No one needs to die anymore
If you haven't seen the latest Metaverse video I suggest you do it before reading ahead:
Watching it was probably as shocking as playing around with ChatGPT for the first time. Over the next day or two the slow realisation crept up: One of the most potent science fictions is fiction no more. It is already here. In labs right now and coming to your pockets over the next few years or so. But, it exists. Already. The killer app that these technologies might enable: No one needs to die anymore
Imagine a friend, a relative or a pet that you spend time with. Maybe it's a parent. You catch up with small chit chat as you leave for work. You enquire about their health, and they yours. You tell them how it's going at work. Maybe a raise you got. And they reciprocate with pride and approval. Maybe you plan a trip with them. Ask them which hotel you would stay at. Which places you would visit. And then you enjoy their company doing all that. You reminisce of old, good times and hard times. You share your story, whatever you can and they partake as their personalities permit.
With the technologies that already exist in the lab, namely LLM based AI and Metaverse, you will still be able to do all of the above, even after they are long gone. You will be able to interact with them in the Metaverse with their personalities intact and as responsive as if they were alive. You would be able to chit chat with them and share your stories and they will respond as they normally would. You would be able to plan and go on trips with them, in as much reality as if they were alive. You would enjoy their company in all its dimensions as much as you would if they were alive. And this is not science fiction any more. It is possible now and coming soon.
The only break in the illusion, apart from lack of physical touch, is that the Metaverse-AI enabled selves might not remember specific details about older memories. And this might be the only way to differentiate if they are real or not. But given how often humans forget and reframe memories, this is unlikely to work too well.
So what can you do now if you have someone close who might not be there soon ? Take a lot of footage of them. Take lots of audio which exposes the quirks of their personalities. And lots of full length video footage. The audio will help LLM stimulate their minds with representative thoughts, voice and memories. And the video will allow an accurate 3D modeling in the Metaverse. Combined, the simulated mind and the 3D model, can keep them alive in the Metaverse long after they are gone.