AI-Powered Death Clocks and the Quest to Measure Aging

Advancements in technology are revolutionizing how we perceive and measure aging, offering tools that blend precision with personalization. A recent Bloomberg article highlights the rise of an “AI-Powered Death Clock,” a new AI-powered app that predicts life expectancy based on individual lifestyle data. In my book Healthy Wealthy Longevity, I highlight the development of “epigenetic clocks” that, when added to the information and data sets used by AI-Powered Death Clocks, will predict our longevity and offer a transformative understanding of our personalized aging processes and lifespan.

The Death Clock and Personalized Longevity

The new AI-powered Death Clock is trained on a dataset of over 1,200 longevity studies and 53 million participants to offer personalized life expectancies. By analyzing variables like diet, sleep, exercise, and stress, the Death Clock app provides a tailored insight into an individual’s potential lifespan. This approach is based on population-wide studies and generalizations. When I answered the Death Clock questions, I received the following result: 

Apparently, I will die on Tuesday, November 21, 2056—mark your calendar—assuming I don’t get “hit by a bus” or change my lifestyle to live healthier.  I wonder why it does not offer me the time of day as well. And if I decide to live a healthier lifestyle, I can plan to make it and additional 402 days to Friday, December 28, 2057. That is my outside date. I am going to tell my family now to plan for a rather drab 2056 Thanksgiving or a depressing 2057 holiday season—please plan accordingly. 

What do I think about this? 

First, this is a deterministic result, meaning a determined date of death. This is neither a very helpful nor accurate way to present life expectancy. Estimating how long you will live is properly presented through a probabilistic result. The probability you will be alive tomorrow is 99.9%. The probability you will be dead at age 120 is 99.99%. See my book, Chapter 1, Probabilities of Life, if these concepts are foreign to you. 

Second, I would be lying if I didn’t say I am disappointed in the result. Living to age 90-91 is the best-case scenario?! Really! I am taking all-bets now that: (a) my death does not occur on the dates predicted by the all-powerful AI Death Clock; and (b) if I am successfully able to avoid buses, I will make it far beyond age 90. Time will tell. Who wants to make a bet?!

Today vs. Tomorrow

The fact is today’s all-powerful AI Death Clock app simply reports basic mortality data. You can get a better result (sans the silly graphics); if you enter the following prompt in ChatGPT: 

How long will I live if: I was born in 1966; I am in excellent health; I visit the doctor regularly; I exercise regularly with weightlifting, sauna, and cardio; I have no current disease condition; my grandparents lived to ages 86, 87, 95 and 99; I drink little alcohol; I do not smoke or take illicit drugs; I am happily married; and I do not engage in any risky behaviors. 

Here is my estimated life expectancy from ChatGPT:

Based on the information you’ve provided and insights from research on longevity, you likely have a strong foundation for a long life. Given your profile, you might reasonably expect to live beyond the average life expectancy for a man in the U.S. (currently around 76 years). With your optimal lifestyle and genetic predisposition:

  • A reasonable range: 85–95 years
  • Potential outliers: It’s not uncommon for individuals with your lifestyle and genetic background to live past 100, especially if advancements in healthcare and anti-aging research (e.g., epigenetic therapies or longevity biotechnology) become accessible during your lifetime.

ChatGPT goes on to inform me that while it’s impossible to predict exact numbers without detailed biomarkers or personalized genetic data, it can make some general observations on the key factors impacting my longevity:

  1. Family History: Your grandparents’ longevity (ranging from 86 to 99 years) suggests a genetic predisposition to a long life. Genetics account for about 20–30% of longevity, with the remainder influenced by lifestyle and environment.
  2. Lifestyle Choices: Your commitment to regular exercise (cardio, weightlifting, and sauna), minimal alcohol consumption, and avoidance of smoking and illicit drugs significantly reduces the risk of chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes.
  3. Health Monitoring: Regular doctor visits help catch potential issues early, further improving your healthspan and lifespan.
  4. Relationships and Happiness: Being happily married has been associated with lower stress and better mental health, which can positively influence longevity.
  5. Absence of Risky Behaviors: Avoiding dangerous activities and maintaining low stress levels supports overall health.
  6. Physical Activity and Recovery: Weightlifting, sauna use, and cardio contribute to better cardiovascular health, muscle maintenance, and stress reduction. Studies also suggest saunas can reduce cardiovascular-related deaths.
  7. Social and Psychological Well-being: Happiness and meaningful relationships are key longevity factors, contributing to mental and physical health.

AI-powered death clocks offer the basic conclusions life insurance underwriters obtain with their traditional methods and not much more. This doesn’t make this bad information, on the contrary, it’s useful information. However, it does not offer the unique insights offered by more sophisticated biological aging methods, such as epigenetic clocks. The convergence of big data, AI and advanced biomarkers such as epigenetic clocks will soon offer a new era in precision longevity forecasting. The good news is these tools are not just about predicting the future—they’re about shaping it. By understanding and influencing our biological age, we can make informed choices that lead to a healthier, longer, and more fulfilling life.

Join the conversation at www.jonsabes.com as we explore how science and technology are unlocking the secrets to thriving across the decades.

Want the science behind epigenetic clocks? I wrote a series on it. Start with Your DNA Is Not Your Destiny, then The Clock Inside Your Cells, You Have Two Ages, What Your Methylation Says About Your Odds, Spit, Not Needles, and Can You Turn Back Your Biological Clock?

Jon Sabes is a named inventor on U.S. Patent No. 11,817,214 and managing member of LongevityFP Technologies, LLC, which holds an exclusive license to FOXO Technologies’ epigenetics technology.