Using AI models (like Artemis or Gaia) that sharpen eyes and skin texture without creating "uncanny valley" faces.
The team used a multi-pass system:
| Pros ✅ | Cons ❌ | |--------|--------| | Sharper character faces & ship exteriors | No official studio involvement | | Better for large 4K screens | Some fine details may be hallucinated by AI | | Restores some detail lost in compression | Motion artifacts possible in fast action | | Free (fan project) | Inconsistent quality across episodes | star trek deep space 9 s01 ai upscale 4k 2020 top
In 2024, Paramount announced a "remastered" DS9 for streaming, but it was merely a subpar AI upscale done by a third party—soft, waxy, and inferior to the 2020 fan projects. The fan releases remain superior because they were per-episode, per-shot tuned, whereas streaming services use one-size-fits-all automation. Using AI models (like Artemis or Gaia) that