Google uses machine learning to accentuate speech bubbles comics

Google announced Bubble Zoom functionality at San Diego Comic-Con 2016. The company has modified its object recognition algorithms to detect the speech bubbles in order to magnify them.

Bubble Zoom should make it a lot easier to read comic books on smartphones and tablets, according to Google. The technique allows users to click on the speech bubbles to enlarge them. Google has automatically adapted the speech bubbles of the digital comics for this, whereby machine learning has ensured that the text parts are recognized.

Google is using machine learning for more and more functionality, including for recognizing objects and faces in photos, but also for translations and detecting medical conditions.

Bubble Zoom will be available as a technical preview in the Google Play Books app for Android. All available Marvel and DC comics are supported, but Google claims to support all comics and manga ‘ever made’ in the long run.