Digital Resurrection: Legal Scholar Argues for Right to Digital Deletion to Prevent AI-Powered ‘Dead’ Person Impersonations

The concept of recreating deceased family members using artificial intelligence (AI) was once relegated to the realm of science fiction. However, it is swiftly becoming a real-world issue, with programmers utilizing advanced AI systems like OpenAI’s GPT-3 to replicate the voices and personalities of their deceased loved ones. Mainstream platforms, such as the AI companion app Replika, have also been used to develop chatbots that embody the personalities of deceased friends.

The likenesses of deceased celebrities are increasingly appearing in commercially released films, including the AI-generated voice of television chef Anthony Bourdain in a documentary chronicling his life. This raises questions about digital resurrection and the right to be forgotten for deceased individuals, as argued by legal scholar Victoria Haneman in a paper published in the Boston College Law Review.

Haneman, a professor at the University of Georgia School of Law, highlights the deficiencies and inconsistencies in existing laws when it comes to AI resurrection. For instance, she notes that the right to publicity – which grants individuals the ability to sue for unauthorized commercial use of their name, image, or likeness – is only applicable in approximately 25 states. Even when applicable, this right pertains exclusively to commercial use, such as the sale or use of a chatbot based on a deceased person in a movie.

Haneman also points out limitations within U.S. privacy law, noting that only a few states criminalize defamation and libel of the dead, such as Idaho, Nevada, and Oklahoma.

Existing legislation addresses old social media accounts, like the Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act (RUFADAA), which allows family members or trustees access to deceased individuals’ old social media accounts. However, this legislation does not prohibit data scraping based on a dead person’s online footprint, according to Haneman.

The California Delete Act grants consumers the right to request deletion of their data, but its application to the deceased remains uncertain. “Death is a legally significant event giving rise to different interests and entitlements, and the deceased user should not be an afterthought for big tech or policymakers,” Haneman added.

The issue of digital resurrection is gaining more attention in mainstream media, with Hollywood actor Samuel L. Jackson advising future actors to omit “in perpetuity” clauses in their contracts regarding complete digital scans of their faces and bodies. As technology continues to evolve, the debate surrounding digital resurrection and the right to be forgotten for deceased individuals will likely become even more pressing.