In China, a new and eerie trend is emerging. AI technology is being used to bring the dead back to life, digitally. Some companies claim they can "revive" deceased loved ones with as little as 30 seconds of audiovisual material. These digital ghosts, or "ghost bots," are becoming more popular as people seek to reconnect with those they have lost.

Seakoo Wu, a grieving father, turned to this technology after his 22-year-old son, Xuanmo, died suddenly. Wu spent thousands of euros to clone his son's face and voice using AI. The results, though rudimentary, are enough to bring his wife to tears when she hears their son's voice at his grave.

The industry is booming, with clients ranging from those who have died to living parents unable to spend time with their children and even a heartbroken woman’s ex-boyfriend. The emotional need in China is vast, giving the country a unique advantage in market demand, according to Zhang Zewei, founder of the AI firm Super Brain.

However, experts warn that more research is needed to understand the psychological and ethical implications of these ghost bots. The inability of the deceased to consent and the potential for these digital avatars to "contaminate" the memory of the departed raise significant ethical questions. Tal Morse, a visiting research fellow at the Centre for Death and Society at Britain's University of Bath, voices these concerns, highlighting the unsettling possibilities of this technology.

In the end, while AI ghost bots offer a new way to cope with grief, they also bring with them a haunting sense of unease and many unanswered questions.

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