Tino Bao Photo: Screenshot of Weibo video

"My daughter has come back," renowned musician Tino Bao (Bao Xiaobo) said in a recent interview, after he "revived" his child with AI technology.

While the reason behind it is heart-wrenching, the musician's use of advanced technology to preserve memories for deceased people has triggered heated discussion online.

According to media outlet Sina Entertainment, Bao's 22-year-old daughter, Bao Rong, suffered from a rare blood disease, and despite her father's efforts to donate bone marrow, she passed away in December 2021.

Recently, Bao used AI to "resurrect" his daughter and had her sing a birthday song for his wife.

A video clip posted by Bao on Facebook on January 19 featured an AI-generated Bao Rong saying "Mummy, happy birthday! To be honest, I miss you so much!" Later the AI-generated Bao Rong sings a birthday song to her mom in the video.

"Dear Feli, welcome back from the digital world!" Bao wrote in the caption for the video.

During the interview, Bao mentioned that after repeated training attempts, he successfully recreated a "digital daughter" that could respond to questions in real time. When his wife's birthday came around, the family sang a birthday song together.

The musician recently appeared with long white hair, a stark contrast to his previous image. He had previously mentioned that after his daughter's passing, he stopped cutting his hair, because there is a section of hair that once touched his daughter's forehead every day.

Struggling to overcome the loss of his daughter, Bao decided to delve into AI technology and pursue a doctoral degree in a related field starting in 2022.

He hoped to recreate his daughter's voice from before she fell ill.

He vowed to use technology to bring back his daughter's voice and image, stating, "I want to give her the most perfect image, the most perfect voice, and let her continue to exist in the magnificent digital world."

When asked if he knew it wasn't real, Bao said that he didn't care because he truly missed his daughter, which motivated him to do everything he could.

After hearing Bao's story, some netizens drew parallels to the movie "The Wandering Earth 2," in which a similar theme was explored. In the movie, melancholic scientist Tu Hengyu played by Andy Lau talks with his deceased daughter after he uploads her personality into an experimental AI program.

Many netizens expressed support for using AI technology to preserve memories and emotions.

However, some netizens expressed concerns that relying on AI in this way might hinder the process of moving on from grief.

Despite the mixed reactions, Bao's dedication to preserving his daughter's memory has touched many hearts. The related topic was trending on Sina Weibo on Thursday with more than 16 million views as of press time.

Global Times