The Future of Mourning: Chatting with Deceased Loved Ones via AI Chatbots
For nearly a decade, Katarzyna Nowaczyk-Basińska, a researcher at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence at the University of Cambridge, has been exploring the emerging phenomenon of digital immortality—how technology is transforming our relationship with death and mourning. Her work, especially the project “Imaginaries of Immortality in the Age of AI” launched in 2024, examines how artificial intelligence is increasingly enabling conversations with avatars of deceased individuals, offering a new way to connect with those who have passed away.
Digital Afterlife Becomes Reality
Already, companies based primarily in the United States and China have begun providing services that create virtual representations or "avatars" of deceased loved ones. These avatars, powered by AI and generated from a person’s digital footprint, allow surviving family members and friends to engage in conversations as if the deceased were still alive. Some of these post-mortem avatars have even “spoken” at funerals or legal trials, marking an unprecedented shift in how society interacts with death.
This innovation, which Nowaczyk-Basińska calls the "digital afterlife industry," is rapidly evolving from a futuristic concept into a real, growing market. Such technology was once dismissed as unsettling or "creepy," but perceptions have shifted towards recognizing its ethical complexity and potential societal impact.
Changing Traditions and Cultural Norms
When asked whether cemeteries will still be visited in 2030, Nowaczyk-Basińska predicts a substantial change. “When we visit a cemetery, it’s usually not that often… but when you have your dead loved ones in your pockets—in your phone—you can easily access this person online almost 24/7,” she says. This new ease of access could increase the intensity of interactions with deceased relatives, providing immersive, engaging conversational experiences that traditional memorials cannot match.
The convenience and interactivity of AI chatbots may eventually render physical cemetery visits an old-fashioned practice. “It’s not more engaging to go to a cemetery than to have your loved one on a video call or in an app, with whom you can talk whenever you want,” she notes.
Ethical, Legal, and Social Concerns
Despite the exciting possibilities, Nowaczyk-Basińska raises significant concerns. The digital afterlife industry is currently unregulated, driven mainly by private companies making arbitrary decisions about how to design and deploy these avatars. She emphasizes the need for professionalization and greater involvement of experts experienced in death-related issues to guide ethical practices.
Legal frameworks addressing data use, consent, and ownership of digital remains are sorely lacking. Questions arise around who has the authority to create or delete these digital avatars and how to handle conflicting wishes within families. For example, siblings might disagree about maintaining or interacting with a deceased relative’s avatar, which is why the researcher proposes a "principle of mutual consent" to balance different family members’ rights and emotional well-being.
Additionally, Nowaczyk-Basińska introduces the idea of a "digital embalmer," a nascent profession devoted to curating and managing digital remains. This role raises profound ethical questions about whether it is appropriate to alter or reshape a deceased person’s digital persona to fit family expectations or to present a certain narrative to future generations.
Impact on Grieving and Intergenerational Communication
While these AI-driven avatars offer opportunities for new forms of intergenerational communication—acting almost like interactive archives—there is little data on how they affect the grieving process. Nowaczyk-Basińska cautions that using such technology during mourning is an uncharted territory with unknown psychological consequences.
The technology also prompts reflection on how individuals curate their digital footprints during life, knowing that these data points could one day become the basis of their digital legacy. This awareness may influence how people share their life stories or present themselves to posterity, potentially creating a selective or idealized digital memory.
Toward a New Understanding of Death
Ultimately, digital immortality carries the profound potential to redefine what it means to die. It offers a way for death to feel less like a final goodbye and more like a temporary pause—a “see you later.” The prospect of continuing relationships with deceased loved ones through AI challenges traditional cultural norms and pushes society toward new mourning practices.
As businesses innovate rapidly and consumers become more open to using these technologies, ongoing research and careful ethical considerations are vital. The work of scholars like Katarzyna Nowaczyk-Basińska ensures that as the digital afterlife industry grows, it does so with awareness of the deep emotional, societal, and moral implications involved.
This article is based on insights from Katarzyna Nowaczyk-Basińska’s research and recent interviews published by EL PAÍS.
