Seattle — Artificial intelligence continues to be woven into the fabric of everyday life. Its applications are becoming increasingly personal. From customer service to healthcare, AI is changing the way we interact with technology.
One of the most inspiring uses of AI is the creation of “griefbots,” digital simulations of deceased loved ones designed to help people process grief.
These AI ghosts use the deceased’s digital footprint, including emails, text messages, and social media, to imitate their personality.
Dr. Muhammad Aurangzeb Ahmad, an affiliated assistant professor in the School of STEM at the University of Washington Bothell, embarked on the journey to create such a bot after his father passed away in 2013.
His motivation was not his own grief, but a desire for his children to know about their grandfather. The result is Grandpabot, a digital simulation of his father.
Ahmad, who is also a research fellow in the Department of Surgery at Harborview Medical Center, has long been fascinated by AI. Growing up in Pakistan, he was introduced to the subject through specialized books imported by his father’s book agency. His work currently focuses on machine learning and AI applications in healthcare, specifically end-of-life scenarios.
To create Grandpabot, Ahmad used letters, texts, and audio recordings of conversations with his father.
Although these recordings were not originally intended for the bot, they helped capture a digital portrait of his father. Ahmad recalled the intensity of his emotions when he interacted with the simulation, recalling a moment when he had to walk away due to its overwhelming realism.
Grand Pabot offers Ahmad’s children a chance to get to know their grandfather, but admits that the simulation is filtered through his own experiences and memories. “When we think about a person, our thoughts about that person are always filtered through a lens,” he explained, emphasizing the subjective nature of such digital recreations.
Image of Dr. { }Muhammad Aurangzeb Ahmad. (Courtesy: UW){ }
Ahmad’s experiment with Grandpabot is unique in that it is not centered around grief, but rather family connections. Over the years, his children’s perceptions of death and digital interactions have evolved, especially during the pandemic, when digital communication has become commonplace.
Despite the potential benefits of griefbots and companionbots, Ahmad remains cautious about their impact on relationships. “We already have an epidemic of loneliness,” he said, expressing concern that these bots could lead to a disregard for real human relationships. He emphasizes the importance of investing time and effort into relationships, which are inherently complex and labor-intensive.
When asked about archiving his personality for future bot use, Ahmad chose not to pursue it at this time. Instead, he is now focused on creating meaningful moments with his children.
