What Is TikTok's 'Aged' Filter And How Accurate Is It? TikTok's AI Aging Filter Explained

A filter on TikTok that supposedly shows you what you might look like in a few decades went viral in July 2023. The filter adds all the telltale signs of aging to an otherwise young face, like wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, and sagging, all with the help of artificial intelligence.

The filter has some people worried, with TikTokers posting videos trying to find a more flattering angle for their older faces and others vowing to change up their skincare and health regiments after seeing their wizened faces. But how accurate is this Aged filter? Here's all you need to know about it.

What Is The TikTok Aged Filter?

The Aged Filter is an in-app feature on the video-sharing app TikTok that allows a user to see an AI-generated version of what they might look like when they are older. The filter adds wrinkles, eye bags, smile lines and more in an effort to predict what a few decades' worth of aging might look like.

How Accurate Is The TikTok Aging Filter?

Some people attempted to check the veracity of the TikTok aging filter by applying it to younger photos of older celebrities. One TikToker opened an old episode of the '90s sitcom Friends to see if the filter accurately aged stars like Jennifer Aniston, while another TikToker pulled up old headshots of actors like Meryl Streep to check the same.

The consensus seems to be that the aging filter does a pretty good job of showing what someone might look like when they are older, but this accuracy isn't accidental. AI face morphing tools are often trained on publically available faces, which include hours and hours of commercially available media like television shows and movies. An aging filter is likely to work best on a celebrity face, simply because that's what the filters were trained with.

How Are People Reacting To The Aged Filter?

A lot of young people seem to be reacting to the TikTok Aged Filter with worry and concern, especially after seeing how accurately it works on celebrity faces. One TikToker made it his goal to try and find the most flattering angle for the filter, while another used a dermatologist's voiceover to show her updated skincare regime as a means to stave off aging for as long as possible.

How Can I Use The TikTok 'Aged' Filter?

You can try out the TikTok Aged Filter by opening TikTok on your phone and finding it in the filter catalog. You can also access the filter by visiting a video that uses the filter, and clicking on the filter tab displayed near the video's caption.

For the full history of TikTok Aged Filter, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.