Lensa makes $1M/Day (& Steals Your Face)

By this point, there's no doubt about it: artificial intelligence is taking over the mainstream, and people who know how to leverage this technology are getting insanely rich. Applications like Lensa AI and Don AI are literally flipping mobile apps like Instagram and YouTube on the iOS store, generating millions of dollars every single day. Unless you've been living under a rock, you've probably already heard about the magic avatars and AI-generated portraits; it's all over social media.

So what's the deal with that? What are the ethical implications and risks associated with this trend, and are these applications even safe? Well, you've come to the right place. Hey, Luxor, because we're about to answer these very questions. After watching this video, you might reconsider using these apps ever again, so make sure to stick with us until the end. Some of these apps are literally stealing your face and making millions by feeding your data to open-source algorithms.

So let's dive in, shall we? Welcome to a Lux. How do AI-based image generators actually work? Well, first, let's figure out the basics. An AI-based image generator is a type of artificial intelligence that's capable of creating images based on a set of input data. This process involves using machine learning algorithms, which provide the AI with the ability to learn from a training data set and generate images based on it.

Now, there are multiple cases of use for this technology, but what we often see are apps that leverage AI to create artwork and enhance photos. Applications like Lensa AI have been around since 2018, but what started the adoption trend is their latest feature launched in November called Magic Avatars. Now, we don't want to bore you with the statistics, but just to clarify how disruptive this feature is: the application was downloaded 1.6 million times in November, up 631 percent from 219,000 downloads in October. So suffice it to say, it was a huge success and seems to be adding more fuel into the tank.

All cool fun and games, but how are those magic avatars actually created? Well, Lensa is built on Stable Diffusion's free open-source image generator, and it does the heavy lifting for you. But it does charge you money for generating those edited selfies after your trial ends. We'll get to that later in the video, but anyone with enough computing power can use Stable Diffusion, the AI image generator that powers Lensa, and get similar results. What gets people to use the app is the fact those magic avatars come heavily edited and Instagram-ready.

But here's where things get a little shady: Stable Diffusion was originally trained on 2.3 billion captioned images—a massive dataset taken from the visual section of the internet. The problem is that this dataset contains all kinds of copyrighted artworks, sampled by watermarks, and those images are confirmed to originate from sites like Pinterest, SmugMug, Flickr, DeviantArt, and even ArtStation, which raises a lot of concerns. The AI also uses stock images taken from sites like Getty and Shutterstock. It's clear to see why many people are not very happy about it, and there's a lot of debate in the art communities on this matter.

But applications like Lensa or Don AI don't seem to care about it at all, and what's even crazier is that by using the app, you're actually helping them train the AI. Now, Lensa pinky promises to you in their terms and conditions that they rely on AWS cloud services to process users' photos. So as soon as the AI model is trained on a user's images, the data is immediately deleted. But don't be fooled: the magic avatars you're creating will remain in the dataset forever, and Lensa has complete ownership over them.

And those magic avatars will have striking similarities with your selfies; the facial details are almost identical. So not only are you giving them money to train the AI, but you're also giving away your biometric and facial data to Stable Diffusion's open-source databases. Congratulations, you've successfully sold your face to an AI! So don't be surprised if you see it in a random pic on the internet years later.

And speaking about money, how are they making those insane profits? Well, at the time of producing this video, Lensa AI had made 16.8 million dollars in revenue in 2022 so far, with eight plus million dollars happening in December alone. Lensa uses what some praise and others consider a dark pattern plan: offer ending in the onboarding was a paywall that starts as a free trial. With more than 25 million plus worldwide downloads, you can get an idea of how the app has managed to build such a high stream of income. Millions are hopping on the trend daily, and it seems like TikTok is looking to capitalize on this trend as well with their anime manga filter.

Lensa AI's largest market is in the U.S and Brazil, and it's slowly taking over Europe as well. Okay, but what exactly are they selling? Well, the short answer: the computing cycle is required to generate the art. So yes, it's not something you can't do yourself, as mentioned earlier; but it's an amazing way of leveraging AI technology to make a crap ton of money based on other people's misinformation.

Now, the problem is that the industry is highly unregulated, and as this technology continues to evolve, more people are going to raise some questions about the risks. Are those couple of dollars you're paying worth it, considering you're trading your data to be trendy? Let's just explore the risks, shall we? If you've used viral photo editing apps in the past, well, by now you probably already know they've got a dark and shady history. AI photo editors have gone viral in the past, with applications like the Russian FaceApp making chilling statements about storing their customers' data for performance and traffic reasons.

Now, these apps use cloud processing instead of on-device processing, so users should be aware of that fact, too. What's interesting is that Lensa AI was also initially based in Russia, with both co-founders previously working at the Russian search engine Yandex. Now, some are even claiming that these apps are fooling people into sharing their data on purpose for cyber warfare and spying reasons. But you know, it's hard to say that at this point. We're here to provide you with objective information, not conspiracies.

So going back to the subject, what are the actual risks of using these apps from an objective point of view? Well, there are several potential dangers that we think you should consider, so make sure to pay attention, because this is the most important part of the video. One of the main concerns is the potential loss of control over how your personal information is used. So when you share your selfies, you're giving the AI access to a picture of your face, which could be used to generate AI images without your consent.

And this could lead to the misuse of your personal information, such as creating fake accounts or online impersonation. Nasty business, and it could get even worse if those impersonators decide to create fake or misleading content. The AI is more than capable of creating fake but realistic images of the person who took the selfies, so this is a relevant and plausible danger.

Furthermore, using selfies to generate AI art could also lead to the creation of deep fake images and videos. Deep fakes are AI-generated images, audio recordings, or videos designed to look like real people. Deep fake technology uses neural networks and other machine learning techniques to generate synthetic media that's designed to look and sound like real people. You can see this fact alone can raise concerns about consent, accuracy, and potential harm to people.

Deep fakes could be used to create fake news or manipulate public opinion. Even worse, it could be used to create fake videos or images that are designed to harm the reputation of an individual or a group. Deep fake technology is a rapidly developing field with basically unlimited applications, which can be both positive and negative. It's hard to say how this could harm us in the future, so exposing yourself to this kind of technology is considered to be a bad idea in general.

So hopping on the trend is simply not worth it, especially because we're dealing with an unregulated industry here. And this leads to another important point: the use of AI to generate images is still a developing field, and our understanding of the technology is very limited. As the algorithms continue to evolve, it's possible that new risks and concerns will emerge in the future. It's just a matter of time at this point.

All this considered, though, what you need to understand is that you should be cautious of revolutionary industries like AI. Interacting with it could cause a lot of unintended consequences in the future. So to wrap all this up, here's what you need to remember: new technologies can be exciting and keeping up with the progress is clearly in your best interest.

But be wary of the fact that in some situations, behind a social media trend, there could be a lot of potential disguised risks. Social media is by no means innocent, and entrepreneurs will use any opportunity to monetize a trend. With good marketing and a hefty budget, you could even start one yourself—just pay a few influencers on social media and voila! AI is nothing to scoff at, and as the technology continues to evolve and more people interact with it, the risks will become more and more obvious.

There's no telling how this will affect us in the future, so better to be safe than sorry. Regulations will play a key part in keeping artificial intelligence under control, but for now, it seems like we're years away from having something set in stone. People are still having a lot of debates on this subject because it's hard to regulate an industry without hindering its development. AI can and will surely improve many people's lives, but it's a double-edged sword.

So in the end, remember that this is just our opinion. You'll have to decide for yourself on how you'll use it. And that's all for today, Alexa! Have you ever interacted with artificial intelligence before? Make sure to let us know in the comments below; we're always curious to hear your thoughts. And while you're at it, consider telling us what you think is the most relevant downside to using this technology. Do you believe AI could one day take over the world? We've all seen the Terminator movies, right? So why not think about this idea for a moment?

If you enjoyed this video, make sure to tip us with a like and be sure to share the video in order to spread the awareness. Thanks for watching, Alexa! If you're hungry for more, why not check out this video next?