Death is not the end on social media: Meta patents controversial AI
The AI system can mimic posts, messages and even voice patterns during prolonged inactivity or after death, raising fresh privacy concerns
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has patented an AI that can simulate a user’s social media activity after death or during an extended inactivity.
The patent, first filed in 2023 was granted in December 2025. The concept has raised ethical and privacy concerns.
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The company maintained that it has no plans to roll out the feature and the patent was filed to protect the idea from being commercialised.
How does it work?
The patented AI would be trained on the historical activities of a user, including comments, previous posts, likes and reactions and messaging patterns. Based on the online behaviour, during a long absence (like long vacation, social media break or death), the AI can take over the account and keep it active.
According to Meta, “when someone vanishes permanently, it really affects their online friends and family. An AI version of you might soften that blow, or at least help people cope.”
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By having these models act on behalf of users, it is believed that they can behave as if the users themselves are still active, thereby maintaining engagement, according to the patent document.
The patent also outlined on advanced features like deploying AI to replicate a user’s voice and potentially recreate them in video interactions as well.
WhatsApp privacy policy case
The Supreme Court recently told Meta Platforms and WhatsApp LLC that it will not permit the exploitation of Indian citizens’ personal data. The remark came while hearing appeals filed by the companies against a National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order that upheld a Rs 213.14 crore penalty imposed by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) over WhatsApp’s 2021 privacy policy.
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