The Deep View: “Deadbots” … advocacy to court rooms

Posted on August 28, 2025 by michelleclarke2015
AI deadbots move from advocacy to courtrooms as $80B industry emerges
AI avatars of deceased people are increasingly appearing in high-stakes legal and advocacy settings, creating what researchers call “powerful rhetoric” that taps into “emotional longing and vulnerability.” The technology has moved from experimental to practical applications with significant real-world consequences.
Recent prominent cases include:
Joaquin Oliver, killed in the 2018 Parkland shooting, appeared as a beanie-wearing AI avatar advocating for gun control in a July interview with journalist Jim AcostaChris Pelkey, victim of a road rage incident, delivered an AI-generated victim impact statement during his killer’s sentencing in MayThe judge in Pelkey’s case called the AI statement “genuine” before handing down the maximum sentence
The digital afterlife industry is expected to quadruple to nearly $80 billion over the next decade, driven largely by these AI “deadbots.” Creating convincing deepfakes has become increasingly accessible with publicly available AI tools, sparking an arms race in detection technology.
Companies like Reality Defender, which raised $15 million and received strategic investment from Accenture, offer real-time deepfake detection across audio, video, images and text. The broader deepfake detection market was valued at $3.86 billion in 2020.
We’ve previously covered Department of Homeland Security warnings about synthetic content threats. The emergence of deadbots in courtrooms represents a new frontier where the stakes extend beyond fraud to fundamental questions about justice and authenticity.
Legal experts see both promise and peril. Arizona State University law professor Gary Marchant told NPR that victim impact statements are “probably the least objectionable use of AI to create false videos,” but warns that “many attempts will be much more malevolent.”

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About michelleclarke2015

Life event that changes all: Horse riding accident in Zimbabwe in 1993, a fractured skull et al including bipolar anxiety, chronic fatigue …. co-morbidities (Nietzche 'He who has the reason why can deal with any how' details my health history from 1993 to date). 17th 2017 August operation for breast cancer (no indications just an appointment came from BreastCheck through the Post). Trinity College Dublin Business Economics and Social Studies (but no degree) 1997-2003; UCD 1997/1998 night classes) essays, projects, writings. Trinity Horizon Programme 1997/98 (Centre for Women Studies Trinity College Dublin/St. Patrick's Foundation (Professor McKeon) EU Horizon funded: research study of 15 women (I was one of this group and it became the cornerstone of my journey to now 2017) over 9 mth period diagnosed with depression and their reintegration into society, with special emphasis on work, arts, further education; Notes from time at Trinity Horizon Project 1997/98; Articles written for Irishhealth.com 2003/2004; St Patricks Foundation monthly lecture notes for a specific period in time; Selection of Poetry including poems written by people I know; Quotations 1998-2017; other writings mainly with theme of social justice under the heading Citizen Journalism Ireland. Letters written to friends about life in Zimbabwe; Family history including Michael Comyn KC, my grandfather, my grandmother's family, the O'Donnellan ffrench Blake-Forsters; Moral wrong: An acrimonious divorce but the real injustice was the Catholic Church granting an annulment – you can read it and make your own judgment, I have mine. Topics I have written about include annual Brain Awareness week, Mashonaland Irish Associataion in Zimbabwe, Suicide (a life sentence to those left behind); Nostalgia: Tara Hill, Co. Meath.
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