‘Never say goodbye’: Can AI bring the dead back to life?
In a world where artificial intelligence can resurrect the dead, grief takes on a new dimension. From Canadian singer Drake’s use of AI-generated Tupac Shakur vocals to Indian politicians addressing crowds years after their passing, technology is blurring the lines between life and death. But beyond their uncanny pull in entertainment and politics, AI “zombies” might soon become a reality for people reeling from the loss of loved ones, through a series of pathbreaking, but potentially controversial, initiatives. So how do AI “resurrections” work, and are they as dystopian as we might imagine? What are AI ‘resurrections’ of people? Over the past few years, AI projects around the world have created digital “resurrections” of individuals who have passed away, allowing friends and relatives to converse with them. Typically, users provide the AI tool with information about the deceased. This could include text messages and emails or simply be answers to personality-based questions. The AI tool then processes that data to talk to the user as if it were the deceased. One of the most popular projects in this space is Replika – a chatbot that can mimic people’s texting styles. Other companies, however, now also allow you to see a video of the dead person as you talk to them. For example, Los Angeles-based StoryFile uses AI to allow people to talk at their own funerals. Before passing, a person can record a video sharing their life story and thoughts. During the funeral, attendees can ask questions and AI technology will select relevant responses from the prerecorded video. In June, US-based Eternos also made headlines for creating an AI-powered digital afterlife of a person. Initiated just earlier this year, this project allowed 83-year-old Michael Bommer to leave behind a digital version of himself that his family could continue to interact with. Do these projects help people? When a South Korean mother reunited with an AI recreation of her dead daughter in virtual reality, a video of the emotional encounter in 2020 sparked an intense debate online about whether such technology helps or hurts its users. Developers of such projects point to the users’ agency, and say that it addresses a deeper suffering. Jason Rohrer, founder of Project December, which also uses AI to stimulate conversations with the dead, said that most users are typically going through an “unusual level of trauma and grief” and see the tool as a way to help cope. “A lot of these people who want to use Project December in this way are willing to try anything because their grief is so insurmountable and so painful to them.” The project allows users to chat with AI recreations of known public figures and also with individuals that users may know personally. People who choose to use the service for stimulating conversation with the dead often discover that it helps them find closure, Rohrer said. The bots allow them to express words left unsaid to loved ones who died unexpectedly, he added. Eternos’s founder, Robert LoCasio, said that he developed the company to capture people’s life stories and allow their loved ones to move forward. Bommer, his former colleague who passed away in June, wanted to leave behind a digital legacy exclusively for his family, said LoCasio. “I spoke with [Bommer] just days before he passed away and he said, just remember, this was for me. I don’t know if they’d use this in the future, but this was important to me,” said LoCasio. What are the pitfalls of this technology? Some experts and observers are more wary of AI resurrections, questioning whether deeply grieving people can really make the informed decision to use it, and warning about its adverse psychological effects. “The biggest concern that I have as a clinician is that mourning is actually very important. It’s an important part of development that we are able to acknowledge the missing of another person,” said Alessandra Lemma, consultant at the Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families. Prolonged use could keep people from coming to terms with the absence of the other person, leaving them in a state of “limbo”, Lemma warned. Indeed, one AI service has marketed a perpetual connection with the deceased person as a key feature. “Welcome to YOV (You, Only Virtual), the AI startup pioneering advanced digital communications so that we Never Have to Say Goodbye to those we love,” read the company’s website, before it was recently updated. Rohrer said that his grief bot has an “in-built” limiting factor: users pay $10 for a limited conversation. The fee buys time on a supercomputer, with each response varying in computational cost. This means $10 doesn’t guarantee a fixed number of responses, but can allow for one to two hours of conversation. As the time is about to lapse, users are sent a notification and can say their final goodbyes. Several other AI-generated conversational services also charge a fee for use. Lemma, who has researched the psychological impact of grief bots, says that while she worries about the prospects of them being used outside a therapeutic context, it could be used safely as an adjunct to therapy with a trained professional. Studies around the world are also observing the potential for AI to deliver mental health counselling, particularly through individualised conversational tools. These services may appear to be straight out of a Black Mirror episode. But supporters of this technology argue that the digital age is simply ushering in new ways of preserving life stories, and potentially filling a void left by the erosion of traditional family storytelling practices. “In the olden days, if a parent knew they were dying, they would leave boxes full of things that they might want to pass on to a child or a book,” said Lemma. “So, this might be the 21st-century version of that, which is then passed on and is created by the parents in anticipation of their passing.” LoCasio at Eternos agrees. “The ability for a human to tell the stories of
Socialist Salvador Illa elected leader of Spain’s Catalonia
Illa’s confirmation by Catalan parliament ends a decade of separatist regional rule in the northeastern Spanish region. Catalonia’s parliament has confirmed Salvador Illa, an ally of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez whose Socialists came first in May’s regional election, as head of the Catalan government, ending more than a decade of separatist rule. Sanchez praised Illa’s appointment on Thursday, saying that he will be a great president for the regional government in Catalonia. “We have worked together under the most adverse circumstances. I know about your love for Catalonia. I know your temperance, your common sense and your ability to work. Exactly what Catalonia needs,” Sanchez wrote in a social media post. Illa will succeed Pere Aragones, of the Republican Left of Catalonia, which favours Catalan independence. However, in a sign of potential further unease, Illa’s election was upstaged by separatist leader Carles Puigdemont, who appeared at a rally in Barcelona, defying an arrest warrant after seven years of self-imposed exile, and then vanished before police could arrest him. Puigdemont told the crowd he aimed to revive the independence drive that plunged Spain into a deep political crisis seven years ago when Catalonia tried to secede from Spain following a referendum deemed illegal by courts. “I’ve come today to remind you that we’re still here,” Puigdemont told thousands of cheering supporters. “Long live Catalonia.” Puigdemont’s Junts per Catalunya party had come in second in the May elections as he campaigned from France. Independence in Catalonia, a region of 7.5 million people in northeastern Spain, has been a major sticking point in Spanish politics. The 2017 referendum, which was backed by Puigdemont, asked voters whether they “want Catalonia to become an independent state in the form of a republic”. The overwhelming majority of voters backed independence, but turnout was at 43 percent as unionists boycotted the election. Spain viewed the poll as illegitimate and cracked down on its organisers, arresting at least 14 officials involved in the push. In 2021, Sanchez pardoned nine Catalan separatist leaders, promising an “era of dialogue”. Puigdemont was not among them. Adblock test (Why?)
Trump questions Harris’s intelligence, says three debates planned
NewsFeed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump took aim at Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate. He said he has agreed to three debates with her; ABC confirmed it would host one on Sept. 10. Published On 8 Aug 20248 Aug 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Is real change possible in Kenya?
Tens of thousands of protesters call for end to what they say is corruption and mismanagement. Kenya is on the edge again. Protests against a finance bill have become a nationwide movement, challenging the foundations of President William Ruto’s government. Young people are leading the charge – demanding lower taxes, an end to corruption and a government that listens. But as the demonstrations have intensified, so too has the response. Dozens of activists and protesters have been killed, and others simply disappeared. Can President Ruto quell this rising tide of dissent? Or is Kenya on the brink of major political change? Presenter: Laura Kyle Guests:Nanjala Nyabola – Political analyst and author of Digital Democracy, Analogue Politics: How the Internet Era is Transforming Politics in Kenya Hassan Khannenje – Director of the HORN International Institute of Strategic Studies, a research and policy think tank based in the Kenyan capital Aly-Khan Satchu – Emerging markets economist and author Adblock test (Why?)
Muhammad Yunus returns to Bangladesh to lead interim government
‘Bangladesh has got a second independence,’ Nobel laureate says before meeting army chief, president and his swearing-in ceremony. Nobel Peace Prize-winning economist Muhammad Yunus has returned to Bangladesh to head an interim government after weeks of student-led protests forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign and flee to India. “It’s good to be back home,” said the 84-year-old after touching down at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in the capital, Dhaka, on Thursday on a flight from Paris via Dubai. Yunus was picked by President Mohammed Shahabuddin to lead an interim government, fulfilling a key demand of the student protest leaders. Reporting from Dhaka, Al Jazeera’s Tanvir Chowdhury said Yunus was expected to head first to a meeting with the army chief and the president before being sworn in at 8pm (14:00 GMT). “Today is a glorious day for us,” Yunus told reporters at the airport. “Bangladesh has created a new victory day. Bangladesh has got a second independence.” Yunus’s main objective was to hold elections as soon as possible, said Chowdhury, noting that the poll should be held 90 days from the dissolving of the country’s Parliament, which occurred on Tuesday. “[He] himself has said he doesn’t want to be a long-term caretaker government chief,” he said. Students had taken to the streets last month over a controversial government job quota system, their protests escalating into a nationwide crisis following a harsh crackdown by authorities. Nearly 300 people were killed within weeks in one of the most violent phases of Hasina’s 15-year rule. Hasina, 76, was forced to step down and flee, with millions of Bangladeshis celebrating her political demise. Yunus is an economist and banker who was awarded the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for founding Grameen Bank, which pioneered fighting poverty with microloans. “The students wanted someone noncontroversial, nonpolitical, somebody who is neutral, who has global connections and can bring something to the table for Bangladesh at this moment which is in crisis,” said Chowdhury. The veteran academic had travelled abroad this year while on bail after being sentenced to six months in jail on a charge condemned as politically motivated. He was acquitted on Wednesday by a Dhaka court. Yunus was hit with more than 100 criminal cases and a smear campaign by a state-led agency that accused him of promoting homosexuality, with courts accused of rubber-stamping decisions by Hasina’s government. Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman said he backed Yunus: “I am certain that he will be able to take us through a beautiful democratic process.” Adblock test (Why?)
Catalonia ex-leader Puigdemont returns to Spain despite arrest warrant
Large crowd of supporters turns up to greet politician in Barcelona after seven years of self-imposed exile in Belgium. Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont has returned to Spain after seven years of self-imposed exile and despite a pending warrant for his arrest. He appeared before a throng of supporters in Barcelona on Thursday, pumping his fist as he climbed on to a stage surrounded by officials of his hardline party, Junts, at the Arc de Triomf monument located near the Catalan Parliament. “I’ve come today to remind you that we’re still here,” Puigdemont told thousands of cheering supporters. “Long live Catalonia!” Many in the crowd waved red, yellow and blue flags and chanted slogans demanding Catalonia’s secession from Spain. Puigdemont fled Spain over his role in a failed 2017 independence bid for the wealthy region. After his brief address, Puigdemont appeared to head to the regional parliament for the investiture vote to elect a new leader. But the assembly began the vote without him being present. It was not immediately clear where he was. Police set up road blocks within Barcelona and leading out of the city, an interior department spokesperson said, according to the Reuters news agency. His potential arrest and imprisonment could unleash new turmoil in Catalonia. The building in central Barcelona housing the regional parliament was fenced off and surrounded by police. His arrest could delay the swearing-in of a Socialist government in Catalonia and jeopardise the national government’s fragile alliance with Junts, on which it relies for legislative support. Socialist Salvador Illa, who is backed by the left-wing separatist ERC party after a bilateral deal last week, is expected to be voted as leader. The Socialists hope taking control in Catalonia after a decade of separatist rule will turn the page on the independence drive, which has been losing support in recent years. Meanwhile, far-right party Vox was set to hold a counterprotest outside Parliament. Its secretary-general, Ignacio Garriga, said on X that “we will not tolerate the humiliation of seeing a criminal and fugitive from justice enter parliament”. The Spanish parliament passed an amnesty law in May pardoning those involved in the failed 2017 secession bid, but the Supreme Court upheld arrest warrants for Puigdemont and two others who were also charged with embezzlement, ruling that the amnesty law does not apply to them. Puigdemont says the referendum was not illegal and so the charges linked to it have no basis. “Things are complicated in the sense that there’s this interest in stopping him. But at the end of the day, he’s a member of parliament. He’s a former president. So if he is arrested, this would be against the immunity of the members of parliament,” Mar Aquilera Varques, a constitutional law professor at Barcelona University, told Al Jazeera. “There are some people who are tired of this political crisis. But many people in Catalonia still want independence,” she added. Adblock test (Why?)
Ukraine attacks Russia’s Kursk region, hopes F-16s boost counteroffensive
Ukraine continued its gradual rearguard action during the past week, ceding ground in feet and inches to preserve the lives of its soldiers while managing to prevent a Russian breakthrough anywhere along its front line. Meanwhile, it began to receive its first F-16 fighter jets from Western allies, a new weapon that could help turn the balance of power in the skies, which is key to developments on the ground. It also continued to build an estimated 15 new battalions it is counting on to one day mount a counteroffensive that will roll back Russian conquests. The fighting was fiercest in central Donetsk, the eastern province that has seen many of the bloodiest battles of this war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Pokrovsk was the focus of Russian efforts on August 1. “Pokrovsk, I would say for today, this is a priority for them … the largest number of personnel, the largest number of weapons and [glide bombs], everything they have, they are centring today in the Pokrovsky direction,” Zelenskyy was quoted as saying by Suspilne, Ukraine’s public broadcaster. Pokrovsk lies 20km (12.4 miles) off the tip of a salient that Russian forces have created west of Avdiivka since seizing it in February. In the intervening six months, they have advanced 26km (16 miles). Russian forces completed their capture of Vesele at the tip of this salient on August 4. (Al Jazeera) The ultimate Russian goal, Zelenskyy said, was to seize Sloviansk, which together with Kramatorsk, forms the backbone of Ukraine’s defences in Donetsk. But Russia has obfuscated the direction from which the main thrust for Sloviansk and Kramatorsk would come, prioritising different fronts at different times. For example, Ukraine’s general staff said on Friday that Russian attacks were increasing in Toretsk, a front-line city 50km (30 miles) east of Pokrovsk. That intensity grew by Sunday when the general staff said Toretsk was absorbing 80 percent of Russian attacks. The battle for Chasiv Yar About 50km (30 miles) northeast of Pokrovsk, another fierce battle raged. Russian forces began to advance through Chasiv Yar, a high ground Ukrainians have defended stoutly to delay another Russian offensive to break through to Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. Geolocated footage on Friday showed that Russian forces had crossed the Siversky Donets-Donbas canal, a key defensive feature that had held them at bay for months. By Monday Ukraine’s general staff said attacks were still being repulsed in Chasiv Yar, however, one Ukrainian formation was announcing its departure, an apparent admission that the city would not ultimately be held. “Chasiv Yar is another Ukrainian city that actually ceased to exist after the so-called ‘liberation’ by the Russians,” wrote Ukraine’s Black Swan strike group from the 255th Assault Battalion online. “Our battalion defended it for four months, steadfastly holding the positions assigned to us. Now it’s time to rest and prepare for new tasks,” it posted. (Al Jazeera) Video taken by the battalion showed an utterly deserted and gutted city, with occasional artillery explosions on August 5 continuing to blow apart the abandoned concrete skeletons of buildings. Asked by the Philadelphia Inquirer in late June whether Ukraine would manage to hold Chasiv Yar, the chief of Ukrainian intelligence Kyril Budanov had said, “I will refrain from response.” All these gains have come at a high cost. Ukraine’s ground forces commander Oleksandr Pavlyuk on Sunday gave the weekly tally of Russian losses: 8,220 soldiers, 67 tanks, and 160 armoured fighting vehicles – weekly Russian losses typical for the past several months. Al Jazeera could not independently verify the toll. What is Ukraine’s game? Russian President Vladimir Putin had set the conquest of Donetsk and Luhansk as a goal for his armies by last February, the war’s second anniversary. In June, he told Ukraine he would agree to a ceasefire and peace talks only if Ukraine handed over those two provinces along with Zaporizhia and Kherson, which Russia also partially occupies. Ukraine’s inability to match Russian troop strength and firepower appeared to vindicate Putin’s strategy of attritional war to prevent Ukraine from ever retaking the initiative. A serviceman of the 24th Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, runs on the road along a front line amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, near the town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region, Ukraine, on August 6, 2024 [Oleg Petrasiuk/Press Service of the 24th King Danylo Separate Mechanised Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces/Handout via Reuters] Ukrainian Brigadier-General Andriy Hnatov said as much in an interview on Friday. Putin launched his May 10 incursion into Ukraine’s northern Kharkiv region a month after Ukraine passed a new mobilisation law to raise a quarter of a million new troops, he said. “It’s not accidental,” said Hnatov, who has commanded the Khortytsia group of forces facing the fiercest battles in Donetsk. “The real goal of the enemy was not to capture 10-15 kilometres (6-9 miles) of our territory there … the goal of the enemy was to do everything so that we could not quickly feel the results of mobilisation.” Konstantyn Mashovets, a retired Ukrainian colonel who regularly comments on military developments, said Ukrainian troops in the Pokrovsk area were “inferior to the enemy in forces and means … especially in the air component and artillery”, and called the Russian advance “slow but rather confident”. (Al Jazeera) But Ukraine has played defence knowing that it would take Putin years – by some estimates 14 years – to complete his conquest of just Luhansk and Donetsk. It appears to have done this to buy time for a strategy where it feels it has the advantage – using drones to undermine Russian power on land, at sea and in the air. A Russian military reporter said Ukraine’s strategy was “catastrophic” for Russian forces in Siversk, where “the enemy [first person viewer] drones dismantle all the dugouts and burrows known to them, and there is no way to dig new normal shelters, as they are burning in the first stages of construction”. Ukraine has posted videos showing off its drone
Taylor Swift concerts cancelled in Austria after attack threat
Chancellor Karl Nehammer says threat was ‘very serious’ and a ‘tragedy was averted’ after police detain two suspects. Three Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna this week have been called off, organisers said, after the authorities announced arrests over an apparent plot to launch an attack on a public event in the Austrian capital. Swift was scheduled to perform at the Ernst Happel Stadium on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as part of her Eras Tour. Event organiser Barracuda Music said in a post on Instagram late on Wednesday that “we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety”, citing government officials’ “confirmation” of a planned attack at the stadium. Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said “a tragedy was averted”, in a post on X. “Thanks to the intensive cooperation of our police and the newly established DSN with foreign services, the threat was identified early on, combated and a tragedy averted,” Nehammer wrote. DSN is Austria’s Directorate for Security and Intelligence. Barracuda Music said all tickets would be refunded. Police detained two people suspected of plotting attacks on concerts, Franz Ruf, director general for public security, said at a news conference on Wednesday. “During our investigations, we identified preparatory actions and noted that the 19-year-old suspect had a particular focus on the Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna,” Ruf said, adding that the suspect, an Austrian citizen, had pledged allegiance to the ISIL (ISIS) group. Another suspect was later arrested in Vienna. Police searched the residence of one of the suspects in Ternitz, Lower Austria, and were analysing items from the home, according to the Reuters news agency. Austrian media, citing police sources, said at least three suspects were still on the run. Earlier on Wednesday, before the cancellation announcement, police had said the events would take place but with increased entry checks and personal searches, and with deployment of special units including anti-terror and bomb disposal teams, advising the public to arrive early. Police had been expecting about 65,000 people to attend each show, as well as up to 15,000 people outside the stadium without tickets. The American singer-songwriter commands a massive following around the world, and her ongoing series of concerts have drawn hundreds of thousands of spectators, which has also been an economic windfall for countries where the events are held, leading to the coining of the term “Swiftonomics“. Swift, 34, has not yet commented on the cancellations on her official Instagram account which has 283 million followers. In the official “Swifties” fan group on WhatsApp, panic ensued following the announcement of the cancellations with administrators overwhelmed with thousands of messages. After Vienna, Swift was set to perform in London where six concerts are scheduled at Wembley Stadium, starting on August 15. Adblock test (Why?)
Tunisia’s President Saied sacks prime minister
The dismissal comes ahead of Tunisia’s October 6 presidential election and amid a continuing crackdown on critics. Tunisian President Kais Saied has sacked Prime Minister Ahmed Hachani and replaced him with the social affairs minister. The statement from the president’s office late on Wednesday did not specify why Hachani was removed. Hachani had taken office on August 1 last year, replacing Najla Bouden, who was also dismissed without an official reason by Saied. A few hours before he was dismissed, Hachani said in a video message that the government had made progress on a number of issues despite global challenges, including securing the country’s food and energy needs. His replacement, Kamel Madouri, had only taken on the social affairs portfolio in May. In a social media post from his office, Saied is shown shaking hands with Madouri with a brief statement saying only that the president had “decided to assign him to head the government, succeeding Mr Ahmed Hachani”. The sacking comes ahead of Tunisia’s October 6 presidential election, in which Saied is seeking another term, and amid widespread discontent over continuing water and electricity outages in many parts of the country. While the government attributes these issues to a persistent drought, leading to the implementation of a water distribution quota system, Saied claims that the water cuts are a conspiracy in the run-up to the presidential election, insisting that the dams are actually full. The agriculture ministry says the dam level is extremely critical and has reached 25 percent. A growing crackdown Saied was democratically elected in 2019 but orchestrated a sweeping power grab in 2021. He faces criticism from the opposition, human rights groups and candidates for restricting and intimidating competitors to pave the way for him to win a second term. Earlier this week, an opposition figure and potential presidential candidate was sentenced to two years in prison. Lawyer Abir Moussi was arrested last year after criticising the electoral process, and investigated under a controversial cybercrime decree outlawing fake news. The sentence is the latest in a growing crackdown that observers have said is politically motivated against Saied’s critics, regardless of political affiliation. Moussi appeals to parts of the population that are nostalgic for Tunisia’s pre-revolutionary era. A critic of politicians such as imprisoned Ennahdha leader Rached Ghannouchi, Moussi was an official in longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s ruling party. Tunisia’s constitution was rewritten in 2022 to create a presidential regime whose parliament has extremely limited powers. Adblock test (Why?)
Nagasaki defends decision not to invite Israel to atomic bomb memorial
The United States, United Kingom and other countries say they will send lower-level officials to ceremony that will take place on Friday. The mayor of Nagasaki has defended his decision not to invite Israel to Friday’s memorial for those killed in 1945’s atomic bombing after ambassadors from countries including the United States and the United Kingdom said they would no longer attend the event. “It is unfortunate that they have communicated to us that their ambassadors are not able to attend,” Shiro Suzuki told reporters on Thursday. Suzuki said Israel had not been invited to avoid possible protests over Israel’s war on Gaza war. “We made a comprehensive decision not for political reasons. We want to conduct a smooth ceremony in a peaceful and solemn environment.” On August 9, 1945, the US dropped an atomic bomb on Nagasaki, killing 74,000 people including many who survived the explosion but died later from radiation exposure. The attack came three days after the US dropped the world’s first nuclear bomb on Hiroshima killing 140,000 people and devastating the city. Japan announced its surrender on August 15, 1945, ending World War II and the country’s nearly half-century of aggression in Asia. The US embassy announced on Wednesday that Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel would skip the Nagasaki memorial because Israel’s exclusion had “politicized” the event. Nagasaki officials said they were told that an official of the US consulate in Fukuoka will represent the US at Friday’s ceremony. Five other Group of Seven nations — Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the UK — as well as the European Union, are also expected to send lower-ranking envoys to Nagasaki. Envoys from those nations signed a joint letter expressing their shared concern about Israel’s exclusion, saying treating the country on the same level as Russia and Belarus — the only other countries not invited — would be misleading. The envoys urged Nagasaki to reverse the decision and invite Israel to preserve the universal message of the city’s ceremony. The exclusion of Israel would make their “high-level participation” difficult, they said. The British embassy said leaving out Israel created “an unfortunate and misleading equivalency with Russia and Belarus — the only other countries not invited to this year’s ceremony”. Hiroshima invited the Israeli ambassador to Japan to its memorial ceremony, which took place on Tuesday. At least 39,677 people have been killed since Israel went to war in Gaza after Hamas, the group that controls the territory, launched a surprise attack on Israel that killed more than 1,000 people. Thousands have been killed and millions forced to flee since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Belarus is Moscow’s closest ally. Adblock test (Why?)