Griefbots And Grief Time: a conversation with Marilyn Stendera

Send us Fan MailWe talk with philosopher Marilyn Stendera about grief as a disruption of lived time and why AI griefbots raise questions that go beyond simple “deception” claims. Stendera talks us through how Heidegger’s world time and clock time can help us to reconceive bereavement, digital legacy, and the pressure to grieve on a schedule. Other topics and questions discussed:• What griefbots and deathbots are, including large language model chatbots trained on the dead • Why world time is social, practical, and meaning-laden compared to clock time • How death can break shared routines so the clock keeps ticking but time stops making sense • Griefbots as a short-term holding pattern that makes the next moment bearable • The deeper risk of temporal reduction, smoothing grief into a flatter, easier narrative • How chatbots’ constant availability and low friction can reshape memory and future planning • Prolonged grief disorder and the norm that grief should fit a standard timeline • Seasons, place, and desynchronization, including why grief can feel spatially out of step • Consent and curation in end-of-life planning, digital replicas, and posthumous identity Like forget to like and subscribe. Undisciplinary - a podcast that talks across the boundaries of history, ethics, and the politics of health. Follow us on Twitter @undisciplinary_ or email questions for "mailbag episodes" [email protected]