AI-Generated Eulogies: A Helpful Draft or a Risky Substitute?

You’ve been asked to speak at a funeral, you’re exhausted, and a blank page is staring back. Using an AI chatbot to get started is understandable, and plenty of people do. This guide explains what it can help with, where it tends to go wrong, and how to keep the words yours. For the written notice of a death, see could AI write your obituary?.

What does AI do well?

Funeral-industry writers describe AI as a useful first-draft assistant. It can help you:

• Organize scattered memories into a beginning, middle, and end
• Adjust tone, from solemn to warm to light
• Trim or extend to fit a time slot, such as three or five minutes
• Smooth awkward phrasing and fix grammar
• Offer options, such as two or three possible openings

The American Psychological Association’s guide to AI-generated advice makes a similar point about using AI in general: it can be helpful for organizing thoughts, generating ideas, and prompting reflection.

Where does it go wrong?

It invents details. The Washington Post tested an AI obituary tool, as reported by Futurism, and confirmed the common criticism that it makes up details and leans on flowery language; even when given specifics about a fictional person, the AI dreamed up new ones. In one example, a prompt saying only that the person was “thoughtful” produced a paragraph about countless acts of kindness and a “profound understanding of human nature.” Tulip Cremation, a cremation provider, tested ChatGPT and an obituary app on a fictitious person and found that one tool’s output was full of errors, beginning with the wrong date of death. Its advice: check your dates and facts. A funeral-program company that sells templates similarly warns that AI may “hallucinate” details and that names, dates, roles, and events must be verified.

It sounds generic. The same funeral-program company notes that a fully bot-written piece risks sounding insincere and that AI output can read as formulaic without personal input. A eulogy works because of the specific thing only you can say: the way they laughed, the phrase they repeated, the time they showed up.

It can airbrush. Futurism’s reporting quotes a concern that AI effectively “airbrushes” a life, smoothing out the details and complexities that made a person who they were.

It raises privacy and honesty questions. Industry reporting describes debates about how secure the sensitive information fed into AI systems is, and about whether families should be told when a tribute was AI-assisted.

How can I use it responsibly?

1. Start with your own material. Write down stories, quotes, names, and details before you open any tool. Even rough bullet points are enough
2. Give the tool specifics, not a mood. Paste your notes and ask for structure, not new content. A sample prompt (ours): “Here are my notes about my grandmother. Organize them into a five-minute eulogy with a warm opening and a short closing. Use only the facts and stories I’ve provided. Do not add any details.”
3. Ask for options, such as two different openings, and take the pieces you like
4. Replace generic lines with real ones. Underline anything that could be said about anyone (“she touched everyone she met”), and swap in something that could only be said about her
5. Verify every fact. Check names, dates, places, relationships, and accomplishments with family
6. Cut anything you can’t stand behind, including invented quotes and tributes you wouldn’t say out loud
7. Read it aloud. Spoken language differs from written language; edit until it sounds like you
8. Mind privacy. Leave out account numbers, medical details, and private family matters, and check the tool’s data settings before pasting anything sensitive. The APA notes AI can state things inaccurately, which is another reason to treat output as a draft
9. Check sensitive content with those who matter. If there’s a religious or cultural tradition involved, or if the death was sudden or painful, ask clergy or family before including details

Should I tell people I used AI?

That’s your call. Some speakers mention it, and many don’t, since the words and stories are theirs and they’ve edited them. What matters is that what you say is true, kind, and yours. If you wouldn’t feel comfortable explaining how you wrote it to the family, reconsider.

What if the person asking is a funeral home or celebrant?

Funeral homes are using AI tools for obituaries, according to industry reporting, which also describes critics calling the results “lazy.” It’s reasonable to ask whether AI is used and to request that a person review everything, especially facts.

A checklist before you speak

• Every name, date, and place is verified
• At least three details are specific to this person
• Nothing invented or exaggerated remains
• It fits the time you’ve been given when read aloud
• A family member who knew them has heard or read it
• You’d be comfortable saying every line

What if I just can’t write it?

That’s normal. Grief affects concentration, and it’s okay to keep it short. A few honest sentences, one story, and a simple “thank you” can be a complete eulogy. See writing a eulogy without religious language for structure, or ask a friend, celebrant, or clergy to help; and if you’re struggling, see using AI chatbots for grief support and finding grief support.

This is general educational information, not professional advice. AI tools can produce inaccurate or invented content; always verify facts before using them in a tribute. The sample prompt and checklist are written by Everendium.