With social distancing still being suggested in many regions across the globe, Apple has come up with an idea to make sure selfies don’t go the way of the dodo.
First discovered by Patently Apple recently, Apple has won a patent that details “synthetic group selfies”. As Protocol points out, that’s a bit of jargon that could describe the ability to post a group selfie on social media without having to actually be in the same room as your friends or family members you want to include in the shot.
The patent describes using an Apple device (this could be an iPad or an iPhone, or both) to invite others to be part of the synthetic group selfie. The software would handle the rest, grouping the other individuals (using their own Apple devices, one would presume) in a digitized selfie, artificially implanting the others in your photo. Interestingly, the patent adds that this new type of selfie could include stored video images, live streaming images, or still photos.
The synthetic group selfie could be edited in various ways. The original user who hosted the group selfie could keep the original photo with just themselves if they wanted. The recipients, and the original user could modify the selfie as well, including putting themselves in different positions.
You can see what that looks like in the image at the top of this article.
The invite for the whole process is pictured in the patent below:
This is relevant for the times with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but it’s worth noting that Apple initially filed for this socially-distant selfie idea back in 2018. Apple was granted the patent on June 2 of this year.
But, what do you think of the idea? Do you think you could see it taking off, whether social distancing guidelines are still present or not? Let us know!