App turns selfies into magical AI images

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) -From a warrior, to donning a gown, or being transformed into some sort of goddess…people across the globe are having fun creating their magic avatars.

Lensa, an app, lets you upload pictures of yourself that are then turned into magical, whimsical AI images. It basically uses an open-source neural network model called, Stable Diffusion to make it all happen.

FOX10′s Lenise Ligon gave it a try and while she wasn’t so sure about the likeness the imagery was impressive.

The process takes about 10-minutes and involves a 120 million billion mathematical operations to analyze the photos.

To give it a try for yourself, download the app, open the magic avatar option and upload some your pictures. When your avatars are ready, you’ll get a notification. Regarding privacy, Lensa says the avatars and personal pictures used to make them are deleted from their servers.

Lensa has been around since 2018, however, it’s popularity jumped in late November when its magic avatars launched. More than 13 million installs were reported in the first weeks of December.

Despite the growing use of the feature there are concerns and complaints, with some critics arguing that the hit AI generated pics steals from real digital artists. Claims Lensa rejects.

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