A new development in AR for online communication, the Animoji uses facial-mapping software to allow users to control a customised avatar of a human, animal or ghost’s face on their iPhone X. But is this just another frivolous fad or does the popularity of animated avatars signal their important social role in online interaction?

Emojis have become ubiquitous in digital communications, but their use in marketing campaigns hasn’t always been successful. Canvas8 spoke to Dr. Sara Kim, an associate professor at the University of Hong Kong, to learn how people interpret and react to brands that use these symbols.

Just a year after the Oxford Dictionary named the 'crying with laughter emoji' 2015's word of the year, we may have reached peak emoji – or brands have, at least. Research shows that over half of Brits think brands are trying too hard with their use of heart eyes, winky faces and poop emojis.

With seemingly little effort in a smiley or thumbs up sign, emojis might have once been dismissed as the lowest form of communication. But as more human interaction goes digital and eliminates nonverbal cues, they're becoming a powerful vessel for people’s feelings and personalities.