Dualistic Interpretation of "Near-Death Experiences” in the Crucible of Thought Experiments

A thought experiment explores whether combining strong artificial intelligence with the Internet of Things (AIoT) could replicate the experiences reported during near-death experiences, such as perceiving distant places or gaining awareness beyond normal sensory limits, without requiring a soul or metaphysical dimension. The authors reject physicalist interpretations of near-death experiences but argue that this technological scenario poses a challenge to dualistic interpretations that rely on a soul. The argument does not endorse the technological claim but uses it to test the explanatory power of dualism against a hypothetical physicalist alternative.

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Abstract

Dualistic interpretations of near-death experiences (NDEs) are based on evidence such as experiencing distant places, gaining awareness of the past, present, and future, and seeing beyond physical objects. From this perspective, these experiences are not possible without the existence of a soul and a metaphysical dimension. This approach considers reductionist and physicalist interpretations incapable of explaining these events. This article designs a thought experiment-type argument to examine a view that claims that by combining two technologies: strong artificial intelligence (SAI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) and achieving artificial intelligence of things (AIoT), it is possible to reconstruct and experience the claims of near-death experiencers without the need for a soul, or even create those experiences without the presence of near-death states by connecting to the brains of individuals. Although the authors reject physicalist interpretations of near-death experiences, they believe that this claim can be a challenge to dualistic interpretations of near-death experiences.