Former Disney Channel actor Calum Worthy has sparked controversy after posting a video promoting his new AI app, 2wai, which allows people to create digital avatars of their late loved ones.
Earlier this week, the Austin & Ally star shared an advert showing a pregnant woman talking to her mother on her phone, asking for maternity advice.
At the end of the clip, it is revealed that the image on the woman’s phone is actually a digital avatar and that her mother is dead.
There is a flashback to before the mother’s death, showing the pair recording a three-minute video to create the AI avatar, using the 2wai app.
The promo ends with the text: “With 2wai, three minutes can last forever.”
Worthy captioned the post: “What if the loved ones we’ve lost could be part of our future?”
The post was met with criticism, with social media users on X/Twitter drawing comparisons to Netflix’s dystopian sci-fi series, Black Mirror, particularly the season two episode entitled “Be Right Back”, in which Hayley Atwell’s character uses AI to resurrect her dead boyfriend, played by Domhnall Gleeson.
“Isn’t this very nearly a literal Black Mirror episode?” wrote one person, as another added: “What a wonderful idea – gradually replace my internal representation and memories of my deceased loved ones with AI slop!”
Another said: “Oh goody, another way for people to completely lose touch with reality and avoid the normal process of grief.”
One critic said the AI tool could potentially cause “a lot of pain”, adding: “You’re giving people a false expectation that they will be able to reconnect with their lost loved ones when this can never reproduce their presence.” The Independent has contacted Worthy and 2wai for comment.
2wai has other uses, too. It allows users to interact with AI versions of historical figures like William Shakespeare, Florence Nightingale, King Henry VIII and Frida Kahlo, who are intended to serve as “real-time teaching assistants for a truly immersive learning experience”.
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The app also has a digitised avatar version of Worthy, which speaks in his voice. Users can interact with 2wai-created characters, including Luca (a personal chef), Celeste (an astrologist) and Darius (a personal trainer). Prominent celebrities and artists can also upload their avatars to the app for fans to interact with.
In an interview with Variety, Worthy said that 2wai will put “the control back in the hands” of celebrities and artists who can have “meaningful relationships with fans around the world”.
“This lets them engage fans 24/7 without needing to be online all the time. This platform enables this one-on-one, human-like connection,” he said.
Worthy began his career as a child actor and is best known for playing Dez on Disney Channel’s Austin & Ally. His most recent work includes The Act and American Vandal, and the 2022 Hulu comedy Reboot.