Apple bought back the bankrupt startup's patents that would allow it to significantly improve Face ID

Apple recently purchased several patents from Lighthouse AI. It focused on home security with an emphasis on security cameras. The purchase of a handful of patents took place at the end of last year, but the US Patent Office only published the relevant details this week.

The patents that Apple bought are related to technology used in the field of security, and based on computer vision, visual authentication and other elements. There are eight patents in total, one of which, for example, describes a security system based on computer vision using a depth camera. Another patent explains visual authentication methods and system. There is also a trio of requests on the list, all of which are related to monitoring systems.

SOCIETY Lighthouse AI officially ceased its activities in December of last year. The reason was the failure to achieve the planned commercial success. Lightouse focused mainly on the use of augmented reality (AR) and 3D sensing, especially in the field of security camera systems. The company's intention was to use artificial intelligence to provide its customers with the most accurate information possible through an iOS application.

When the company announced its shutdown in December, CEO Alex Teichman said he was proud of the groundbreaking work his team had done to deliver useful and affordable smart AI and 3D sensing technologies for the home.

How Apple will use the patents - and if at all - is not yet clear. One of the possibilities of applying authentication technologies can be the improvement of the Face ID function, but it is equally possible that the patents will find their use, for example, within the HomeKit platform.

Source: PatentlyApple