Live Forever in Somnium Space, Again

Somnium Space‘s plans for the ‘Live Forever Mode’ has made headlines once again. This time it was Sky News’ Technology correspondent Arthi Nachiappan who visited Somnium’s Headquarters in Prague for a deep dive into VR and a chat about this bold and visionary idea to use AI to simulate people roaming the Metaverse, long after they’re gone.

As demonstrated in the video below, Arthi takes great pleasure in the experience and the feeling of a virtual hug.

We hear from Artur Sychov and watch him strike a conversation with his AI version. We are also introduced to psychologist Elaine Kasket, who expresses her concerns about the risk of bad actors getting hold of the data right after death and before the family has any idea figuring out what is going on with the digital estate. In the article on Sky News’ website she also expresses concerns about ‘playing on those really existential fears as a means of selling your products’.

She has been included in the name of journalistic integrity, but it feels a bit contrived or forced in such a short feature. Nevertheless, it offers a good opportunity to respond to the concerns.

First things first, if you want a more in-depth walk-through of Live Forever Mode, listen to Artur Sychov on the TED Radio Hour on which he was a guest a while back.

Live Forever Mode and Data

Through Live Forever Mode, users will have the ability to capture their real experiences in virtual reality and input this data into AI learning models that will drive platform NPCs (non-player characters/avatars). While this may sound somewhat abstract, it will essentially enable what Artur explained: You, and anyone else, will retain the capacity for ongoing conversations with your digital counterpart. Even long after your physical presence has ceased.

Screenshot from video by Sky News

Now, it is obvious that data needs to be gathered for this to be possible. A fundamental element of Somnium Space’s design centers on the commitment to safeguarding user privacy and preserving data ownership. Somnium Space firmly upholds user’s rights to govern their own data. Consequently, they abstain from gathering or preserving any user data on their servers. Instead, all information derived from user’s VR interactions is kept locally on their personal computer.

Elaine Kasket’s concern about the “risk of bad actors getting hold of the data” is largely mitigated by Somnium Space’s ‘decentralized’ approach. This does not mean it could never happen, but self-custody is inherently more secure than entrusting your data to third parties. Elaine overlooks (or does not mention) a crucial point: we’re already deeply immersed in virtual lives, essentially inhabiting a form of Metaverse with the rise of the Internet. From its inception, we’ve progressively migrated our data and identities into the digital sphere. Initially, this transition occurred gradually, but it has accelerated over time, often without our full awareness of the entities—be they governmental or commercial—that amass vast amounts of data about us. These entities already utilize AI to predict our shopping behaviors, evaluate risks of non-compliance, and more. Although currently disparate, the looming question is: What happens when these entities collaborate, pooling their resources to create an enormous machine learning database and an AI replica of you, over which you have no control? If you find this notion far-fetched, the example of the Chinese surveillance state demonstrates its plausibility. The ‘bad actors’ Elaine talks about may originate from an unforeseen source.

Somnium Space on the other hand offers a decentralized solution, empowering you to manage your data and determine its utilization. The truth is, AI is here to stay, and the option to fashion an AI-based counterpart in Somnium Space marks a significant stride forward in the right direction.

Use Cases of Live Forever Mode

The focal point lies on ‘live forever’ within Live Forever Mode, and this is hardly unexpected. It ignites contemplations of eternal life, leading people to take firm stances on both the positive and negative aspects of humanity’s quest for immortality, escaping death. Elaine Kasket is concerned about Somnium ‘playing on those really existential fears’.

She would have been more accurate if she had made that statement about anti-aging skincare products. It’s common knowledge that such products can’t halt aging, yet this fact is often omitted in commercials.

Somnium Space is never claiming it’s the physical you who will live forever with ‘Live Forever Mode’. In fact they are very open about what it entails. One way to look at it is that AI generated personalities is equivalent to photographs of people. Why do we have photographs and why do we frame pictures of our deceased loved ones and look at them every day? Because we want to remember them and photographs help us with that.

Using AI technologies to mimic speech, expression and movement of people can do exactly the same. An AI representation is not the real person, just like a photograph is nothing like the real person, but it is an avatar created in the person’s image. An avatar that moves and talks like the person would. There is no doubt that this could be a great comfort to people left behind.

If you think this sounds absurd, then think back to 1839 when a new means of visual representation was announced to a startled world: photography. It wasn’t widespread to begin with, but we all know what happened next.

Say Cheese!

While a previous technological breakthrough in an of itself does not guarantee the next, it does help us to understand how adoption generally works. One interesting thing is that people on (very) old photographs hardly smiled. They were accustomed to paintings, and for paintings you had to sit still and be serious. Smiling was for drunk people, for lunatics.

Contrast this with our ‘say cheeeese’ culture.

The point being, we are accustomed to one way of doing things until we get accustomed to something new. Meeting an AI generated deceased loved one in Somnium Space is a new thing. But we will get used to it and it will be of great comfort for many.

Offline, yet Online

But Live Forever Mode has more applications. Your digital copy (or copies) can be available 24/7 in your online (Metaverse) stores, ready to assist any potential customer who needs help. Now that is customer service!

Conclusion

Somnium’s Live Forever Mode remains a hot topic in the headlines. Although the feature’s name may evoke strong emotions, its essence lies in preserving memories of you, rather than attempting to defy the inevitable.

Similar to photographs and videos, your AI persona serves as a digital artifact for others to cherish your memory. However, this technology goes beyond mere static or moving images; it introduces a dimension that we have yet to fully explore and comprehend. Nonetheless, there’s undoubtedly going to be an interest in its utilization.

Welcome to the future!