Can Deepfakes Be Used For Good?

Executive Summary 

• A data breach at Coinbase affected customers' financial information.

• Whoop launched a long-awaited update, but it faced criticism.

• TikTok is addressing teens' sleep concerns.

• Discussion: Should we give deepfakes one more chance?

News

 🤖 Coinbase has a personal data leak. Link

• Besides common data points, hackers gained access to customers’ government-issued identity documents, account balance data and transaction histories.

• According to Natasha LaBranche, a spokesperson for Coinbase, fewer than 1% of their 9.7 million monthly customers have been impacted.

• The company is set to manage costs ranging from $180 million to $400 million for incident remediation and customer reimbursements.

💰Whoop 5.0 update faces fan’s criticism. Link

• Whoop launched two versions of the fifth version of the tracker: regular and MG (medical grade), main difference being in the EKG capabilities.

• Core update comes from the product’s software: a new longevity metric called Healthspan, EKGs to detect atrial fibrillation and enable irregular heart rhythm notifications, blood pressure insights and hormonal insights for women.

• It was expected that Whoop 5.0 upgrade will be free to all current users, however, free upgrade is available to users with at least 12 months of subscription left. Otherwise, there is a 54 Euro fee to be taken.

 🚀 TikTok will interrupt teens after 10 PM. Link

• After 10PM, TikTok will start offering teens a little relaxation break with guided meditation.

• The platform has been experimenting with a "wind down" prompt, and now it's rolling out this calming notification with guided meditation to all users under 18 by default..

• In March, TikTok also launched a Time Away tool that parents or caregivers can use to prevent their child from accessing the app at certain times.

Discussion

Can deepfakes be used for good?

People associate deepfakes with deception — illegal impersonation, fake speeches and blackmail. The negative connotation is even rooted in it’s name - there are no positive associations if the term has ‘fake’ in it. However, does this technology have a bright side? Let’s discover.

First of all, deepfakes are closing a communication gap for millions of disabled worldwide. SignGPT, an AI that translates speech into photorealistic sign language avatars with over 90 percent accuracy. For the 70 million deaf people globally, on-demand interpretation unlocks emergency alerts, lectures, and healthcare information once difficult to access. Early trials show nine in ten participants report marked gains in comprehension and engagement compared to text captions.

Another strong development comes from the entertainment sector. In Captain Marvel, AI-driven techniques rejuvenated Samuel L. Jackson by 25 years, while the 2024 film ‘Here’ used a real-time aging pipeline to transition Tom Hanks seamlessly between young and old versions.

In education, deepfakes are increasing student engagement. Tools such as Synthesia empower instructors to generate photorealistic lectures in multiple languages, complete with dynamic animations. For underserved regions, this translates to on-demand access to world-class educators.

Healthcare training also reaps rewards. Virtual patient simulators built on generative avatars expose students to rare pathologies in lifelike scenarios-without risking real lives. A Johns Hopkins study found participants who practiced on AI-driven cases improved diagnostic accuracy over peers using textbook cases.

Additionally, tele-therapy bots with empathic facial cues and natural intonation are beginning to augment mental health services in crisis situations.

Deepfakes aren’t without risks. But, focusing only on negative connotation of the technology, we are loosing the real added value of a tool. Should we give deepfakes one more chance (and probably give it another name too)?

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