Five Ways Computer Vision Is In (Or Soon Will Be) Your Everyday Life (Including The Ads You Make)
In his latest guest post, managing director of GumGum, Jon Stubley (pictured below), takes a look at computer vision and the impacts it’s already having on peoples’ lives. And that includes making better ads, too…
Last year’s launch of the iPhone X introduced millions of people to the concept of computer vision. They might not know the actual term for it (or the specifics of how it works) but they’d be aware that the new model phone ‘recognises’ faces as part of its Face ID sensor system due to clever technology that is able to make sense of what it sees.
What less people are aware of, however, is how much computer vision is already beginning to impact their lives (regardless of whether they have stumped up over $1000 for the iPhone X) – and its impact is only going to accelerate.
Fashion forward
Computer vision designed clothes have yet to hit the aisles of K-Mart – but it is only a matter of time. During Melbourne Spring Fashion Week 2016, Couture designer Jason Grech worked with IBM Watson to understand the latest runway trends and designed a 12-piece collection called, ‘Cognitive Couture.’ Whilst undoubtedly a marketing stunt, it demonstrates how computer vision can be used in the retail fashion sector – in this instance analysing ten years of runway fashion and social media buzz to help the designer and his team explore and evaluate trends, colours and textures during the creative process.
Sporting highlights
Another IBM Watson powered initiative was used during the recent US Open Tennis Championships, when the United States Tennis Association (USTA) used Watson Media to automatically generate match highlights to be shared through social media. The machine analysed images and video, as well as language, sentiment and tone – for example, sounds from the crowd that signalled something special was happening on court, but also footage of winning plays, victory-like actions such as fist pumps by players, and facial expressions. I expect to see more large scale televised events using this technology going forward – it is able to manage raw video footage in near real-time and make the seemingly impossible very much achievable.
Pocket movies
Enabled by the aforementioned iPhone X, University of Sydney doctoral student Mia Harrison and her colleagues released a short video set to the Queen classic “Bohemian Rhapsody” and starring animated iPhone X emoji using the iPhone’s “Animoji” feature. The feature enables the phone’s camera can capture your facial muscle movements using computer vision and then transposes them into facial expressions of animated emoji. This makes tech that was previously in the realms of the big move studios accessible to all – it is quite literally in your pocket. Animoji leverages the power of the iPhone X’s A9 processor and Apple’s ARKit (Augmented Reality Kit) software framework. (Google has a competing framework for Android called ARCore.) Incidentally, Mia Harrison’s work caught the attention of famed tech writer and former Wall Street Journal and Recode columnist who tweeted, “Genius iPhone X creation! And it’s only been out a couple of weeks. Watch this (or any of the thousands of other animoji karaoke videos that have already cropped up online) and imagine what’s coming with this technology.”
Reducing crime
For some it’s a little too Big Brother-ish but the European Commission partly funded a trial to develop a computer vision system that detects suspicious behaviour in CCTV footage as it happens. The P-React project aimed to help catch criminals in the act and flag the relevant video clips to authorities. According to The New Scientist, the algorithms have been taught to highlight atypical behaviour and have been trained on example scenes of people fighting and people chasing someone who has snatched a bag. It promises to help with digital overload for the police – in cities there are so many CCTV cameras it can be hard to pinpoint the footage that has value for investigations and prosecutions.
Better ads and better insights
Computer vision is also helping making the ads we see more relevant – in a number of ways. Firstly, it is behind the ads that my own company enable – contextual ads that appear within or around editorial images on a page and that don’t interrupt the consumer on the page (they are CBA compliant). The tech is driven by computer vision that scans images, videos and the context around them – so an editorial image of a blonde film actress becomes a place for a shampoo formulated for blonde hair to be. Computer vision is also being used to better find out how consumers are actually responding to a new advert. Affectiva, an outgrowth of the MIT Media Lab, helps brands (including Mars, Kellogg’s and CBS) use computer vision and deep learning algorithms to make sense of viewer facial reactions as they watch content via its Emotion SDK (software development kit) that works across mobile devices and standard desktop webcams.
The integration of computer vision into all aspects of our day to day lives is sky rocketing. For marketers and publishers, it opens up a host of possibility that should be given careful consideration as the technology rapidly matures.
Latest News
The Mars Agency Announces Latest Findings Of Retail Media Report Card
The Mars Agency has developed a scorecard that assesses the capabilities of leading platforms across key criteria required to optimally plan, execute, and measure effective retail media programs. The scorecard aims To help brands efficiently evaluate their spending options across retail media networks in Australia (and New Zealand). With spending on retail media advertising in […]
‘It’s The Lesser Of Two Evils’ – NRL Eyes US Betting Market As Aussie Regulators Circle
US betting firms will be delighted by the circa 50,000 Americans who could soon watch the NRL on their favourite app.
A-League In Deep Discussions With New Partner To Keep Games On TV After Production Company Enters Administration
The A-League's insatiable appetite for scoring own goals continues.
TV Ratings (27/03/2024): Jungle Members At War Over Concealed Lipstick
A heated argument between two jungle members did the numbers for Ten last night, with I’m A Celeb obtaining a total national reach of 1,282,000. Fans were delighted as Candice Warner and influencer Skye Wheatley got into it over a stick of lipstick, leading Warner to dub the Instagram star “selfish.” Wheatley, best known for […]
Is The Australian Music Industry In Trouble? Inquiry Launched Following Splendour Cancellation
Earlier this week, an inquiry was launched into the challenges and opportunities currently facing the Australian live music industry in the wake of multiple festival cancellations. On 25 March 2024, the Minister for the Arts, the Hon. Tony Burke MP, asked the Committee on Communications and the Arts to inquire into and report on the […]
Liana Dubois, Leandro Perez, Aimee Buchanan & More Gather For Inaugural Compadres Leadership Event
Didn't get the invite? Perhaps you're not as important as you thought.
Cathay Captures The Unforgettable Thrill Of Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Rugby Sevens, Via Publicis
Nobody does rugby like Hong Kong, apparently. Certainly nobody does it as badly as Australia.
Cocogun Nabs Christine Watts, Kirsty Reynolds & Shev Tan Bolstering Management & Creative Teams
Cocogun bolsters its team with new hires. Committed to purchasing a bigger sofa, too.
The Media Store’s Jacquie Alley & Sam Cousins Take The Plunge With Pro-Bono Work For Cure Cancer
B&T chats with The Media Store bosses about their great pro-bono work and sponsored swim.
Hawke’s Brewing Co. Taps Rocket Comms For PR Agency Following Competitive Pitch
We're expecting Rocket Comms productivity to crash in spectacular fashion following this win.
Spotlight On Sponsors: Patties Serves Up A Taste Of Home For Olympians & South Sydney Rabbitohs Recommit To Gambling Reform
While the Rabbitohs commits to gambling reform, B&T reckons the team should commit to a decent auto sponsor.
Google: “Inevitable” That Bad Actors Will Abuse Ads Platform As Advertiser Account Suspensions Double
Google maintains it's simply impossible for it to entirely stop bad people placing & paying for ads using its service.
Quantcast Expands APAC Sales Team With Appointment Of News Corp Account Manager
No pressure at all when you are appointed as a client success manager.
Publicis Sapient Tests Microsoft-Powered Gen AI Search Tool With Homes & Villas By Marriott Bonvoy
Given Gen AI's record for mangling stuff, B&T cannot see the problem with letting it decide your next holiday digs.
Volkswagen & DDB Group’s “Roo Badge” To Reduce Kangaroo Related Road Collisions
Watch out for RooBadge as Cannes Lions' most debated campaign this year.
Twilio Launches Unified Profiles & Agent Copilot Features To Boost Productivity & Engagement
Agent Copilot sounds like James Bond's less interesting cousin.
Reebok & Honda Among New Clients For onetwo agency
OneTwo finally lives up to its name with this double billing.
Ogilvy Report: Throw Out The Social Strategy Rule Book, The Rules Of The Past No Longer Apply
B&T was puzzled that all 'influencers' aren't, effectively, 'virtual', but here we are.
WhiteGREY & AKQA Merge In Australia, Lee Simpson Departs
Fortunately, the combined agencies aren't opting for a trite portmanteau for the new name.
Splendour In The Grass 2024 Music Festival Cancelled!
Music fans all over the country reportedly relieved they can pack away their rain coats and gumboots for another year.
TV Ratings (26/03/2024): “Fairy Bread, F***ing Disgusting”: Gordon Ramsay Slams Aussie Food In Food Stars Launch
Ramsay not one for mincing his words, even when it comes to minced meat pies.
Paramount+ International Boss Doubles Down On Aussie Content, Says Ad-Tier will Grow Audiences And Revenue
Good news as Paramount will not be binning I’m A Celebrity for re-runs of Frasier.
Brent Smart: Telstra Pushing For 50-50 Brand-Performance Split But Warns Numbers ‘Won’t Look Great’ Initially
The old brand vs performance debate continues. But here, Brent is firmly sitting on the fence.
Crowded House, Tones And I & Dom Dolla Win Big At The Shure Rolling Stone Music Awards
B&T staffer reports back with humdinger of a hangover & feeling seriously uncool after mixing with music types.
Opinion: Dyslexia “A Hidden Gem” For Brands & Agencies
Dyslexics offer underappreciated benefits in the corporate field, according to this op-ed.
David Jones Taps Criteo To Power Online Retail Media Arm
Want to see ads for things you probably can't afford? David Jones has got you covered with new retail media play.
oOh!media Sets Up Team To Target Business Audiences Across Airports & Offices
oOh! wants brands to harass you every minute of your next business trip.
QMS Launches Australian First DOOH & TV Partnership With Samba TV
Samba TV, of course, is not a channel dedicated to dancing. Much to our dismany.
Slew Of New Hires At Amplify
Four new faces join the Amplify offices. Team say desk scarcity becoming "acute".
Adobe Announces Content Authenticity Initiative Expansions To Counter Deep Fakes
Try as they might to enlighten them, we suspect Trump supporters will continue to watch and believe Fox News.
The PR Group Appoints TechCrunch Senior Reporter Catherine Shu As Director Of Content & Media
Catherine Shu makes the bold leap from journalism to PR. Says inevitable pay bump was "unrelated".
HERO Nabs Ebony Santin From AMPR
Rumours Santin cleared out the stationery cupboard before departing are as yet unconfirmed.
Karena Noble Checks Out Of EVT Hotels & Resorts To Launch Comms Consultancy
Noble still managed to squeezed in a continental breakfast before departing.
Canva Acquires Design Platform Affinity To Bring Professional Design Tools To Every Organisation
Canva & Adobe face off continues. We're not picking sides but keenly aware that Canva's office is next door to ours.
“Lean On Our Team To Help You Find An Audience”: Why Understanding Audience Engagement Is Essential In Journalism
Engaging the audience is critical to journos, apparently. We'd thought self-loathing & alcoholism were key.
Adobe Summit: Major Gen AI Developments, Data Concessions & Partnerships
What happens in Vegas stays there. Unless it's the Adobe Summit and then you get to read about in B&T.