Software developers of all kinds want to take advantage of the new AI capabilities of the hardware NPUs in Copilot+ PCs. McAfee believes it has one such feature: a deepfake detector.
The McAfee Deepfake Detector sounds like a potentially handy tool for fighting disinformation if it works as advertised: It lurks in the background of your PC, silently watching every video you watch. If it’s generated by AI, the McAfee service will issue an alert to that effect.
It’s not part of McAfee’s generally available antimalware solution, McAfee Total Protection – at least not yet. Instead, starting today, McAfee is making the app available exclusively to Lenovo customers who purchase select Lenovo PCs. Those customers will receive a free trial of the tool, which will cost them a one-time $9.99 for the entire year if they want to continue using it.
“At McAfee, we are inspired by the transformative potential of AI and want to shape a future where AI is used for good,” said Roma Majumder, senior vice president of product at McAfee, in a statement. “Collaborating with Lenovo strengthens our ability to deliver the most effective, automated, AI-powered deepfake detection and give people a powerful digital guard on their PCs. Together, we can use AI in new and revolutionary ways and provide individuals with the most advanced deepfake detection so they can safely and confidently navigate the evolving online world.”
How McAfee’s Deepfake Detector works
The detection tool doesn’t actually look at video, which is an interesting choice. Instead, it listens to the audio embedded in the video and applies its AI powers to it. All detection runs locally on the NPU, which of course assumes that a Lenovo customer owns an NPU-equipped PC. McAfee said that all analysis is processed locally, not in the cloud, and that the user’s audio is not recorded in any way. Audio detection can, of course, be turned on and off.
McAfee also announced that it is launching a new Smart AI Hub to raise awareness about deepfakes. Users can help fight disinformation and train McAfee’s AI by uploading a URL that hides a deepfake.
We’re always on the lookout for the best AI tools for your PC, including AI art and LLMs, also known as AI chatbots. Will McAfee’s service come in handy? With the selection season heating up, it’s hard to say no.
