An AI company is facing criticism online following the release of a video promoting its new avatar app.
2wai, a technology company based in Los Angeles, introduced its social app for avatars on the Apple store on Tuesday (November 11).
The app employs artificial intelligence to enable users to create a HoloAvatar, which according to their website, “looks and talks like you, and even shares the same memories.”
In a video shared by co-founder Calum Worthy, the app is pitched as a tool to remember deceased loved ones.
Many people have compared it to an episode of Black Mirror.
On social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, the promotional video has been viewed approximately 1.1 million times.
“What if the loved ones we’ve lost could be part of our future?” Worthy asks in the video description.
The video features an avatar of an elderly woman supporting her daughter through pregnancy via a smartphone.
The avatar then ‘watches’ her grandson grow and eventually builds a relationship with him.
As time progresses, the grandson seeks advice from his avatar grandmother regarding his own wife’s pregnancy.
The video concludes with the message: “With 2wai, three minutes can last forever.”
Worthy commented: “At 2wai, we’re building a living archive of humanity, one story at a time. It all starts with the social network for avatars: the 2wai app.”
“Try the 2wai beta on the App Store. Android coming soon.”
The concept hasn’t been well-received by everyone.
“This is the most evil thing I’ve ever seen…” one person criticized, while another described the concept as ‘vile’.
“Death and loss are normal parts of life. You’re creating dependent and lobotomized adults by doing this. Actually vile,” another remarked.
Imagining a future scenario, one person commented: “‘Are you sure you want to cancel your subscription and never talk to your dead parents again?’ You are a psychopath.
“Get help. Stop building products before you really hurt someone.”
The app is currently free to download but offers in-app purchases.
“There’s literally a Black Mirror episode about this,” someone noted, while another pointed out that the show had ‘already warned us’ about such technology.
In 2013, the Channel 4 series, later acquired by Netflix, aired the first episode of its second season, titled Be Right Back.
In the episode, Martha (Hayley Atwell) is a young woman who interacts with an AI chatbot version of her boyfriend, Ash Starmer (Domhnall Gleeson), following his death in a car accident.
The AI technology is based on Ash’s social media activity. Martha eventually obtains a physical android of him but ends up storing it in the attic.
She keeps it for her daughter, allowing her to make some memories with her late father.
The company has been contacted for a response regarding the app.