Smile Vector bot adds creepy grins, frowns to Twitter celebs

Neural networks to manipulate photos are all the rage these days, such as Google’s Deep Dream initiative. While Google’s effort creates trippy art out of your images, the latest neural network-enabled project is rather silly.

Twitter bot Smile Vector was created to merely add or remove smiles to photos, using a neural network for help.

Created by lecturer Tom White, the bot uses a “generative neural net” to smartly edit photos it finds in the wild, posting the end-result in the form of a video. The results have been refined over time as the neural network receives more data, but it’s still rather creepy.

Some celebs given digital plastic surgery includes Channing Tatum, Misha Barton (actually, the entire cast of The O.C.), Daniel Radcliffe, Nick Jonas, and of course, Kit “Jon Snow” Harrington.

Below are some of the funnier examples, but for a look at all 400-odd manipulations, head on over to Smile Vector’s Twitter account.

😀⬆ pic.twitter.com/KH9nmyJ1tN

— smile vector (@smilevector) June 27, 2016

upgrade: smile vector strengthened to also open (or close) mouth; repost with updated algorithm below. pic.twitter.com/0azvEgxVc0

— smile vector (@smilevector) June 27, 2016

😀⬇ pic.twitter.com/8NQYvdCOEq

— smile vector (@smilevector) June 26, 2016

😀⬆ pic.twitter.com/ibRYjPPAML

— smile vector (@smilevector) June 24, 2016

😀⬇ pic.twitter.com/KkAYG8RIW0

— smile vector (@smilevector) June 21, 2016