Fake Tech Runs Deep

Technology’s obsession with reality is actually affecting the very meaning of what is real, or at least perceived as such. In fact, human perception of reality is nothing other than the best interpretation our biology can make of the events taking place around us. 

But technically, our biological limitations make us experience “reality” differently from what is actually occurring. Today, technology has made possible new “realities” that all but defy how we experience real life, which comes in all forms like virtual reality, augmented reality, fake news, artificial intelligence or deepfakes, effectively rendering a sizable portion of the population unable to recognize the fake from the real.

These new forms of reality beg the question of the ethical treatment of these technologies to either help or hurt society. The very intelligence that makes us supposedly superior to animals also serves to bring the best and worst in life on this planet. While no animal is known to have done the selfless, benevolent acts of Gandhi or Mother Theresa, no animal has ever remotely exercised the insane cruelty of the Hitlers and Stalins of the world.

For marketers, this poses a big dilemma. And this is not just for marketing VPs, managers or CMOs. This is for everybody who is putting an innovation, a product or a service in front of millions of consumers. How are we - product developers, engineers, marketers, HR folks - going to use the “powers” of reinventing reality in benefit of or against society?

One of the most recent and salient examples is the proliferation and sophistication of deepfakes, AI-enabled video technology that is able to reproduce with a high level of perceived accuracy and credibility video footage of people doing things they never actually did. It is essentially Photoshop on steroids. A recent Wall Street Journal article points out how Elon Musk, Tom Cruise and Leonardo Di Caprio have “appeared” in brands’ ads without their knowledge, let alone consent. Surely the lawyers will step in and figure this one out to protect IP, royalties and reputations. But while some of these border on the absurd with their obvious parodies and satires, others can be quite confusing to the public.

In some instances, deepfakes are being used to cut costs, where a brand actually negotiates using the image of a celebrity, but the video is produced remotely somewhere in Croatia when the celebrity is actually skiing in Aspen, never showing up at the set. While potentially deceitful, and certainly a good cost-cutting exercise, this is one of the most innocent uses of the technology.

The potential risk of deepfakes runs much deeper from defamation, misinformation, ruining someone’s life, career or reputation or producing the so-called revenge porn, to a yet more catastrophic scale in the hands of terrorists and insurgent groups aiming to provoke anti-state sentiments among crowds or inflaming anti-Western emotions.

With much less powerful tools, consumers across all demographics often confuse fake from reality. I continue to be both amused and amazed by intelligent people with high education degrees from reputable universities and successful careers that continue to “like,” share and repost fake news.

Deepfake technology per se is not bad and can be used for a lot of good applications. But it is how we use it which determines the positive or negative outcome. Most importantly, it will continue to blur the lines between actual and fake and the public’s ability to distinguish between them. As marketers, business owners and tech leaders, we should be aware of the impact the misuse of this technology may have and the importance of conducting ethical practices.