• Chris Umé, the creator behind these Tom Cruise’s deepfake videos on TikTok started a company called Metaphysic.
• The company uses deepfake technology to make advertisements where they show people’s younger self or even bring back the deceased.
• Metaphysic also says it believes in the ethical use of deepfake videos, a technology considered very dangerous.

Remember those viral Tom Cruise deepfake videos on TikTok? The creator of these videos made a profession out of it by launching a company called Metaphysic to make hyperrealistic videos with AI.

Chris Umé, a Bangkok-based visual effects and AI artist, created deepfake videos of Tom Cruise with the help of actor and impersonator, Miles Fisher. The videos show Cruise doing things like playing golf, showing off a magic trick, and even biting a lollipop. These videos quickly garnered millions of views with multiple uploads on different social media apps as well.

The problem with deepfakes
The idea behind deepfake videos is to make fake videos realistic using AI, but this technology has mostly received negative reviews because of the dangerous possibilities it offers. There have been cases of deepfake technology used primarily in pornography to create non-consensual adult videos. There is also the fear that deepfake could be used to manipulate elections by making fake videos of politicians. Deepfake videos still have a long way to go as most of the popular videos can be easily recognized as fake, but technology is changing and it will only get better.

Ethical use of deepfake videos


Metaphysic, however, claims to be different, saying that this technology can actually be used for fun, and to highlight the possibilities of visual effects. Chris Ume has teamed up with his brother Kevin Umé and London tech entrepreneur Tom Graham to launch Metaphysic. “Our mission is to expand the frontiers of human expression through the ethical application of AI and to build a future where everyone can create content that is deeply relevant and enjoyable for the communities that interest them,” reads. on in the section about Metaphysic.

According to a CNN report, the founders of Metaphysic want to create deepfake videos that can “do everything from rejuvenating older artists to creating duplicate videos of famous people that can be used to do commercials.” It’s also not about creating deepfake videos, but making them as realistic as possible.

Publicity

Some examples of the kind of Metaphysic work include a Gillette razor-sharp campaign featuring American athlete Deion Sanders but in a youthful look from 1989. The company also brought two deceased leaders of the Belgian football team to life in as part of a campaign for the Belgian Football Association.

Metaphysic also takes an ethical approach to their work by making sure they get official clearance for the subjects they use. In the case of Tom Cruise’s deepfakes, they were created for fun and Umé contacted the Hollywood actor’s management team but got no response. He also said he’s ready to remove the videos and even hand over the TikTok account if Cruise doesn’t approve of him.

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Tom Cruise’s deepfakes were difficult to create. But less sophisticated “shallowfakes” are already taking their toll

“Liar’s dividend”: the more we learn about deepfakes, the more dangerous they become