DeepMotion launches digital avatars for Samsung’s Galaxy S10 smartphones

DeepMotion is unveiling its digital avatar characters for Samsung’s family of Galaxy S10 smartphones.

The technology tries to outdo previous 3D emojis by ditching canned animations and having the avatar mimic your real-time movements as captured by your camera. This means that Samsung’s augmented reality emojis can reflect the movements of S10 owners in real time, making them a reflection of the user’s personality in a unique new way.

Backed by Samsung Ventures and Scrum VC, DeepMotion uses artificial intelligence and robotic control theory. It allows users to instantaneously animate their emojis simply by moving around in front of the phone’s camera.

With DeepMotion’s Digital Avatar simulation, users will now be able to use their body to express themselves more fully. The new technology will bring body language to emoji communications, which to date have been limited to facial expressions and simple head movements. Users can now capture body movement using the rear camera, or upper body movement using the front-facing camera.

“Body language is a key part of human social interaction, and our partnership with Samsung empowers Galaxy S10 owners to use their natural body movements to express themselves through emojis,” said Kevin He, CEO of DeepMotion, in a statement. “From showing your original moves as a dancing avatar to waving hello to a loved one as a character from an animated film, DeepMotion’s Digital Avatar solution opens new ways to communicate through your device.”

DeepMotion’s Digital Avatar solutions bridge physical and digital motion for virtual characters and machines. Using physics simulation, computer vision, and machine learning, DeepMotion reconstructs realistic motion from real-world examples. The Redwood City, California-based company will show its tech at the upcoming Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. DeepMotion was founded in 2014.