Facebook has been working on redesigning its app and web platform, to gear it more towards privacy apparently.
But that's not the only news the company had to announce recently. Apparently, they're also working on putting people entirely into Facebook.
At its developer conference earlier this week, Facebook detailed its plans regarding virtual reality. In case you're unaware, Facebook owns the Oculus VR platform and has been contemplating for a while how they can apply it to their social network. Apparently, it's in the most direct way possible.
Facebook is working on a full-body virtual reality system, one that puts an avatar that looks just like you into a VR simulation, so you can hang out with other real people in the (digital) flesh. The idea is to infuse the flagging social network with immersive new technology, in the hopes of bringing back users its lost over the past couple of years.
The avatars in question are anatomically correct models of the human body, complete with layers of muscle and skin over bone. They'll also look exactly like the user, and will replicate their real-life movements in real time using physics-based software. Supposedly, that also involves replicating the user's clothing and facial expressions as well.
The avatars available within the app right now are very limited, though they've improved since the project began. Right now, it's just your head and hands, since those are most-easily tracked using the Oculus Quest VR headset and controllers.
The demo video Facebook showed off on Wednesday however implies a more immersive future, with 3D-modelled bodies capable of a wide range of motion and interaction with the environment. Unfortunately, it'll take some time to achieve that level of progress.
Another thing the Facebook executive showing off the demo mentioned, is that the company will have to figure out how they're going to keep people's avatars safe, especially if they're an exact likeness. He suggested possibly using facial or fingerprint recognition to lock an avatar. Of course, trusting Facebook with your biometric data may not be the best idea, given their past displays of "security".