The question now is whether the deceased would agree

The possibility of “resuscitating” the dead is something that We have already seenbut with artificial intelligence tools the thing goes beyond a simple Deepfake. Imagine being able to maintain a conversation with a loved one who died every time you want. Well, with its virtual version. It sounds like Black Mirror episode, but the trend is growing. This opens new doors for duel and memory, but also raises legal and ethical questions about control and consent about digital identity after death.

Duel technology. The ‘Grief Tech‘Use technology to help people cope with the loss of a loved one. As? Creating digital versions with which they can interact. It is one booming trend. In China, the Deepfakes of loved ones They are increasingly popular. The emergence of increasingly advanced artificial intelligence tools allows the result to be more realistic.

There are companies doing business with this, such as HEREAFTER AI either Sence ai That based on tattered conversations and memories, they create a chatbot with which to hold a conversation. Others take it further and create an interactive video-Avatar. This is the case of Re; Memory, You, Virtual Only either Storyfile. The latter has helped the Lista family, protagonists of this NYT reportto create an avatar of his father who suffers from terminal cancer. These virtual ghosts have also been used for other purposes, such as This created from a murdered young man to cause a greater impact on the jury.

Why this happens. Save memories of our loved ones when they die is something that humans have done For millennia. Objects, photographs, videos or an avatar with AI, all respond to the need to remember the link we had with that person. However, it is not the same to look at a photo than to maintain conversations with a digital replica of a dead loved one and raises doubts of its consequences, both at the psychologic and ethical level.

The duel in the AI ​​era. This type of digital chatbots or avatars can be comforting at specific times, questions about their effect on long -term mental health arise. The loss of a loved one is a very painful process and, if complicated, can lead to weakening symptoms. In statements a EuronewsDr. Kirsten Smith, a clinical researcher at the University of Oxford, said: “There is evidence of multiple studies that indicates that the search for proximity (behaviors destined to restore closeness to the deceased person) is related to worse results in mental health.”

Some of these ‘Grief Tech’ services as it is already in mind and are presented as a temporary tool to help process the loss. In their case they offer a payment model for each session with the chatbot and also its use time is limited.

What does the law say. Who decides who can be resurrected with an AI? The truth is that there is no legislation that prevents creating one of these ‘posthumous avatars’. The works created by a person are protected by the Intellectual Property Lawbut not your voice, photos or videos. He General Data Protection Regulation in force in the European Union does not apply directly to deceased persons and, in the case of the call Digital willit focuses on user profiles on social networks and accounts of different services

That do not resurrect me with ia. In Ars Technica They talked about this subject and raised the question: can you put in the will that they do not “resurrect” with ia? We do not know if someone has done it, but it may not serve much without clear legislation. If someone creates a ‘digital ghost’ of a deceased without permission, family members could request that it be eliminated, the problem is that it is the relatives themselves who request it (which would be the most logical).

Cover image | Gemini

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