AI enables digital reunion of organ donor and family

Ahead of next week's Tomb Sweeping Day, a new way to commemorate loved ones using artificial intelligence to create digital representations of the deceased has emerged in Southwest China's Chongqing.

On Thursday, the first digital human was presented at a body and organ donation memorial event held at Chongqing Organ Donation Memorial Park.

"Although separated in two different worlds, we will always love each other," a digital representation of Diao Panya said. "This love will let us overcome any obstacle and hardship. And we must embrace tomorrow — with every day filled with happiness. I love you all forever."

Her young daughter, Huang Jingya, burst into tears after hearing her mother's words at the event.

Diao, a gastroenterologist at Chongqing University Jiangjin Hospital, died of a sudden illness in June at the age of 48. Her donated kidneys and liver later saved three people's lives.

On the opening day of this year's memorial week for body and organ donors, Diao's mother and daughter visited the memorial park in Chongqing's Bishan district and "met" with her via AI.

"Although my mother's death was a huge blow to me, she knows from heaven that I will move on and try to live a wonderful life," Jingya said.

Wang Li, general manager of Fu Shou Yuan International Group (Chongqing), which came up with the AI idea, said: "We wanted to offer a new way to commemorate the deceased and to compensate for the many likely regrets of their families."

Last month, after obtaining the consent of Diao's family members, technicians collected a large amount of audio and video recordings that they used to create the AI video.

Fu Shou Yuan has been integrating innovative technologies in recent years to create a new digital "remembrance space" for the funeral industry.

China made voluntary donations the only legitimate source of organ donations after it banned the use of organs from executed prisoners in January 2015.

According to the Chongqing branch of the Red Cross Society of China, more than 164,000 volunteers in the municipality have registered for corneal donation, with over 8,600 donations bringing sight to more than 6,300 patients with eye diseases.

The city has also registered more than 145,000 organ donors, with 1,164 having donated over 3,200 major organs, saving the lives of 3,070 patients with organ failure.

According to the Red Cross Society of China, more than 820,000 people nationwide registered as organ donors last year.

The number of registered organ donors across the country now exceeds 6.65 million, with over 50,000 cases of donation and more than 153,000 donated organs.

Contact the writers at dengrui@chinadaily.com.cn