Various Scenes Using AI-Based Photo Transformation App
Chairman Chey Tae-won "Efforts to Host Busan Expo"
Co-resident Kim Hee-young, T&C Foundation Chairperson, Also in Photo
Choi Tae-won, Chairman of SK, sent Chuseok greetings in the form of a 1990s American high school student.
On the 27th, Chairman Chey Tae-won posted several photos transformed using an artificial intelligence (AI)-based photo conversion app on his Instagram account early in the morning, along with a message saying, "I hope everyone has a joyful Chuseok." [Photo by Chairman Chey Tae-won, SK Instagram]
On the 27th, Chairman Choi posted several photos transformed using an artificial intelligence (AI)-based photo conversion app on his Instagram account early in the morning, along with a message saying, "I hope everyone has a joyful Chuseok."
In the Instagram photos, Chairman Choi is wearing a leather jacket popular in the 1990s and sporting a hairstyle that was trendy at the time. Born in 1960, Chairman Choi mentioned that he was already well into his 30s during the 1990s. He also wrote that even with AI photo transformation, he still looks quite old.
In the Instagram photo, Chairman Choi is wearing a leather jacket popular in the 1990s and sporting a hairstyle that was trendy at the time. Born in 1960, Chairman Choi mentioned that he was already in his 30s, well past his teenage years, during the 1990s. He also wrote that even when the photo is transformed by AI, he still looks much older. [Photo by Choi Tae-won, SK Chairman, Instagram]
He added an early apology to many people who might be summoned because they resemble him.
Chairman Choi also revealed that he is working hard to attract the 2030 Busan Expo. He wrote, "Even if I had dozens of bodies, it wouldn't be enough to keep up," and added, "These days, I think I spend more time on airplanes than on the ground."
On this day, Kim Hee-young, Chairperson of the T&C Foundation, also posted a photo on her Instagram using the same AI transformation app. Chairperson Kim wrote that she paid 6,600 won and received the same photo with 60 different people, calling it "60 Parallel Universes." [Photo by Kim Hee-young, Chairperson of the T&C Foundation]
On the same day, Kim Hee-young, known as Chairman Choi Tae-won's cohabitant and Chairwoman of the T&C Foundation, also posted photos using the same AI conversion app on her Instagram. Chairwoman Kim wrote that she received photos of different people through the AI app and called it "60 parallel universes." She added that she felt like Yang Ja-kyung, who played the lead role in the movie "Everything Everywhere All at Once," which depicts parallel universes.
Meanwhile, the T&C Foundation is known to have been named after the initials of its founder Chairman Choi Tae-won’s T and Chairwoman Kim Hee-young’s English name initial C. The foundation carries out various scholarship, education, welfare, and empathy projects, including nurturing young talent.
AI Profile Service Gaining Popularity via SNS
The AI profile service used by Chairman Choi is the recently launched "AI Yearbook" product from the EPIK application. By uploading 8 to 12 photos of oneself on the app, it creates up to 60 profile photos with the atmosphere of 1990s American graduation photos. The AI image generation product is priced at 5,500 KRW (generated within 2 hours) and 8,800 KRW (generated within 24 hours), and it has received a hot response on SNS since its release.
This AI profile service is enjoying considerable popularity. According to mobile data analytics firm Sensor Tower, as of July, the photo editing app "Snow" surpassed total revenue of 20 million USD (approximately 27 billion KRW) on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. About 90% of the cumulative revenue was generated from January to July this year, with the "AI profile service" launched in May playing a key role in its explosive popularity. This service recorded 1.5 million uses within one month of its release.
Snow also contributed to the performance of its parent company, Naver. During Naver’s Q2 earnings conference call last month, Kim Nam-sun, Naver’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO), mentioned, "Snow’s revenue increased due to the success of the AI profile product within Snow Camera. Revenue grew by 30% compared to the same period last year."
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