AI resurrection continues to provoke significant social controversy, challenging the boundaries between life and death while reshaping public ethical norms. Although the technology shows promise in grief management and collective memory preservation, ethical and moral concerns remain a major barrier to its development, fueling societal debate. Understanding public perceptions of AI resurrection is thus of critical practical importance. By analyzing 20,574 “AI resurrection”-related comments from Sina Weibo using the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) model, this study identifies key public discussion themes: the revival of deceased loved ones, the degree of anthropomorphism, and the ethical implications of the technology. Findings reveal widespread public caution, particularly regarding potential ethical and legal challenges, with emphasis on the technology’s impact on the dignity of the deceased and emotional bonds. Moreover, there is a noticeable divergence in the discourse between the comment sections of official and unofficial media. Discussions in the comment sections of official media often focus on the feasibility and market potential of the technology, whereas those in unofficial media tend to emphasize personal emotional responses and connections to cinematic narratives. These insights highlight the pivotal role of media entities in shaping public attitudes toward AI resurrection, offering valuable guidance for future ethical and policy considerations.