Vienna’s cathedral priest Toni Faber is preparing for an unusual next phase of life. The clergyman, who has been leading the St. Stephen’s Cathedral parish since 1997, is set to retire at the end of August 2027. However, he may not completely disappear: A digital likeness of Faber is expected to be used as an AI funeral speaker at funerals in the future.

The project is called „Fabertar“ and was presented on Tuesday together with the Graz start-up Lebensstimmen. The digital funeral speaker is expected to be available in the first quarter of 2027.

Behind the project is Lebensstimmen GmbH from Graz. The company is developing a platform through which people can leave personal farewell messages for relatives.

The messages are to be prepared during one’s lifetime and can later be played back during a funeral service. The digital Toni Faber plays a special role in this.

His AI-generated avatar, under the name „Fabertar,“ is to act as a funeral speaker and deliver the stored messages.

The company describes the platform as a digital provision offering for personal farewell words.

How the avatar technically functions and what options users will have in designing the funeral service are not detailed in the information released so far.

A particular advantage of the project, according to Faber, lies in its multilingualism.

The Viennese cathedral priest explained on Instagram that he himself has only limited foreign language skills. With artificial intelligence, however, he can reach people in 30 different languages.

„I am retiring next year. But as an AI priest, I will continue!“, Faber declared in his Instagram post.

From his perspective, the technology opens up new possibilities to reach people he has not been able to reach personally so far.

Faber also emphasized that he initially approached artificial intelligence with great respect. Through closer engagement with the technology, he now also sees its opportunities.

The planned use of artificial intelligence at funerals also raises questions about the role of human grief support.

The start-up therefore explicitly emphasizes that the digital eulogist is not intended to replace personal pastoral care.

Rather, it is intended to offer an additional way to deliver farewell words, for instance, when this is expressly desired or no eulogist is available.

Whether and under what conditions the „Fabertar“ can also be used at church funeral services is not clear from the available information.

It is also not known whether the platform has already made specific agreements with funeral companies.

For Faber, a major professional change is imminent, independent of the AI project. Since 1997, he has been the cathedral priest of St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna, making him a well-known figure in the church life of Austria. His role as cathedral priest is set to end on August 31, 2027.

The digital funeral speaker is, however, already announced for the first quarter of 2027 and could become available before Faber’s retirement. Whether the launch date can be met remains to be seen.

Essential practical questions about the new offering remain open. The current report does not specify what costs will be incurred for using the AI funeral speaker.

Details about booking, possible contract durations, or the storage of personal farewell messages have also not been further explained.

The company states that the platform aims to enable transparent and legally compliant digitization. However, independent information on the specific implementation of data protection is not provided in the current report.

One thing is certain: With the „Fabertar,“ Toni Faber intends to remain present in an unusual way even after his retirement – at least in digital form.

(Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article .