Meta has been granted a patent for artificial intelligence technology that could simulate social media users after they pass away, allowing digital versions of people to continue posting, messaging, and interacting on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
According to sources, the patent was granted in late December and originally filed in 2023. It outlines how a large language model could analyze someone’s online activity and recreate their digital behavior.
The system would study posts, comments, chats, voice messages, likes, and other interactions to build a profile capable of responding to content and communicating with other users in a manner that mirrors the original account holder.
The filing states that the model “may be used for simulating the user when the user is absent from the social networking system,” which explicitly includes scenarios where someone has taken an extended break or is no longer living. The document acknowledges that the impact becomes “much more severe and permanent” when the person cannot return to the platform.
By processing what the patent calls “user-specific” data, Meta’s proposed system could construct a digital persona that behaves as though the person remains active online. The technology could potentially extend beyond text-based interactions, with the patent referencing capabilities to simulate audio or even video calls using the reconstructed persona.
Despite the detailed filing, Meta has stated it has no intention of developing this concept into an actual product. A company spokesperson clarified that the patent does not signal plans to launch such a feature, noting that patents often serve to protect ideas that may never advance beyond the conceptual stage.
However, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has previously indicated openness to similar applications of AI. In a 2023 conversation with Lex Fridman, Zuckerberg suggested there “may be ways” for artificial intelligence to help people connect with memories of those they’ve lost, adding that Meta will eventually “have the capacity” to create AI replicas of individuals. He stressed that consent would be essential, saying it “should ultimately be your call.”
The concept of digitally recreating individuals has already emerged in the commercial sector. Startups have launched apps allowing users to generate interactive avatars of relatives who have passed on, sparking comparisons to the unsettling scenarios depicted in episodes of Black Mirror.
