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How one artist used AI to preserve her grandfather's legacy

Part 2 of the TED Radio Hour episode The future of our memories.

Amy Kurzweil never met her grandfather Fred. But with the help of AI and an extensive archive of Fred's writings, she was able to "speak" with him in the form of a chatbot... decades after his death.

About Amy Kurzweil

Amy Kurzweil is a cartoonist for The New Yorker and the author of Artificial: A Love Story, a memoir of her father's quest to construct an AI chatbot modeled on her grandfather's writings.

She is also the author of Flying Couch: A Graphic Memoir and Forever Poems for Now and Then.

This segment of the TED Radio Hour was produced by Katie Monteleone and edited by Sanaz Meshkinpour. You can follow us on Facebook @TEDRadioHour and email us at TEDRadioHour@npr.org.

Related Web Resources
Related TED Bio: Amy KurzweilRelated TED Talk: Time traveling with AI to connect with lost loved onesRelated TED Talk: A mother and son's photographic journey through dementia

Related NPR Links
Morning Edition: Using AI, cartoonist Amy Kurzweil connects with deceased grandfather in 'Artificial'NPR Comic SeriesNPR Book of the Day: 'The Coming Wave' and 'Artificial' offer different perspectives on AI

Copyright 2025 NPR

Manoush Zomorodi
Manoush Zomorodi is the host of TED Radio Hour.
Katie Monteleone
Sanaz Meshkinpour