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Newsletter: The Convosphere Friday Five 20.07.2018

  1. Celebrity bloggers and vloggers are often accused of promoting unrealistic ideals, be it beauty, lifestyle or even relationships. But whereas these influencers are probably not too different from you and me behind the filtered facade, the standards upheld by the latest sensation in Japan, so-called Virtual YouTubers (VTubers), are definitely unattainable. With their doll-like anime looks, these non-human characters are believed to lead a new wave of superhuman digital influence.
  2. On the other end of this spectrum are DeepFakes, a technology that uses machine-learning to create convincing videos of people doing or saying stuff they have never done or said. With celebrities and politicians typically targeted, one of the most notable falsified videos shows the former US President, Barack Obama, being uncharacteristically blatant in his criticism of his successor, Donald Trump. The video was in fact used to raise awareness of DeepFakes, which are feared to represent the next level of fake news. But it’s not all doom and gloom. This article explains how new AI software could help beat this worrying trend by identifying the real videos among the fakes.
  3. All good things come to an end but if you’re not quite willing to let go of the World Cup joy, check out our latest blog post. Highlighting our local markets’ top tweets and memes around the nail-biting final game between France and Croatia, it will help you reminisce about those happy, action-filled weeks. Better yet, only one year to go before the Women’s World Cup!
  4. Robots, artificial intelligence (AI) and wearables all feature in this piece on the future of healthcare by the CEO of market research consultancy Medix. Predicting that digital health technologies hold the key to making healthcare borderless and reaching as many people as possible – regardless of socioeconomic status – it offers an optimistic outlook for the patients of tomorrow. Keen to learn more? It’s all in here.
  5. Hardcore fan of Stranger Things? Adored the 2008 Scandi horror film Let the Right One In? If so, you’re going to love Amazon’s new sci-fi series Tales from the Loop. Based on the Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag’s retro-futuristic work, which has also been turned into a role-playing game, the entertainment giant’s latest venture is set in the 1980s and tells the story of an alternate reality. Release details are yet to be confirmed but keep your eyes peeled for this exciting new form of Nordic Noir.

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