Meta and AI Simulation of the Deceased: A Controversial Patent

Meta has filed a patent for an artificial intelligence (AI) system capable of simulating a person's social media activity after their death. This system, if implemented, would allow users to chat with Facebook or Instagram accounts of deceased friends or family members, with a large language model (LLM) simulating their online behavior.

The patent, filed in 2023, has raised concerns about its dystopian implications. Although Meta has stated that it has no plans to develop this technology, recent research highlights how generative AI is increasingly being used to digitally recreate deceased people.

Spectral Labor and Ethical Implications

Tom Divon, lead author of a study on the subject, emphasizes how Meta's patent stands out for its potential scope. While other digital resurrection projects via AI are often specific and limited, Meta's proposal would integrate post-mortem simulation directly into the social media infrastructure.

The practice of digitally animating the dead raises urgent legal and ethical questions, particularly regarding consent, privacy, and post-mortem data management. There are currently no clear regulations governing the use of a deceased person's data to power interactive AI systems.

Consent and Digital Boundaries

Divon suggests that legislators should focus on defining explicit pre-death consent requirements for posthumous AI simulation. Current laws treat "digital remains" as inheritable property or privacy interests to be protected, but AI transforms these materials into something interactive and potentially profitable.

The central question is whether individuals should continue to generate social and economic value after death without having given informed consent to such use. Lack of action could be interpreted as implicit agreement, raising questions about personal data sovereignty and the right to digital oblivion.