Apple’s Persona technology uses Gaussian splatting to create 3D facial scans

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Gaussian splatting and rendering pipeline

  • Several comments clarify that Gaussian splatting is essentially “smart point clouds”: color (and view-dependent color) attached to points in space.
  • It still ends in rasterization, but the practical pipeline and rasterizer differ considerably from traditional triangle-based pipelines.
  • View-dependent color and stereoscopic viewing are emphasized as key to realism (specularity, subsurface scattering).

Explainers and examples

  • The linked YouTube explainer is widely panned as hype-heavy and content-light; others recommend more technical blog posts instead.
  • People point to film/VFX uses (e.g., recreating real-world environments and theme parks) as impressive, non-Apple demonstrations.
  • SIGGRAPH work on dynamic 3D Gaussian splatting for video is mentioned as a sign the technique is maturing.

Is Vision Pro telepresence solving a real problem?

  • One camp sees ultra-realistic telepresence as over-engineered when webcams already “work,” comparing it to the Segway vs cheap scooters.
  • Others argue that life-like presence, cross-talk, and body-language cues are exactly what burned-out video-meeting users want.
  • A counterpoint: most people won’t put on a heavy, hair/makeup‑messing headset for marginal gains, especially at Vision Pro prices.

Display resolution analogy debate

  • A side-thread compares “serviceable webcams” to “serviceable 1080p monitors.”
  • Some say 4K and high DPI bring huge comfort/productivity gains, similar in spirit to higher-fidelity telepresence.
  • Others argue that beyond a certain baseline (e.g., 1080p), returns diminish; computing has become incremental, not transformational.

Persona quality and uncanny valley

  • Users report a dramatic jump from the beta Personas (“monstrous”) to current ones; one persona even fooled a colleague for a while.
  • Smiles and head/eye motion still feel slightly uncanny or “fluid,” but facial-expression capture is surprisingly rich given the simple scan.

Latency and immersion

  • Latency is seen as dominated by network physics and Wi‑Fi, similar to Zoom/FaceTime; Persona rendering itself is assumed negligible.
  • Some describe persistent “Zoom fatigue” even when they adapt, implying added realism may not fully fix the medium’s cognitive load.

Technical and product limitations

  • Commenters highlight that the hard part isn’t building a 3D model from photos but animating it convincingly in real time from limited sensors.
  • Vision Pro’s Mac integration is criticized: only one mirrored display is officially supported; power users want multiple virtual monitors.

Use cases and adoption skepticism

  • Niche scenarios are imagined: long‑distance relationships, family far away, specialized 3D work, remote collaboration.
  • Others doubt mass adoption: VR/AR remains heavy, expensive, and socially “weird,” and may be a solution in search of mainstream demand.