Synthetic data could ease the burden of training data for AI models

Indeed, one of the first synthetic data examples Schatsky encountered was for computer vision, technology that enables machines to recognize faces or identify objects in digital photos. Researchers today are building sophisticated computer vision features where the technology can follow an eye gaze or detect an emotion on someone's face. But gathering the amount of data needed -- and labeling it -- is laborious. "And, so, what researchers did is they took a 3D-digital model of a human face and then manipulated it," Schatsky said. They can generate as many permutations of facial expressions or eye positions as they want -- and they can do so "quickly and cheaply, compared to collecting a comparable number of images," he said.