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Stephen Donahue
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columns/2026-04-16-do-not-feed.md
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### No. Don't. ### No. Don't.
* After ten years of marriage, one Long Island couple is celebrating more than just a decade of companionship. On the night of their aniversarry, the couple shared a video of themselves boarding a plane to Vancouver, marking the beginning of a two week romantic holiday they had planned together. But what they would soon find out, just four hours later after they landed, is that the video they had uploaded would forever change their lives together. Soon after exiting the plane, on their way down to the carousel, they were both startled by a burst of notifications coming from their phones. What they would soon find scattered among email subjects and update reminders, would shock them. After ten years of marriage, one Long Island couple is celebrating more than just a decade of companionship. On the night of their aniversarry, the couple shared a video of themselves boarding a plane to Vancouver, marking the beginning of a two week romantic holiday they had planned together. But what they would soon find out, just four hours later after they landed, is that the video they had uploaded would forever change their lives together. Soon after exiting the plane, on their way down to the carousel, they were both startled by a burst of notifications coming from their phones. What they would soon find scattered among email subjects and update reminders, would shock them.
>"I remember seeing something like, 'CONGRATULATIONS! -' and then links to a whole bunch of forms to fill out." >"I remember seeing something like, 'CONGRATULATIONS! -' and then links to a whole bunch of forms to fill out."
>"It took us at least five minutes to make any sense of it. But then on one of the notifications, it looked like some kind of contract or an agreement, it said something like 'It has been explained to you that the samples you and your parter provided between such and such a date in 2016 and today.' And I'm just sitting there thinking someone was sick, or we had gotten in trouble with something." >"It took us at least five minutes to make any sense of it. But then on one of the notifications, it looked like some kind of contract or an agreement, it said something like 'It has been explained to you that the samples you and your parter provided between such and such a date in 2016 and today.' And I'm just sitting there thinking someone was sick, or we had gotten in trouble with something."
But they could not have imagined what it was that had actually taken over their phones. But they could not have imagined what it was that had actually taken over their phones.
>"Down on the bottom of [one of the messages]... E.T.R.N.L. it looked like a name or something, so I looked it up." >"Down on the bottom of [one of the messages]... E.T.R.N.L. it looked like a name or something, so I looked it up."
But what they soon found, nothing could have prepared them for. But what they soon found, nothing could have prepared them for.
>"It was some kind of a company, or just a small business, offering a 'digital twin' of your parent, or spouse." >"It was some kind of a company, or just a small business, offering a 'digital twin' of your parent, or spouse."
>"They were like, it takes ten years, average, usually less, to get enough, videos and selfies and whatever, of you two together, as a couple." >"They were like, it takes ten years, average, usually less, to get enough, videos and selfies and whatever, of you two together, as a couple."
That company, ETRNL, inc., founded by a pair of wellness and longevity influencers turned entrepreneurs, promises virtual replicas of spouses, parents, and even pets. They claim that it takes roughly ten-year's worth of "DMs, photos and videos" featuring both parties, to gather enough data for them to create their digital dopplegangers. That company, ETRNL, inc., founded by a pair of wellness and longevity influencers turned entrepreneurs, promises virtual replicas of spouses, parents, and even pets. They claim that it takes roughly ten-year's worth of "DMs, photos and videos" featuring both parties, to gather enough data for them to create their digital dopplegangers.
When asked to comment, a spokesperson for ETRNL stated that they: "need to capture every angle of the relationship to create an avatar. But really, when both [the avatar and the subject] are shaped by the same shared moments, the same history, who can say which is real and which is the imitation?" When asked to comment, a spokesperson for ETRNL stated that they: "need to capture every angle of the relationship to create an avatar. But really, when both [the avatar and the subject] are shaped by the same shared moments, the same history, who can say which is real and which is the imitation?"
>"I'd say it's strengthened our relationship. The things I couldn't say to the living, well, the original one. And they're always available. And it doesn't feel like talking with a machine. It's like having my best friend with me in my pocket." >"I'd say it's strengthened our relationship. The things I couldn't say to the living, well, the original one. And they're always available. And it doesn't feel like talking with a machine. It's like having my best friend with me in my pocket."
>"Now I might see the original once a week, or every other week. In a lot of ways, I'm actually getting to know my partner better through their digital self, than through the original." >"Now I might see the original once a week, or every other week. In a lot of ways, I'm actually getting to know my partner better through their digital self, than through the original."