Can AI Read Your Emotions?

The Truth Behind Emotion Recognition Technology

Damien Dupré, DCU Business School

A Bit About Myself

Research focus:

• Understanding Genuine Facial Expressions
• Evaluating Physiological Correlates of Emotions

• +30 international conferences
• 2 patents about emotion recognition systems
• 10 research papers in well known journals

What is Emotion AI?

The identification of an emotional state using objective indicators

• Text recognition used for sentiment analysis
• Physiological measurements (Heart Rate, Breathing Rate, Sweat)
• Bodily postures and … Facial expressions

Unreliable Science Fed in AI

Paul Ekman, in the 1970s:

• New method to categorise facial expressions:
  • FACS or Facial Action Coding System
  • Considers that micro-expressions are signs of deceptions
• New theory about Emotion
  • 7 Emotions
  • Universal
  • Hard-wired into our biology

Automatic Emotion Recognition

Systems trained to recognise facial configurations/expressions and to infer emotions. However, things were not working as planned…

And most importantly…

• We have more than 7 different emotions;
• We can do more than 7 different facial expression;
• We can express emotions that we don’t feel;
• We can hide emotions that we are feeling;
• We all have our own ways to express our emotions.

Thank You!

“Can’t read my,

can’t read my

No, [AI] can’t read my

poker face”