Mark Zuckerberg creates AI clone of himself to interact with Meta staff

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has created an AI similar to himself to engage in conversations and provide feedback to the company’s staff.

According to the Financial Times, Zuckerberg is developing an AI agent to help manage his workload. This initiative coincides with Meta investing billions in data centers and recruiting research talent to lead in the artificial intelligence race.

Zuckerberg is not the first tech leader to clone himself; on the Diary of a CEO podcast, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi mentioned that some staff built a “Dara AI” to rehearse presentations and pitch them to him.

This practice, however, has been heavily criticized. Henry Ajder, an advisor to the UK Home Office and deepfake consultant, told the Financial Times that an AI CEO will be unnatural in its engagement and uncomfortable for employees.

“I am concerned about the impact on company culture,” Ajder stated. “How does Zuckerberg perceive his reputation and image through an avatar?” he asked, worried.

The head of corporate affairs at AI video start-up Synthesia, Alexandru Voica, added that the idea of switching yourself with AI just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

Neither Meta nor its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has commented on the report. Furthermore, no information has been released regarding the launch date or the avatar’s specific functionalities.