You are about to read a blog post about something I never dreamed I would think about, much less write about. Please feel free to respond to me and let me know what you think of the idea expressed in the post. I never thought that AI would intersect with a blog about grief and loss and how to help others.
I think the only times I have encountered artificial intelligence (AI) has been trying to get an answer to a question on the internet or my phone and I agree to have a “chat” with my bank or insurance company, for example. Frankly, I do not like “chatting” in this way. My understanding is that chances are there is no real person responding to my question, but rather a computer “trained’ to think and act like a human. I rarely receive an appropriate answer.
AI at its simplest form is a field which combines computer science with data to potentially provide answers for customers or clients looking for help. AI is used in many organizations from healthcare to finance.
Back to the article – The “Good Morning America” show reports that a company called You, Only Virtual will soon be designing chatbots modeled after deceased loved ones. The company plans to scan texts, emails and phone calls between the person who has died and the loved one to create a chatbot that would mimic the deceased loved one’s voice and relationship the two had. The founder of the company says, “he hopes people won’t have to feel grief at all.”
I’ll let you think about for a minute……………. In my work with the bereaved I have encountered folks who retained their loved one’s recorded voice on a telephone answering device, for example. They told me it helped to hear their loved one’s voice from time-to-time.
I wrote a post last July I called Grieving Forever. That post told of folks who would enter an unconnected telephone booth someone set up, and simply talked into the phone as they might to a deceased person. Even with no response, the author said it helped in the mourning process.
These two approaches apparently were helpful to mourners. Anything that helps someone reconcile the pain they feel from the loss of a loved one is good. So, is this AI “product” simply a bit more sophisticated phone messaging device?
I can imagine a down side of this “invention.” What if the texts, emails or phone calls are misinterpreted by the bot and answers the mourner in a way that brings more sadness. For example, what if a response is created from the bot that is sarcastic or angry in a way the deceased person would have never responded to someone. I suspect that would not be helpful but hurtful.
Good for anyone out there who creates something to help mourners reconcile losses. But they should be careful doing so and not make a person hurt more. Remember, if chatbots alienate a caller to the doctor’s office or the bank, you surely don’t want endanger a grieving spouse!
May you be at peace!
At Peace 