New Delhi, July 14 -- a generative ghost.

Re;memory, which charges $24 monthly; Seance AI, which offers animated image interactions for $19.99 a month; and You Only Virtual, a third entrant offering similar capabilities with different packaging. All three say their user bases are growing. None will disclose subscriber numbers.

Jack Manning, a doctoral candidate studying technology and death at the University of Colorado Boulder, has tracked the sector's emergence. "It is definitely a growing sector," he told CBS MoneyWatch. "We're seeing growth in interest in how AI and grief intertwine." Manning and his colleague Jed Brubaker, an associate professor at the same institution, have spent years studying bereavement practices across digital...