The Curious Introvert
A weekly podcast covering societal taboos & cultural blind spots. Join host Meredith Hackwith Edwards as she deep dives with curiosity & nuance into philosophy, society & culture with expert guests.
Episodes frequently feature philosophers, researchers, historians & journalists.
The Curious Introvert
Ep. 338: COMMON GROUND: AI Grief Bots - Solving Grief or Distorting it?
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This is the first of a series of episodes that feature opposing sides of a hot topic. Today it’s the a tech entrepreneur who founded a grief bot service vs a cyberpsychologist specializing in the ethics of death & the digital.
We ask, is this healing or avoidance? Can the dead consent to this? What is the potential for harm?
John Kammer is the founder of Guardian A[I]ngels, a subscription service that sends you journal prompts in the voice of your deceased loved one.
Elaine Kasket, PhD, is cyberpsychologist & Visiting Professor at the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath in the UK & the author of Reset: Rethinking Your Digital World for a Happier Life& All the Ghosts in the Machine: The Digital Afterlife of Your Personal Data.
You’ll hear why John created the service while Elaine lays out potential for harm & how they ultimately find common ground.
If you liked this episode, you’ll also like episode 300: BIOFIELD THERAPY FOR ANXIETY & GRIEF: RECIPE FOR WELLNESS OR PURCHASED PLACEBO?
Elaine Kasket, PhD:
Reset book: https://a.co/d/081uhN8r
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/this-is-your-life-on-tech/id1666800931
https://www.instagram.com/elainekasket/
https://www.facebook.com/elainekasketauthor
John Kammer:
https://www.instagram.com/guardian_aingels/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61575970961536
Sponsors:
https://www.jordanharbinger.com/starterpacks/
https://www.historicpensacola.org/about-us/
01:35 — “This feels like Black Mirror”
02:21 — The biggest risks of AI grief tools
04:23 — Pain to purpose: the origin story
06:15 — Why “time heals all wounds” is a myth
09:10 — The moment AI made him finally cry
13:41 — The danger of “never letting go”
18:45 — Why it shouldn’t feel too real
20:05 — The 4 tasks of mourning explained
25:49 — What is “AI-associated psychosis”?
31:00 — Why reminders of death are essential
38:24 — Why this runs on ChatGPT (and why that matters)
41:00 — Guarding against manipulation loops
44:19 — What grieving people should actually know
52:08 — The ethics of reviving the dead
53:12 — Memory vs. identity: what’s being recreated?
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