Everything to everyone, all at once: Digital human versions as objects of agency and surrender
2025-11-18
This article explores the sociocultural implications of digital human versions, drawing parallels between the self-objectification in Marina Abramović’s 1974 performance Rhythm 0 and that in recent AI-driven digital version CarynAI, a chatbot run by a social media influencer in 2023–2024. A digital version is a digital replica of an embodied human, living or dead, that convincingly mimics that person’s textual, visual and aural habits, and exists independently of that source person. By considering digital versions through the lens of (self-)objectification, this article argues that individuals simultaneously assert and relinquish power when creating their own digital versions. Following its analysis of CarynAI, this article proposes a research agenda about digital versions, suggesting avenues for future study about versions and versioning. Ultimately, this article argues for the urgent need to understand the shifting dynamics of personal agency, interpersonal intimacy and identity posted by digital human versions.