A study published in *Psychophysiology* by researchers at Bournemouth University reveals that when the human brain encounters emoji faces, it often mistakenly interprets them as real human faces. This misinterpretation occurs within 70 milliseconds for emojis, compared to 120 milliseconds for actual faces, indicating a minimal time difference in processing. Using EEG technology, researchers monitored brain activity as participants viewed both emoji faces and photographs of real people expressing various emotions. The findings suggest that the brain employs overlapping neural coding for both types of faces, meaning it doesn't initially differentiate between them. Although the brain recognizes real faces more distinctly, the exaggerated expressions of emojis can sometimes convey clearer emotional signals. This insight helps explain why emojis enhance digital communication, providing a semblance of human interaction in text-based conversations.