It looks like the next iPhone may really introduce a new biometric technology. Apple has reportedly acquired startup called RealFace, a company that focuses on facial recognition technology.
RealFace is an Israeli company that was founded by Adi Eckhouse Barzilai and Aviv Mader back in 2014. It focuses on developing facial recognition software as an alternative to traditional passwords, as well as fingerprint recognition. The company has raised about US$1 million before the acquisition and currently has 10 employees. There is no news about the exact figure Apple spent on the acquisition, but according to reports, it could be worth “several million dollars”.
So what exactly has RealFace done so far? The company developed an iPhone app called Pickeez, a facial recognition software that can automatically choose a user’s best photos across all of their social media platforms. They claim that their facial recognition software integrates artificial intelligence to give the most accurate and frictionless face recognition possible. Sadly though, the company’s website is currently offline.
Apple has been rumoured to be working on an alternative biometric recognition technology for its iPhone 8. According to rumours, the company will remove the iconic Home Button found on all iPhones and iPads, and replace it with a new “function area”. As a result, the Cupertino company will use a new optical fingerprint sensor that can be embedded directly on the OLED display itself. Ming-Chi Kuo mentioned before that Apple is working on alternative biometric sensors to completely replace the need of a fingerprint sensor, and this latest acquisition further fuel the possibility of that happening.
Facial recognition on smartphones isn’t anything new at all. In fact, this feature has been available on Android smartphones for many years now, however, I hardly see anyone using it at all. Do you think that Apple will succeed in introducing facial recognition technology on the iPhone?
(Source: 9to5Mac)
