What would you do to hear the voice of your loved one again?
Since we're living in an age of artificial intelligence (AI), the reality of this concept is — artificially and strangely — within reach.
Amazon announced on Wednesday it was working on an update to allow its Alexa digital assistant to mimic any voice, even that of a deceased family member.
For those experiencing complicated grief after the loss of a loved one, Tamara Cavenett, president of the Australian Psychological Society, says the research shows evidence that reliving and processing painful memories related to the loss can be helpful.
Is AI blurring the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds?
At Amazon's annual conference last week, a video shows a child ask, "Alexa, can Grandma finish reading me the Wizard of Oz?"
The voice of an older woman mimicking the child's grandmother begins reading.
While no timeline was given on the launch of this feature, Rohit Prasad, Amazon senior vice-president and head scientist, said the updated system would be able to collect enough voice data from less than one minute of audio.
"We're unquestionably living in the golden era of AI," he said, "where our dreams and science fiction are becoming a reality."
Prasad said human attributes such as empathy have become "even more important in these times of the ongoing pandemic when so many of us have lost someone we love".
"While AI can't eliminate that pain of loss it can definitely make their memories last," he said.
A can of worms?
The concept of using AI in this way is not new. Cavenett says the appeal of this technology is clear but warns that it could tamper with natural processes and distort or interfere with a grieving person's memory of their loved one.
"[People] may struggle to stop engaging with the technology at the expense of real-world friendships and connections," Cavenett said.
There are plenty of sci-fi film and TV examples exploring the rise and use of AI.
From Fritz Lang's Metropolis in 1927, Ridley Scott's Blade Runner, James Cameron's The Terminator, through to Alex Garland's Ex Machina, Spike Jonze's sci-fi romcom Her, or Christopher Nolan's Interstellar.
But strikingly similar is Netflix series Black Mirror, in a season two episode.
A young woman struggles with the loss of her partner who died in a car crash. Following his death, she signs up to communicate with a chatbot version of him.
"I only came here to say one thing," she writes in her message to the chatbot.
"I'm pregnant."
"Wow. So I'll be a dad? — it responds.
"I wish I was there with you now."
A case of life imitating art, imitating life
James Vlahos says this technology has been therapeutic in his own grief process.
For months, Mr Vlahos recorded his father's life stories after he was diagnosed with cancer in 2017. Vlahos turned them into an interactive AI called Dadbot that speaks in his father's voice.
So it's not like we're getting the real person back, just sounds that are reminiscent of them.
In 2020, The San Francisco Chronicle published a story on 33-year-old freelance writer Joshua Barbeau who used a chatbot to have conversations with his partner Jessica. She had died eight years earlier from a rare liver disease.
Microsoft recently announced it was restricting the use of software that mimics a person's voice, saying the feature could be used as an act of deception.
"This technology has exciting potential in education, accessibility, and entertainment, and yet it is also easy to imagine how it could be used to inappropriately impersonate speakers and deceive listeners," Microsoft chief responsible AI officer Natasha Crampton said.
Love and Loss. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should, right?
It also comes with a range of ethical issues, such as using people's data without their consent.
"There is also concern with all technology as to how the data will be used and whether advancements might be designed specifically to increase engagement with the device," Cavenett said.
The one thing we do know is that when the people we love die, those of us who remain miss them.
"If you're struggling with grief it can be helpful to see a psychologist," Cavenett says.
"[They] can help you get unstuck, develop better adaptation and help you to emotionally engage with your memories and loss."
Cavenett says in healthy grief, we imagine or remember our loved ones on the basis of what we knew of them in life.
"Our memories of loved ones are an important part of the legacy they leave behind."
