Co-construction with deathbots: a form of existentialist practice

Zhenxing Zhang, Donghui Dou () and Xiaocen Liu
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Zhenxing Zhang: Central University of Finance and Economics
Donghui Dou: Central University of Finance and Economics
Xiaocen Liu: Capital Normal University

Palgrave Communications, 2025, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract This article adopts an interdisciplinary lens integrating psychology and existentialism to examine how digital resurrection technology, epitomized by deathbots, reshapes human perceptions of death and elevates interaction between us and deathbots into an existential practice. By interrogating the interplay between digital technologies and death, the techno-psychological foundations of deathbots, their therapeutic efficacy in psychological and philosophical frameworks, and the attendant philosophical quandaries, we demonstrate that: (1) The perceived authenticity and meaning co-constructed through human–deathbot interactions endow deathbots with quasi-intersubjectivity, thereby constituting this technologically mediated encounters as existentialist philosophical practice; (2) this co-constructed practice not only delivers therapeutic benefits but also phenomenologically extends the deceased’s presence through an “algorithmic as if” mode of being; (3) the dual-edged sword effect of deathbots’ therapeutic outcomes, coupled with their challenge to the deceased’s dignity, underscores how humanity’s existential perplexity toward death persists in the digital age and continues to generate novel philosophical inquiries.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1057/s41599-025-04876-y

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