Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
The Mona Lisa can now do more than smile, thanks to new artificial intelligence technology from Microsoft.
Last week, Microsoft researchers detailed a new AI model they’ve developed that can take a still image of a face and an audio clip of someone speaking and automatically create a realistic-looking video of that person speaking. The videos — which can be made from photorealistic faces, as well as cartoons or artwork — are complete with compelling lip-syncing and natural face and head movements.
In one demo video, researchers showed how they animated the Mona Lisa to recite a comedic rap by actor Anne Hathaway.
Outputs from the AI model, called VASA-1, are both entertaining and a bit jarring in their realness. Microsoft said the technology could be used for education or “improving accessibility for individuals with communication challenges,” or potentially to create virtual companions for humans. But it’s also easy to see how the tool could be abused and used to impersonate real people.
It’s a concern that goes beyond Microsoft: as more tools to create convincing AI-generated images, videos and audio emerge, experts worry that their misuse could lead to new forms of misinformation. Some also worry the technology could further disrupt creative industries from film to advertising.
For now, Microsoft said it doesn’t plan to release the VASA-1 model to the public immediately. The move is similar to how Microsoft partner OpenAI is handling concerns around its AI-generated video tool, Sora: OpenAI teased Sora in February, but has so far only made it available to some professional users and cybersecurity professors for testing purposes.
“We are opposed to any behaviour to create misleading or harmful contents of real persons,” Microsoft researchers said in a blog post. But, they added, the company has “no plans to release” the product publicly “until we are certain that the technology will be used responsibly and in accordance with proper regulations.”
Microsoft’s new AI model was trained on numerous videos of people’s faces while speaking, and it’s designed to recognize natural face and head movements, including “lip motion, (non-lip) expression, eye gaze and blinking, among others,” researchers said. The result is a more lifelike video when VASA-1 animates a still photo.
For example, in one demo video set to a clip of someone sounding agitated, apparently while playing video games, the face speaking has furrowed brows and pursed lips.
The AI tool can also be directed to produce a video where the subject is looking in a certain direction or expressing a specific emotion.
When looking closely, there are still signs that the videos are machine-generated, such as infrequent blinking and exaggerated eyebrow movements. But Microsoft said it believes its model “significantly outperforms” other, similar tools and “paves the way for real-time engagements with lifelike avatars that emulate human conversational behaviours.”
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.