‘Digital mom’
The so-called “digital resurrection” is based on historical data such as photos and videos, using AI technology to reproduce the voice, image, and behavior of deceased individuals, generating similar outputs.
The first time Zhu heard of “digital resurrection” was in the spring of 2023. He watched various “digitally resurrected relatives” online, thinking about making a digital doppelganger of his mother, who, in his words, probably doesn’t have much time left.
“While taking care of my mom, I hoped that I could make a digital version of her, as a special memory that she can leave for her loved ones,” Zhu told the Global Times. “I’m in a race against time. I want to get the thing done while she is still here.”
Zhu said he was perhaps the first-ever person in China to make a digital doppelganger of a family member who is still alive. Unlike creating a digital doppelganger of the departed loved one based on limited materials, Zhu could take as many photos and videos of his mother as possible to make his “digital mom” more realistic. It, nonetheless, took Zhu
some time to convince his mother. “The older generation knows very little about AI technology My mom had no idea what a ‘digital doppelganger’ was; she felt it a bit strange [about the concept], but anyway, she trusted me unconditionally,” Zhu said. “We are closest to each other in this world.”
As the co-founder of a tech company, however, Zhu was not as familiar with AI himself at the very beginning. Step by step, he taugh self a series of AI models and tools that helped create his “digital mother,” from Kimi and GPT. 4 to popular applications including Midjourney and Heygen. Within some 20 days, this fast.
learner successfully created a preliminary version of his “digital mother” with the help of his AI industry friends.
Zhu clearly remembers the first time his “digital mother” eventually appeared on screen and smiled at him. It was around 5 am, after he had stayed up all night making some final adjustments. He was impressed but actually “not very excited.” “This version was not yet perfect due to my limited time and skill,” said Zhu. “I thought I could do better.”