A new kind of funeral announcement is turning heads, and opening wallets, in Ghana. In a widely shared video, the late Mr. Kwadwo Boakye appears dressed in regal kente, announcing the date, time, and venue of his own funeral. His voice is calm. His message clear. The catch? He had already passed away.
Welcome to the growing business of AI-powered obituary announcements, where technology brings the dead “back to life” to speak one last time. What began as an experiment in digital storytelling has quickly evolved into a service, and now, an emerging industry.
From funeral homes to digital studios, Ghanaian entrepreneurs are tapping into this unique space, blending culture and code to offer families something unforgettable. And behind the scenes, a new economy is quietly forming, driven by grief, tradition, and the timeless desire to be remembered.
A New Industry Takes Root
For a fee, families can now commission AI-generated tributes: cloned voices, animated visuals, and narrated funeral details, all tailored to sound and feel like the person who has passed. In some cases, the deceased even offers a personal message, thanking guests or sharing a final word of advice.
These services are being packaged like any creative product: funeral tech bundles that include posters, videos, livestreams, and now, the voice of the deceased. Prices vary depending on complexity, language, and customization, but demand is growing, especially among Ghanaians in the diaspora.
Small creative agencies and tech startups are leading the way, offering these services in partnership with funeral directors, media houses, and churches. Some are even exploring subscription models or “legacy recording” options, where individuals can pre-record messages while alive, to be preserved and enhanced after their passing.
Why It Works: Emotion Meets Innovation
In Ghana, funerals are not only about mourning, they’re about honour, storytelling, and community. The ability to hear a loved one speak again is powerful. It offers comfort, closure, and a deeply personal connection that traditional obituary posters or radio jingles cannot match.
And because it’s rooted in oral tradition, something Ghanaians have always valued, it doesn’t feel forced or foreign. It feels like the future of a very old practice.
For businesses, that emotional depth is what makes this market so promising. It’s not just another tech product, it’s a cultural service wrapped in innovation.
Beyond Funerals: A Glimpse at the Bigger Opportunity
The success of AI in funerals is only the beginning. This same technology, voice cloning, deep learning, avatar animation, can be adapted to other sectors:
Tourism & History: Museums and historical sites could use AI to recreate figures from Ghana’s past to narrate exhibits or national history.
Education: Imagine students hearing Dr. Kwame Nkrumah or Yaa Asantewaa deliver lessons in their own voices, recreated from archives and scripts.
Media & Advertising: Brands could license deceased public figures or cultural icons, ethically and with family permission, for storytelling campaigns.
Spiritual & Ancestral Preservation: Traditional leaders or elders could record their teachings for future generations, maintaining oral wisdom in digital form.
If handled respectfully and responsibly, AI could become a powerful cultural tool, not just for the dead, but for the living.
Caution and Possibility
As with any emerging tech, challenges exist. Ethical questions will arise: Who owns a dead person’s voice? What happens when families disagree on use? How do you protect this space from exploitation?
But Ghana has always had a way of shaping modern tools to reflect deep tradition. This new intersection of business, technology, and culture is just the latest example.
Grief, Growth, and Ghana’s Next Tech Wave
The business of AI-powered obituaries might seem strange at first glance. But look closer, and it reveals something familiar: Ghanaians innovating not for novelty, but for meaning.
In a country where funerals matter deeply and storytelling is sacred, the ability to preserve a voice, one last time, is a service worth paying for. And for the creators behind it, it’s more than content. It’s legacy work.
From digital grief to cultural preservation, Ghana is once again showing that when tradition meets technology, something beautiful, and profitable, can emerge.
But it also raises a question: Is this truly the most effective way to use AI? Or could this powerful technology be guided toward even broader, deeper benefits for society? As Ghana embraces this next tech wave, these are the reflections that will shape its future.
