Six Feet Under a Data Centre: Let's talk about Death and Legacy online!

Managing traditional assets is challenging enough, but digital footprints and social media dial up the complexity of the end of life. AI companions are trained on the data of the deceased, platforms or associated digital cultures can cease to exist, and often it takes not just one person but a global network of laborers to keep our dead alive online. Yet there’s still no societal consensus, legislation, or consistent platform policies for handling digital legacies.

Drawing on innovative approaches from research, creative design, and death care, we’ll explore how technology reshapes loss and legacy—and how death literacy can improve our tech. Along the way, we’ll discuss conversations to initiate now, rituals and practices that preserve connection in a hybrid world, and more community-minded ways of handling digital remains.