3 min read

Yesterday, Benjamin Groessing, a web consultant and developer at byteq, released remove.bg, a tool built on python, ruby and deep learning. This tool automatically removes the background of any image within 5 seconds. It uses various custom algorithms for the processing of the image.

Yes, there is. Fantastic work. Thanks a lot! — Florian Hammer (@hammer_flo_) December 18, 2018

It is a free service and users don’t have to manually select the background/foreground layers to separate them. One can simply select an image and instantly download the resulting image with the background removed.

Features of remove.bg

Personal and professional use

Remove.bg can be used by graphic designer, photographer or selfie lover for removing backgrounds.

Saves time and money

It saves time as it is automated and it is free of cost.

100% Automatic

Apart from the image file, this release doesn’t require inputs such as selecting pixels, marking persons, etc.

How does remove.bg work?

It's a custom algorithm with multiple stages. Basically we classify image regions around persons with AI, then optimize the results to improve the edges. Perhaps we'll write more about it in the future if there's interest. — Benjamin Groessing (@begroe) December 17, 2018

Remove.bg uses AI technology for detecting foreground layers and separating them from the background. It uses additional algorithms for improving fine details and preventing color contamination. The AI detects persons as foreground and everything else as background. So, it only works if there is at least one person in the image. Users can upload images of any resolution but for performance reasons, the output image has been limited to 500 × 500 pixels.

Privacy in remove.bg

User images are uploaded through a secure SSL/TLS-encrypted connection. These images are processed and the result is temporarily stored till the time a user can download them. After which, approximately an hour later, these image files get deleted.

Privacy message on the official website of remove.bg states, “We do not share your images or use them for any other purpose than removing the background and letting you download the result.”

What can be expected from the next release?

The next set of releases might support other kinds of images such as product images.

The team at Remove.bg might also release an easy-to-use API.

Users are very excited about this release and the technology used behind it. Many users are comparing it with the portrait mode on iPhone X. Though it is not that fast but users are still liking it.

I'd say a fair comparison would be this vs portrait mode on iPhone X. I'm really liking the results of this, granted it's not as fast but it also doesn't have a depth sensing camera taking the photo. — Evan Bacon 🥓 (@Baconbrix) December 17, 2018

Yes, there is. Fantastic work. Thanks a lot! — Florian Hammer (@hammer_flo_) December 18, 2018

But how strong is remove.bg with regards to privacy is a bigger question. Though the website gives a privacy note at the end but it will take more to win the user’s trust. The images uploaded to remove.bg’ cloud might be at risk. How strong is the security and what preventive measures have they taken? These are few of the questions that might bother many.

To have a look at the ongoing discussion on remove.bg, check out Benjamin Groessing’s AMA twitter thread.

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