AI and Grieving Series, Part 4: HereAfter.AI

AI-powered “companions” that are essentially chatbots based on the deceased (the moniker “deathbots” is catching on) are becoming thick on the ground, with more emerging all the time. A few incipient models not quite fully established are plugging right along in available (if limited) formats; one such service is HereAfter.AI (iOS and Android app reviews indicate development is ongoing, but the service is apparently up and running online from the website). 

As the final “deathbot” service we’ll take a look at for the time being, HereAfter shares a lot of features in common with StoryFile and Eternos.Life. Like the others, HereAfter maintains a repository of data in various formats accessible on demand in the form of photographs and audio or video recordings of a lost loved one. 

For the archive, files must be recorded using HereAfter technology, either from the website or via the apps (through which purchases are available). And paid customization of pre-existing, high-quality video and audio files is purportedly available, or will be. 

No Test Drive

I tried to create an account for the advertised 14 day free trial but for reasons inscrutable, HereAfter disapprove of my business email address. I was denied access, unless I opted to pay. I did not opt to pay. Perhaps you will have better luck. The website’s FAQ list is here. The homepage is likewise sparse, offering little of substance: no sample video, no demonstrations or tutorials, no additional educational content were accessible from the site. There was, however, the following:

What happens if your company goes out of business?

HereAfter plans to be around for a long time. But in the event that the company is forced to shut down, we will give every customer the opportunity to download their life story recordings.

Deathbots Unite

As far as I could discern, HereAfter.AI differentiates itself in the expanding deathbot genre by providing access to both “friendly virtual interviewers”, with an option to hire an “expert life story interviewer” (for an undisclosed fee). 

The legacy service itself, however, does seem reasonably priced: monthly tiered options include a “Starter” level (up to 20 stories and 20 photos, $3.99/monthly), a “Storyteller” tier (up to 50 of each, $5.99/month), as well as an “Unlimited” option (exactly what it sounds like at $7.99/month, but it also includes the option to download any of the files in mp3 format). 

And there’s a “pay once & done“ option for each level at $99, $159, and $199 respectively, which allows access in perpetuity to whomever has a link.

It will be interesting to see how HereAfter.AI, as well as any more such services still in the offing, may shape up in time. Hopefully, more unique and unexpected facets are on the way, perhaps to “flesh out,” as it were, both the human interviewer and the lost loved one angles. When things are better established I’d like to revisit this service, hopefully in a more hands-on way. 

Have we seen the full range of such legacy SaaS subscription options? Hard to imagine. Maybe somebody new will come along and shake up the paradigm. It’s awfully young to become stale.