Actor Calum Worthy has sparked intense backlash after promoting his new app, 2wai. The app uses AI to create lifelike avatars of deceased loved ones. Its ad features a woman interacting with an AI recreation of her late mother throughout major life events. The ad has been widely condemned as disturbing, manipulative, and ethically alarming. Critics on social media have called the concept "evil," "dehumanizing," and reminiscent of a Black Mirror episode. They question both the morality of monetizing grief and the dangers of turning real people into chatbot-driven holograms with just a three-minute video.

Beyond default characters and historical figure recreations, 2wai's promise to "resurrect" real individuals has raised concerns. People worry about psychological harm, identity misuse, and the potential for loved ones' likenesses to be exploited for advertising or other unintended purposes. AI "deadbots" and holographic recreations have appeared before, from Kanye West's hologram of Rob Kardashian to services like Project December. But the scale and accessibility of 2wai have amplified fears that technology encourages people to avoid healthy grieving and to hand intimate memories over to private companies.