FaceApp: what is the success of the popular and controversial application that allows you to see yourself as an old

These days, you have probably thought that it was difficult to know someone who does not use FaceApp.

The popular (and controversial) application that uses a filter to edit photos and make faces look like old people has flooded the Internet.

Characters known as singers, politicians and football players continue to appear on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, where they are joking about the appearance that according to the application that they will have in their old age.

The "Age" filter of FaceApp is not new, but was launched several years ago for mobile phones with iOS and Android operating systems. However, its recent popularity responds to huge improvements.

FaceApp has already expressed its concerns and warnings about how its creators use user data. Even US politician Chuck Schumer has asked the FBI to investigate this.

But what is the accuracy of the results of the application?

The BBC Newsbeat team took as "case studies" the images of some celebrities who have already reached the senior age.

Arnold Schwarzenegger (8/10: quite impressive)

The predictions of the American bodybuilder were pretty good, to be honest.

The image on the left is a photo of the actor from 1976. The central image corresponds to the results of the filter. On the right, Schwarzenegger appears on a photo taken in 2019 at 74 years old.

Sir Ian McKellen (10/10: solid)

The application is very faithful in his predictions about the English actor Ian McKellen, known for his role as Gandalf in "The Lord of the Rings".

The picture to the left was taken in 1968, she was not yet 30 years old. The middle one is FaceApp and the one on the right, McKellen in Magneto in the movie "X-Men: The past of the future", at 75 years old.

David Attenborough (7/10: a good job)

Yes, it is not so bad.

On the left appears the famous English presenter on an image taken in 1965, while he was 39 years old. The central image is the result after going through the application and right appears at the beginning of this year, at 93 years old.

Dolly Parton (2/10: far enough from reality)

This is not one of the best predictions of FaceApp.

On the left, the American country singer Dolly Parton, on an image taken shortly after 30 years, in 1977. In the center, after crossing the request and on the right, she appears in 2019, at the age of 73 years.

Judi Dench (6/10: they have to make more effort)

On the left, the legendary English actress Judi Dench, aged 33, in 1967. In the center, she is after reviewing the application. And right, in 2019, at 84 years old.

In any case, we do not think the actress James Bond is very satisfied with the results.

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What is FaceApp?

Chris Baraniuk, BBC Technology Reporter

The FaceApp application is not new. He made the headlines for the first time two years ago, with his "ethnic filters".

These filters made it possible to transform the faces of people from one ethnic group to another, which provoked a violent reaction and was therefore quickly eliminated.

However, the app is also able to convert faces without expression on smiling faces or bad moods. Another function is that you can adjust makeup styles.

FaceApp also works from painted portraits, although the effect is sometimes disconcerting.

The transformations that the application achieves are possible with the help of artificial intelligence (AI). An algorithm takes the image of the face that is placed in front of the camera and transforms it, based on other images.

This allows you to insert a smile with big teeth, for example, while the lines around the mouth, chin and cheeks are adjusted to get a natural look.