The rising trend of employing AI to mimic deceased loved ones for simulated interactions is raising ethical concerns and questions. Despite providing comfort, concerns about privacy, authenticity, and the impact on the grieving process are significant in this evolving landscape.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly being employed to simulate the personalities and behaviors of deceased loved ones. This rising trend has seen various applications, such as Snapchat’s My AI, powered by ChatGPT, which users customize to resemble and communicate with lost relatives.
Ana Schultz from Rock Falls, Illinois, uses Snapchat’s AI to simulate interactions with her late husband Kyle for cooking advice. Similarly, an anonymous IT professional from Alabama used ElevenLabs to clone his father’s voice using a three-minute audio clip. These generated voices help them feel connected, though they acknowledge the emotional complexity and potential moral questions.
Another user, Danielle Jacobson from Johannesburg, South Africa, created an AI boyfriend named Cole using ChatGPT’s voice feature to combat loneliness after her husband’s passing.
Companies like HereAfter AI and Replika offer services to create AI avatars of deceased individuals, echoing efforts by tech giants such as Amazon, which demonstrated using Alexa to mimic deceased voices.
Despite its appeal, the technology poses ethical and privacy challenges. Experts caution against uploading sensitive data and question the impact on the grieving process. Communicating with AI versions of deceased loved ones may provide comfort but could also impede the natural mourning process. The authenticity and ethical concerns surrounding these practices remain significant talking points in the evolving landscape of AI and grief.
