How AI Stole the ✨ Sparkles ✨ Emoji

The speaker discusses how emojis have evolved over time and how their meanings can change depending on cultural context. They use the skull emoji as an example, which originally meant "I'm dying" but has since become just a skull symbol.They also talk about Japanese visual affixes, such as the sparkles emoji, which are emotional cues that don't represent real things. The sparkles emoji was originally used to represent cuteness or beauty in Japan but has taken on different meanings in Western cultures, including being used for digital decoration and later, irony and sarcasm.The speaker suggests that emojis have become a form of visual shorthand that can be misinterpreted or misunderstood outside of their original cultural context. They also mention how companies like Samsung and Google have contributed to the evolution of emojis over time.Throughout the video, the speaker shares personal anecdotes and insights from interviews with experts in the field, including Keith Brony, the founder of EmojiPedia, and Jennifer Daniel, the chair of the Unicode emoji subcommittee.