Apple was just awarded a patent for software that would generate “synthetic group selfies,” which, as Protocol points out, could be a way to take group selfies for social media, even if you’re trying to stay socially distant from your friends. According to the patent application (first discovered by Patently Apple), a user of the Apple device (it is not clear if the feature would be available on iPads, iPhones or both) could invite others to participate in a group selfie, and the software would. organize them together in a single image. The selfie could include still photos, stored video images, or live stream images. Users could keep the original selfie as well as the group version, and the original user and recipients of the group image could modify the selfie, for example by positioning themselves in a different position in the group. This is how it would look, depending on the patent request:
Although the idea of a socially distant selfie seems perfect for a time when there is a global pandemic restricting social gatherings, it is a safe bet that the concept was not developed specifically with the current state of affairs in mind; Apple first applied for the patent in 2018 and just got it on June 2. Of course, as is always the case with patents, the standard caveats apply: there is no indication of when or how Apple might decide to use the software, or if synthetic group selfies will ever become something.
