Sharon Osbourne responded to criticism that the development of an AI version of Ozzy Osbourne is about the money. Speaking on the latest episode of The Osbournes podcast, Sharon addressed claims that the family is taking advantage of new technology as a “cash grab.”
On the episode, Sharon and Jack Osbourne described the AI avatar of Ozzy as a technological advancement, noting that if they don’t do it someone else will. Jack added that it’s a “closed AI module” that is not connected to the Internet. “Someone said, ‘It’s dangerous, you can’t control,'” he recounted. “And I was like, ‘What the fuck do you think this? Terminator?’ You think this is going to go sentient and the next thing you know Ozzy is going to launch the nukes?”
He added, “For me, it’s not about pretending he’s still alive.”
Sharon replied, “He is still alive. He’s left us a body of work that will never die.”
They agreed the effort is to ensure he’s “never forgotten.” “Technology moves on,” Sharon noted, adding that she’s “sorry for those people” who think it’s about the money.
“I’m not asking you to come,” she said. “I don’t want your fucking money. I don’t need your fucking money. I’m doing very well.”
She acknowledged that Ozzy himself would have supported the project. “For somebody to turn around to me and say I’m doing a cash grab? No, you don’t know my husband, OK?” she said. “I know my husband. My husband would say to me over and over, ‘After I go, how long do you think I’ll be remembered?'”
In May, the Osbournes announced they had partnered with Hyperreal and Proto Hologram to create an AI-powered Prince of Darkness, which will be able to speak with his fans and will be available in Proto Luma units in the U.K. and U.S. later this summer. There has already been some backlash to the project, with fans apparently misunderstanding the scope of the technology.
Jack previously addressed concerns during a livestream Q&A, confirming “it’s not gonna be fucking lame.” “It’s really complex what we’re doing,” he said. “This isn’t just like hooking up an image of my dad to ChatGPT. This is some high-level technology that we’re gonna be working with, and it’s gonna feel very real, and it’s kind of wild how it will be utilized.”
He also explained that he had discussed similar ideas with his dad prior to his death last year. “It’s really cool and it’s something that I think my dad would be into,” Jack said. “We actually talked about it before he passed, about doing something like this … I know he would be into this.”
The CEO of Hyperreal, Remington Scott, told Rolling Stone that it created the Ozzy avatar using patented technology that allows the avatar to operate in real time. The company uses patented “Digital DNA” technology to gather the data it needs to create the avatars.
“It can perform live, respond to audiences, and exist within interactive environments,” Scott said. “This isn’t pre-rendered content playing on a loop. It’s a living performance, built exclusively from authenticated source material: curated, consented, and controlled by the people closest to Ozzy.”
