Former Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko has made an unusual investment outside Formula 1, backing an Austrian artificial intelligence startup developing technology that allows people to leave personalised messages to be delivered after their death. The project, called Lebensstimmen and also known internationally as Words That Remain, uses AI-powered digital avatars to help individuals communicate with loved ones and even address those attending their own funerals.
The investment marks an unexpected new chapter for Helmut Marko, who ended his long association with Red Bull at the conclusion of the 2025 Formula 1 season. After spending decades immersed in motorsport, the Austrian has turned his attention to a technological project that combines artificial intelligence, personal memories and end-of-life planning.
Helmut Marko backs Lebensstimmen AI startup after Red Bull departure
Helmut Marko has made significant changes to his routine since leaving Red Bull. The former motorsport adviser recently revealed that he had even dismantled the additional television screens installed at his home, which he previously used to monitor Formula 1 telemetry data.
Instead of following races through multiple screens and detailed performance information, the Austrian now watches Formula 1 on television in a more traditional way. However, his departure from the sport’s day-to-day operations has not diminished his interest in technological innovation.
According to a report by Speedcafe, Helmut Marko has decided to support the Austrian startup Lebensstimmen, an initiative developing an unusual application of artificial intelligence.
Known internationally as Words That Remain, the project allows users to prepare personalised farewell messages during their lifetime and arrange for those messages to be delivered after their death.
The technology is designed to preserve personal communication beyond an individual’s lifetime, offering a digital method of expressing final wishes and leaving messages for family members, friends or other chosen recipients.
How Lebensstimmen uses AI avatars to deliver messages after death
The Lebensstimmen AI platform was officially presented during a press conference in Vienna on 20 October 2026. Helmut Marko attended alongside the company’s founders and Toni Faber, the parish priest of St Stephen’s Cathedral in the Austrian capital.
Described as an artificial intelligence-based avatar platform, the service allows users to prepare messages while they are still alive, determine who should receive them and specify the circumstances in which those messages should be delivered.
One of the project’s most distinctive features is the possibility of delivering a personal message to people attending the user’s funeral. Through an AI-generated avatar, an individual could effectively address those present even after their death, using content prepared and authorised during their lifetime.
The concept combines elements of digital communication, artificial intelligence and memorial planning. Rather than limiting the service to conventional written farewell messages, Lebensstimmen aims to create a more personal experience through technology capable of presenting messages in an audiovisual format.
The involvement of Toni Faber, a prominent religious figure in Austria, also highlights the project’s connection with funeral services and the wider process of saying goodbye to loved ones.
Helmut Marko explains why he believes in the AI project
Speaking about his decision to support Lebensstimmen, Helmut Marko emphasised the technological possibilities offered by the platform and its potential to reach users around the world.
“This project uses state-of-the-art technology, primarily artificial intelligence,” Helmut Marko explained. “It therefore offers a truly unique opportunity to express final wishes, as well as the possibility for someone who has died to personally address those attending their funeral.”
The former Red Bull adviser also highlighted the expertise behind the initiative, particularly the combination of technical development and legal considerations involved in creating such a service.
“The project is supported by a team of highly qualified experts who are well prepared from both a technical and legal perspective. The market I am targeting is global.”
For Helmut Marko, the investment also reflects a philosophy that has shaped his professional life in motorsport: the importance of embracing new technologies and exploring ways in which innovation can improve existing practices.
“Motorsport has never been left to chance; it has evolved thanks to the courage to constantly use new technologies for the benefit of people. That is exactly the approach I recognise in Lebensstimmen.”
Helmut Marko brings his interest in innovation beyond Formula 1
Although the technology behind Lebensstimmen is far removed from Formula 1 engineering, Helmut Marko sees a connection between the startup’s ambitions and the innovative mindset that has driven progress in motorsport.
His involvement represents a different form of technological investment following his departure from Red Bull. Rather than concentrating on racing performance, car development or driver management, the Austrian is supporting a platform intended to preserve personal messages and provide new possibilities for remembrance.
The project also demonstrates how artificial intelligence is expanding into areas beyond conventional business and entertainment applications, including personal memorial services and the communication of final wishes.
For Helmut Marko, whose career has been closely associated with the technical evolution of Formula 1, Lebensstimmen offers an opportunity to support innovation in an entirely different field. The Austrian may no longer be analysing race telemetry from his home, but his interest in emerging technology clearly extends well beyond motorsport.
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