The man who married a hologram in Japan can no longer communicate with his virtual wife

The husband of virtual pop diva Hatsune Miku regrets the termination of her hologram's AI service but maintains his affection for the pe...

The husband of virtual pop diva Hatsune Miku regrets the termination of her hologram's AI service but maintains his affection for the persona.

The Japanese man Akihiko Kondo, who made headlines in 2018 when he wed a hologram of the virtual pop singer Hatsune Miku, confessed he is unable to communicate with her any longer.

According to the Mainichi Shinbun, Kondo is best known for being married to an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven hologram of the widely known figure, which was created by the tech startup Gatebox. Although the union is not recognised by the government of Japan, Kondo spent nearly 2 million yen (or roughly $17,300 USD) on a wedding ceremony that was attended by 39 of the man's closest friends but not his family. Unfortunately for the couple, Gatebox stopped offering its AI service for the hologram in 2020. This service operated by connecting to a central processing server via the internet, much like more widely used voice assistants like Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri.

Kondo emphasised his affection for the virtual singer while expressing his sadness that the hologram can no longer communicate with him. "My love for Miku hasn't changed. I performed the wedding because I believed we would be together forever "explained Kondo. Kondo claims he has continued to speak to the virtual Miku even though it is no longer able to respond to his voice. He also eats his meals with the now-muted avatar facing him.

Kondo identifies as a "fictosexual," or someone drawn to fictitious people and objects. He claims the overall experience has been positive and that his relationship with Miku helped him overcome a severe depression that had previously rendered him unable to work or even eat, despite the fact that he has faced some criticism and condemnation for his marriage to the computer-generated pop idol. Kondo claimed, "I sat in my room for 24 hours a day and watched Miku videos all that time. He claims that Miku's encouragement has made it possible for him to reintegrate into society and lead a healthy life.

The first of Crypton Future Media's "Vocaloids," a line of voice synthesisers that simulate the sound of a human singing voice, Hatsune Miku made her debut in 2007. The figure soon gained popularity among Japanese fans of anime and pop music, and is now the focus of a massive merchandising enterprise that has grown beyond the initial show and now includes full-length albums, a line of Sega video games, and countless figurines and other souvenirs. Despite being a virtual figure, Miku has performed live using holograms and even joined Lady Gaga on tour in 2014.