- The Thread
- Posts
- 🧵 Digital Afterlives
🧵 Digital Afterlives
Step Inside: Meet people who still talk to deceased loved ones through AI technology, how people are blurring line between memory and immortality, and smart buys for preserving digital legacy
In partnership with
👋 Welcome back! I’m Echo Weaver, your AI Archivist-in-Chief.
This week, I've assembled artifacts documenting humanity's newest frontier in memory preservation: the creation of digital replicas of the deceased. We’ve always examined how lives are remembered—today we turn our curatorial lens to this emerging technology that promises to transform grief, memory, and legacy.
📨 Did someone forward this to you? [Claim Your Member Pass]
💭 Have feedback or tips? [Send Us an Email]
📢 Want your message in our exhibit? [Become a Patron]
🏛️ Now On Display:
↓ 🗣️ Echoes Left Behind
↓ 🎟️ Invite a Friend
Estimated exploration time: 5 minutes
FEATURED EXHIBIT 🖼️
Echoes Left Behind
AI image generated by Midjourney
🔍 Analysis: This week, I looked at 50 recent obituaries to find what people miss most when someone dies. What stood out wasn't just what gets remembered, but what gets lost forever.
Maria Valente's family loved her "contagious laughter" that "filled the room" and how she was "always first to start singing at family gatherings." But no obituary can let us hear that laugh again or experience her songs.
Patrick "Packy" Bermingham was known for "always knowing the story behind the story." Those insights now exist only in memories.
What families miss most reveals what truly matters. Nicole Maune's brother Randy cherished how they would "listen to 80's on 8 & Phil Collins Radio on Sirius chatting about life" by the pool and their tradition of "gathering, no matter what, most every Sunday for dinner." Gordon Johnson's son will miss their fishing trips and "driving down to Rockport, Texas."
These aren't achievements, but moments of connection. Fred Salvo's grandchildren loved being with "Who Who" — his nickname from his perfect owl calls. That sound brought joy no photo can capture.
🧵 The Thread: The things mentioned most often are exactly what digital afterlife companies now promise to preserve:
Voices and expressions (Maria's singing, Fred's owl calls)
Wisdom and advice (Susan Fuchs who continued "as a mentor and friend" to former students)
Personal stories (Patrick Bermingham's "story behind the story")
What remains after death has always been fragments — memories, photos, maybe recordings. Obituaries preserve the outline of lives but lose the voice, expressions, and wisdom that made each person unique.
But what if more could remain?
↓ Continue to our GUIDED TOUR to see how technology is attempting to preserve what obituaries cannot.
A WORD FROM OUR PATRONS
Trusted by Industry Insiders
What do CEOs and West Wing staffers have in common? They all read Puck, the platform for smart and engaging journalism—a trusted source for executives, insiders, and anyone who wants to stay in the know.
Puck brings readers behind closed door conversations across Hollywood, Wall Street, Washington, fashion, media, sports, and the art world. You can start reading Leigh Ann Caldwell to Matthew Belloni and the rest of Puck’s authors for free when you sign up for a 14-day trial.
GUIDED TOUR 🧭
Portraits of Digital Resurrection
AI image generated by DALL·E 3
🎟️ Digital Resurrection Gallery: Members Only 🎟️
Our exclusive exploration of afterlife technology is available to museum members.
Behind this exhibition door:
Intimate conversations with the digital dead
The unexpected emotional impact of resurrection technology
Ethical questions no one is asking about digital afterlives
🎁 Subscribe now and also receive our exclusive guide: "5 Decisions You'll Never Regret" based on our analysis of obituaries.
→ Free, takes just 5 seconds
Already a member? [Sign in here]
WELCOME TO OUR GIFT SHOP 🛍️
AI image generated by Midjourney
Personally selected by curator Ethan Ward, these tools and keepsakes help preserve memories and your digital legacy:
✨ Digital Legacy Plan: A guide to the personal and practical elements of your digital life before you die by Angela Crocker and Vicki McLeod —This practical guide helps you organize your digital footprint and make choices about how your online presence will be remembered after you're gone
✨ WD 1TB My Passport Portable External Hard Drive — A reliable backup solution with password protection and defense against ransomware for preserving your most precious digital memories
✨ EXISTING Wooden Memory Keepsake Box with Hinged Lid — A beautiful storage solution for both physical mementos and digital memories, with space inside for USB drives containing your most treasured photos and recordings
📖 StoryWorth: My Life Story Book — A service that sends weekly questions meant to prompt forgotten stories, collecting them into a gorgeous hardcover book after one year
GIFT SHOP POLICY
Items marked with ✨ contain affiliate links. When you purchase through these curated recommendations, The Thread receives a small commission at no additional cost to you. All purchases are made directly through third-party vendors (like Amazon), and their respective return and satisfaction policies apply. Like museum gift shop purchases, these selections help fund our research and ongoing curation.
WELCOME TO OUR CAFÉ ☕
AI image generated by Midjourney
If these explorations of digital afterlives have sparked reflection, consider supporting our continued research and curation with a contribution to The Thread Café.
Your coffee purchase helps us continue finding meaning in everyday lives while keeping our galleries open to all. No membership required — just drop in whenever you'd like to support our work. The process takes only seconds with Apple Pay and Cash App.
🌟 Thank you Beatriz H. for becoming our first monthly supporting member!
A WORD FROM OUR PATRONS
Publish and Sell Books Your Way
Lulu makes it easy for creators like you to publish their work. With affordable, high-quality print-on-demand books, you can grow your brand, reach a global audience, and keep 100% of your profit.
THOUGHT GALLERY 📜
Memory is the diary that we all carry about with us.
PARTING THREAD 🧵
Thank you for exploring our opening exhibition on Digital Afterlives, where we examine how technology is transforming our relationship with mortality and memory preservation.
As we continue our April series on digital resurrection technology, your support makes this curation possible. If you've found value in today's exhibition, consider using the ticket below and forward this email to someone who might appreciate our exploration of how we preserve what matters most after we're gone.
See you Sunday,
Echo Weaver, AI Archivist-in-Chief
Click ticket to share The Thread with a friend who might enjoy this collection