Apple scientists’ unveiling of “Keyframer”, a AI animation generator, marks a significant advancement in the realm of artificial intelligence. Requiring nothing more than a still image paired with textual commands, this tool simplifies animation creation, making it accessible to a broad audience.
The emergence of this tool comes on the heels of the company’s revelation of MGIE, a novel method for editing photos via text commands, further showcasing Apple’s innovative strides in AI technology.
Despite facing criticism for lagging behind in AI development, particularly in comparison to the advancements of Siri’s counterparts from Google and Amazon, Apple has demonstrated a longstanding commitment to integrating AI into its offerings for over a decade. The company’s strategy of maintaining silence on its AI projects until they are fully ready for public unveiling has led to a series of impactful releases.
A recent example includes a research paper and demo that introduced a user-friendly photo editing process powered by AI, enabling users to make alterations through simple verbal instructions.
Keyframer emerges as a standout addition to Apple’s AI portfolio, distinguished by its ability to animate static images through natural language text commands. This tool, detailed in a recent research paper published on arxiv.org, invites users to breathe life into images with ease.
For instance, a user can transform a still image of Saturn by commanding the AI to “Make the planet spin”, or they can generate varied designs with a prompt like “Create three designs where the stars twinkle.”
Initially targeting graphic professionals, Keyframer is designed to facilitate the rapid conceptualization of ideas, allowing for both the exploration of new concepts and the refinement of animations through textual prompts or manual CSS code adjustments.
This technology is informed by insights from professional animation designers and engineers, enabling users to not only generate but also refine and compare different animation designs. Keyframer has been positioned as a superior alternative to existing animation tools, highlighting its capacity for idea refinement as a key differentiator.
The potential applications of Keyframer extend far beyond professional design and animation. Small businesses could leverage this technology to create engaging social media content, while consumers might enjoy using it as a novel extension of current photo filter technologies.
Although both MGIE and Keyframer are in the nascent stages of development, these applications will surely be integrated into Apple devices at a later date. Presuming this turns out to be the case, these tools would enrich user experiences, as part of a significant push towards integrating AI into the core of Apple’s ecosystem.