Companies are âresurrectingâ deceased loved ones using AI
Image: Silicon Intelligence
In yet another example of Black Mirror-turning-reality: A growing number of people who have suffered the loss of a loved one are turning to AI to preserve, animate, and interact with their deceased friend or family member.
These so-called âdeadbotsâ are particularly popular in China, where at least a half-dozen companies have launched competing products and driven the price of a digital âresurrectionâ down from ~$2,500 to a few hundred dollars over the past year.
How it works: Deadbots are essentially AI-produced deepfakes that function similar to current technology used to replicate a living person. Machine learning is used to generate a realistic personal avatar that can move and speak, with integrated large language models generating the conversations.
- The more data these AI models can access about someoneâs life â drawn from photos, videos, audio recordings, and text messages provided by the client â the more closely the avatar will mimic that person.
Yes, but⌠Many experts have warned that interacting with AI replicas of the dead could actually be an unhealthy way to process grief, citing recent scientific research that shows the presence of deadbots can cause significant damage by short-circuiting the normal mourning process. They have also raised questions about whether dead people can officially consent to having their likeness recreated digitally.
Zoom out: In the US, many smaller AI companies have launched chatbots that are explicitly designed to provide companionship to humans, with some executives arguing that AI friends or significant others can help address Americaâs ongoing loneliness epidemic.
- However, none of the current leading AI labs â including OpenAI, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and others â are focused on companionship, with company leaders deeming it too risky to let users form emotional connections with their chatbots.
đ Flash poll: Would you personally be open to the idea of having an AI companion and/or a âdeadbotâ replica of a loved one?
See a 360° view of what media pundits are saying â
Sprinkles in favor of AI companions and âdeadbotsâ
- Some commentators argue that while not everyone will be interested in or gain value from an AI avatar of a deceased loved one, thereâs a possibility that such tools could help certain people work through their grief.
- Others contend that it might be easy to assume AI bot users are more isolated and less prone to socializing with real people, but in reality bots often prime people for real-world interactions and experiences, rather than encouraging solitude.
- âReviving The Dead With AI: Is It Really Worth It?â âFederico Guerrini, Forbes
- âArtificial intelligence will forever change our relationships. We can still choose how.â âMichelle Culver, The Colorado Sun
- âAI companions are on the rise â should we be worried?â âNatalie Issa, Deseret
Sprinkles against AI companions and âdeadbotsâ
- Some commentators argue that the grief associated with the loss of a loved one isnât supposed to be easy, and that AI avatars are stepping over the line between an act of grief and disregard for the universal etiquette of letting the dead rest in peace.
- Others contend that while AI companions are marketed as something that will enhance your mental health and well-being, they specialize in delivering dependency, loneliness, and toxicity, all while prying as much data as possible from you.
- âAI avatars? I'm dead against the idea of digitally resurrecting my loved onesâ âHayley Kadrou, The National
- âYour new AI girlfriend doesnât love you. Sheâs just monetizing youâ âVinay Menon, Toronto Star
- âMy dinner with AIâ âJosh Tyrangiel, WaPo
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