specific training for each individually-animated person, which presumably allows it to draft a realistic fake video from a single picture of just about anyone — including everyday people who aren't in the public eye. Nothing could go wrong there, we're sure. Vlogger's AI animations aren't perfect — yet. They still bear a distinctly inhuman edge, moving and speaking in an awkwardly robotic way. But enabled by a vast amount of data — the tool is trained on the MENTOR dataset, a vast trove comprising 2,200 hours of video and "800,000 identities," according to the paper — the tech is impressive nonetheless. And if it continues to improve? Best of luck, reality! **More on deepfake tech:** [*Hackers Steal $25 Million by Deepfaking Finance Boss*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()