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Rocker Ozzy Osbourne was an on-stage presence with his band Black Sabbath, and later became a goofy dad on MTV’s reality TV show The Osbournes. A year after his death at the age of 75, he may be about to make a new kind of impression — as an AI-powered hologram.
His family partnered with a company called Hyperreal, which has created other 3D avatars, including one of Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee, to plan the Ozzy AI project.
His widow, Sharon, and son, Jack, have been exploring this possibility for a decade. Despite fan criticism, the rocker’s family said on Friday’s episode of their podcast The Osbournes that they consider it a smart use of new technology.
Speaking about fan complaints, Sharon Osbourne said: “It’s like saying, ‘Why do you need a CD when you have a vinyl record?’ “You move with the times.”
Jack Osbourne described Ozzy’s avatar as a “digital fingerprint”, not a hologram.
On the podcast, he read what he called the top five fan criticisms of the Ozzy AI project, including quotes from someone who called the Ozzy project “ChatGPT with a face.”
Jack Osbourne took issue with this comment in particular, stating that the Ozzy character would not make up information, but would merely cite facts provided to her about Ozzy’s real life.
“This isn’t ChatGPT with my dad’s face on it,” he said. “This is a closed AI, so it’s not connected to the internet. We’re building a database. And the thing I can’t stress enough is that this is just information that my father said or was accurately written about.”
Sharon Osbourne said the project would resonate with Ozzy’s concerns about his legacy. “My husband would say to me over and over again, ‘After I’m gone, how long do you think I’ll be remembered?’”
From ABBA to Whitney Houston
The Osbournes did not reveal details about how fans will view or interact with Ozzy’s digital footprint. But he won’t be the first celebrity to return digitally.
In 2020, Kanye West surprised his then-wife, Kim Kardashian, with a 3D image of her late father. OJ Simpson’s attorney, Robert Kardashian. (The photo described West as “the most, most, most, most, most genius man in the whole world.”) The Kardashian maquette did not interact with viewers; Instead, he offered encouraging words directed at Kim Kardashian, who was 22 when her father died in 2003.
A concert featuring A A 3D image of the late Whitney Houston It ran for two years in Europe and Las Vegas. The show featured a 3D version of Houston singing digitally remastered versions of her previous live performances, and included a five-piece live band, backup singers and choreographed dancers.
Digital celebrities are created in different ways. Many hologram-style displays create images of stars who have died. But members Beloved Swedish pop band ABBA They are still with us, and actively participated in the creation of their show. ABBA members wore motion capture suits while performing their songs, and created dance moves that are now performed by computer-generated versions meant to represent what the band members looked like in 1979. The virtual band performs at a music experience in London called Aba Travels.
Hyperreal created its own avatar of the late Stan Lee to be displayed in a giant box called Proto Loma.
“Luma delivers a truly authentic presence with high-resolution speakers, 4K video and a touch screen so users can interact as if they were in the same room as the 3D image.” Hyperreal website says.
According to the Los Angeles Times. Lee’s interactive avatar answered questions from Los Angeles Comic Con attendees using decades of the Marvel Comics leader’s real words, drawn from his interviews and writing.
It’s unclear if Ozzy Osbourne will appear at the Luma box and interact with fans in the same way.
A representative for Hyperreal did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ozzy’s legacy
Some fans, as Jack and Sharon Osbourne noted, remain skeptical. In the YouTube comments below the podcast video, in which the two discuss and defend their project, fans posted comments similar to the ones Jack made in the video.
“You don’t need an AI to remember Ozzy, his fans will never forget him…” one fan wrote.
Ozzy Osbourne lives in other ways. Jack Osbourne recently said that A.J A biography of his father It is scheduled to take place in 2028. He and his wife Ari named their new daughter, born on March 5. Ozzy Matilda Osbourne.
In May, Jack and Sharon Osbourne attended Licensing Expo 2026, where they… He publicly discussed Ozzy’s digital plans.
“Elvis died 50 years ago, and everyone knows Elvis,” Sharon said at the event. Global licensing. “I just want it for Ozzy.”
The 3D image will be identical to life, in a way.
“You can ask Ozzy anything, and he’ll answer you with his voice — and the answers will be what Ozzy would say,” she said on the show. “We’ll take it all over the world. People can talk to him, and he’ll answer them.”
Wild, but that’s the way it goes.
