Recent advances in artificial intelligence technology have made the concept of interacting with deceased loved ones a reality. Inspired by the Black Mirror episode “Be Right Back,” individuals like James Vlahos and companies like his DeepBrain AI are leveraging his AI to create chatbots and videos that mimic the personalities and mannerisms of deceased people. Creating an avatar.
Screenshot from the Black Mirror episode “Be Right Back”
Remember the Black Mirror episode titled “Be Right Back” where Martha creates an AI version of her deceased boyfriend Ash using an online service that uses all of people's information to build a digital version? It was discovered that it is possible to communicate with Current advances in artificial intelligence technology have made it possible in real life.
James Vlahos of Oakland, California, who lost his father in 2017, created an AI-powered chatbot that can answer questions about his father's life in his father's voice. The project is the result of Vlahos' desire to preserve richer memories of his father, using hours of recordings of his father's life story to create his AI-powered chatbot that is interactive. This led to the idea. This effort led to his founding of HereafterAI in 2019, allowing others to create similar AI chatbots for their loved ones.
In an interview with the BBC, Vlahos said the chatbot would not ease the pain of loss, but it would give her a solid connection to her father's memory. However, psychologists are less enthusiastic about this approach. It's a topic that people are divided on. If you've ever seen the “Be Right Back” episode of Black Mirror, you already know how the episode ends.
DeepBrain AI: Video-based avatars
In the future, AI will not be the only thing that will allow us to create digital personalities. South Korea's DeepBrain AI goes a step further, allowing users to create video-based avatars by capturing an individual's face, voice, and mannerisms from hours of recorded video and audio.
The company's chief financial officer, Michael Jung, said the avatars closely resemble the original person, with up to 96.5 percent resemblance, the BBC reported. DeepBrain aims to integrate this technology into fostering a culture of “dying well,” allowing individuals to preserve family history and memories as a form of living legacy.
However, this process comes with a hefty price tag, reaching up to $50,000. Despite the costs, investors are reportedly optimistic about its potential popularity, as evidenced by the company's successful $44 million funding round.
