Safeguarding memories
28 Jun 2025
The recent explosion in artificial intelligence, and particularly generative AI, has opened the door to a myriad of opportunities that, just a decade ago, belonged to the realm of science fiction. As with any powerful new technology, however, it also brings significant dangers, many of which have already been widely discussed — for instance, the rise of deepfakes. Yet there is another, less frequently acknowledged threat: the potential erosion of our own memories, and, with it, the imperative to safeguard memory in the age of AI.
In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Harry finds a captivating magical object known as the Mirror of Erised. The mirror, Professor Dumbledore tells Harry, reflects the “deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts.” For the young wizard, it reveals a vision of his deceased parents, allowing him to see and be with them once again. The danger, Dumbledore warns, lies in the mirror's seductive illusion: some have wasted away before it, entranced by what they see, mistaking fantasy for reality. For them, the image becomes more real and compelling than life itself.
Generative AI threatens to become our own Mirror of Erised. With just a photograph of a loved one who has passed away, we can now ask an AI to generate a video of them: walking, smiling, even speaking to us in a familiar voice. We can recreate the holidays we once shared with them, the conversations we wish we had recorded, the moments we long to relive. But just as the Mirror of Erised offers only a beautiful illusion, so too does AI conjure simulations that risk detaching us from reality.
The danger lies not in the technology itself, but in the temptation to immerse ourselves in these reconstructions, choosing them instead of engaging in the painful but necessary processes of remembrance, grief, and healing. When we do this, we risk turning memory into a curated fantasy rather than allowing it to remain a living, evolving part of our identity.
Gradually, such use of the technology may lead to the replacement of our authentic memories with AI-generated representations. We may no longer recall how our loved ones truly looked, sounded, or acted, but instead remember only the AI's version of them.
Protecting ourselves from this requires an inward commitment: the responsibility to safeguard our memories ultimately lies within us. Only through conscious effort can we preserve the integrity of our past in the face of alluring simulations. This means accepting that memory is fragile, incomplete, and easily replaced, and avoiding the temptation to succumb to this modern Mirror of Erised.