Rapidly evolving digital afterlife industry, learn how to navigate its risks

When interacting with this digital parent, you find yourself on an emotional rollercoaster. You discover secrets and stories you never knew, changing how you remember the real person.

This is not a distant, hypothetical scenario. O afterlife digital industry is evolving quickly. Several companies promise to create virtual reconstructions of deceased individuals based on their digital footprints.

From artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots and virtual avatars to holograms, this technology offers a strange mix of comfort and disruption. It can take us to deeply personal experiences that blur the lines between past and present, memory and reality.

As the digital afterlife industry grows, significantly ethical It is emotional challenges. These include concerns about consent, privacy and the psychological impact on the living.

What is the afterlife digital industry?

VR and AI technologies are making virtual reconstructions of our loved ones possible. Companies in this niche industry use data from social media posts, emails, text messages and voice recordings to create digital personas that can interact with the living.

Although it is still a niche, the number of players in the afterlife digital industry It is growing.

From here on allows users to record stories and messages throughout their lifetime, which can be accessed posthumously by loved ones. My wishes offers the possibility of sending pre-scheduled messages after death, maintaining a presence in the lives of the living.

Hanson Robotics created robotic busts that interact with people using the deceased’s memories and personality traits. December project grants users access to so-called “deep AI” to participate in text-based conversations with those who have passed away.

Generative AI also plays a crucial role in the digital afterlife industry. These technologies enable the creation of highly realistic and interactive digital personas. But the high level of realism can blur the line between reality and simulation. This can improve the user experience, but it can also cause emotional and psychological distress.

A technology ready for misuse

Digital afterlife technologies can help the grieving process offering continuity and connection with the deceased. Hearing a loved one’s voice or seeing their likeness can provide comfort and help you process the loss.

For some of us, these digital immortals could be therapeutic tools. They can help us preserve positive memories and feel close to loved ones, even after they have passed away.

But for others, the emotional impact can be profoundly negative, exacerbating suffering rather than alleviating it. AI recreations of loved ones have the potential to cause psychological harm if the bereaved end up having unwanted interactions with them. It is essentially being subject to a “digital haunting”.

Other Major problems It is ethical concerns that surround this technology include consent, autonomy and privacy.

For example, the deceased may not have agreed to their data being used for a “digital afterlife”.

There is also a risk of misuse and manipulation of data. Companies could exploit digital immortals for commercial gain by using them to advertise products or services. Digital personas could be altered to convey messages or behaviors that the deceased would never have endorsed.

We need regulation

To respond to concerns around this rapidly emerging industry, we need to update our legal frameworks. We need to address issues such as digital estate planning, who inherits the deceased’s digital personas, and ownership of digital memory.

The European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) recognize post-mortem privacy rightsbut faces challenges in application.

Social media platforms control access to deceased users’ data, often against the wishes of their heirs, with clauses such as “no right of survival”complicating things. Limited platform practices undermine the effectiveness of GDPR. Comprehensive protection requires reevaluating contractual rules, aligning them with human rights.

The digital afterlife industry offers comfort and memory preservation, but raises ethical and emotional concerns. Implementing thoughtful regulations and ethical guidelines can honor both the living and the dead to ensure that digital immortality enhances our humanity.

What can we do?

Researchers have recommended several ethical guidelines It is regulations. Some recommendations include:

• obtain informed and documented consent before creating digital personas of people before they die
• age restrictions to protect vulnerable groups
• clear disclaimers to ensure transparency
• and strong data privacy and security measures.

Drawing on ethical frameworks in archaeology, a 2018 study suggested treating digital remains as an integral part of personality, proposing regulations to ensure dignity, especially in recreational services.

Dialogue between policymakers, industry and academics is crucial to developing ethical and regulatory solutions. Providers should also offer ways for users to respectfully end their interactions with digital personas.

Through careful and responsible development, we can create a future where digital afterlife technologies meaningfully and respectfully honor our loved ones.

As we navigate this brave new world, it is crucial to balance the benefits of staying connected to our loved ones with the potential risks and ethical dilemmas.

By doing so, we can ensure that the digital afterlife industry develops in a way that respects the memory of the deceased and supports the emotional well-being of the living.

(Author Arif PerdanaAssociate Professor of Digital Strategy and Data Science, Monash University)

This article was republished from The conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.