Breathing New Life into Organ Donation with AI‑Powered Life Immortal - Atif Khan

**Welcome to “Transforming Lives,” the podcast where tech, health, and humanity collide.**  

In today’s episode, hosts Charmin Prince and Mitzi Dadun guide us through a grounding breathing exercise before turning the mic over to an extraordinary guest: **Dr. Atif Khan**—a software developer by day, stand‑up comic and Michael Jackson tribute artist by night, and the visionary behind **Life Immortal**, an app that reimagines organ donation as a social‑media‑powered match‑making platform.

Atif shares the spark that ignited his mission—a chance encounter with a non‑profit organ‑donation drive during COVID and the stories of surgeon friends on the front lines. He explains how Life Immortal lets donors and recipients create secure profiles, instantly locate matches, and connect via chat, audio, or video—aiming to cut through bureaucracy, reduce emotional strain, and ultimately make the act of giving an organ feel as natural as sharing a post online.

We also dive into his broader philosophy of “immortality”: not a mystical afterlife, but the idea that our contributions can live on in others, especially through life‑saving transplants. Atif talks about the future of AI‑driven organ matching, the promise of bio‑engineered organs, and the urgent need for policy change—like opt‑out donor systems—to accelerate the process.

To wrap things up, the hosts fire off a rapid‑fire round where Atif reveals his app‑store preferences, coffee vs. code habits, favorite Michael Jackson track, and even what a “Billie Jean of organ donation” would be (hint: it’s the kidney). He closes with a timeless reminder: life is beautiful, simple joys are priceless, and every breath is worth celebrating.

Stay tuned—this conversation blends humor, heart, and high‑tech ambition, showing how a single app can turn a click into a second chance at life. 🎙️✨

Sharmin Prince
Welcome to another episode of the Transforming Lives panel podcast. I'm one of your hosts, Sharmin Prince. And I am your other host, Mitzy Dadoun. And we have a guest with us today, Atif Khan from Life Immortal, who we will introduce a little bit more after we do our breathing.

Great. Thank you, Mitzy. Join us to take a few breaths so that we can become centered and grounded for the next 25 to 30 minutes by taking a deep inhale and exhale. Take a deep inhale.

Hold it. exhale. Another in, hold it, and let it go. Again in, hold it, And on this exhale, just let go of everything that didn't serve you today.

Final breath in. And let it go. And breathe normal. And join us back into the room.

Thank you.

Matt Melvin
I don't know what's going on because yesterday I was studying intermittent hypoxia. And I learned about it like a month ago or something, but I got banned. Just talking before joining you, I held my breath for almost one and a half minute. I was trying to do for two minutes, but I could only do one and a half minute.

And yeah, I'm just exploring this. I did some, like I told you, I did do some morning earthing and red light therapy. And I integrated with my breathing regimen and I could play guitar like never before. It was like my motor skills were dramatically improved.

My brain coordination with my fingers. and just my I felt great and mood wise and again thoughts start coming like butterflies from nowhere and it's just and again what I'm saying is it's in synchronicity because then you just I never heard or sees ever saw this or seen it in any podcast starting from breathing and coincidentally after your podcast I'll be going for yoga so which is also about breathing

Sharmin Prince
Okay, thank you so much. Atif, I have a short introduction for you. Sure. Dr. Atif Khan, who you have already heard from, is a software developer by day and a stand-up comedian, Michael Jackson impersonator by night.

He's the creator of Life Immortal, an app that revolutionizes the search for organ donors. We'll talk about using tech for social good and how he balances saving lives with making people laugh. Talk. Dr. Atif?

Matt Melvin
Yes, thank you. So I'm not a Michael Jackson impersonator. I'm just dedicated to his art of songwriting and being, you know, doing rock covers, rock spin, tributes to his immortal music. So I don't have long hair or makeup or moonwalk like you said.

I just sing a song live because singing a song is extremely technical and hard, which is an honor for me. And then comedy is, I'm not really proud of it, but I share some clips with you and you laugh. So I take it as a compliment.

Sharmin Prince
Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Atif. You're welcome. So my first question, Life Immortal.

It's such a powerful name. Yes. What does it mean to you? And is it about leaving a legacy or giving someone a second chance at immortality?

Matt Melvin
For me, it's about an intersection of scientific history, how AI is affecting our life. And I started writing this book called God versus AI, because AI is now becoming a collective brain, a huge brain, kind of a value system, which the concept of God, or, you know, religion, so to say, presents or proposes. So, I think that we can live beyond our lives. I don't believe in life hereafter.

Again, scientifically, we are not there yet. Maybe there is something over the years we'll be able to see through dimensions. But what I believe is that instead of turning it into dust and ashes, we can live in other people. and then carry on being immortal.

Maybe people are like Brian Johnson working on immortality pill. But for me, it's like giving forward and moving on and passing the things that we have functional and usable for other human beings. So instead of getting cremated or buried, it is better to live in someone else. So that's being immortal.

Sharmin Prince
So can you tell us a little bit about your app and what exactly it does and how it helps people with organ donations?

Matt Melvin
Sure. So what it does is basically we are living in a world of social media. And we think the best we can do is get a tender date. But for me, Life Immortal is matching the donors with recipients and people looking for organ donation and people who are living donors as well.

So bring them together. And what on the app what they can do is they can create their profile they put their details and what they're looking for and you have to sign up as a donor or recipient and then in the safety and privacy of your location you can give an approximate idea of where you are because in organ donation time is a very important factor and then when you're looking for example if you're looking for a kidney then you click the kidney part and you see all the people who are living donors You can add each other and if the other person accepts your contact connection, then you can start chatting and make an audio call, video call.

If everything goes good, then you can set up an appointment, exchange doctor information and take things from there. So, it's a complicated process when it comes to international registry on organization list. The wait list is long and sadly the technology has not been deployed so government is hesitant and lawmakers are for me are usually lawbreakers and they don't really do anything about it until it benefits them. financially mostly so they just keep on pushing the can down the road and so someone had to come from like the from the users because social media is all user-generated content so somebody had to take charge and we cannot wait for example I've been pushing council member Jeff

Stunkard to sort of form some sort of regulation or legislation where for example in England everybody is an organ donor by default you're assumed as an organ donor unless you opt out from that so we should have something like that over here as well because you know we are considered as the role model for the whole world in terms of everything from technology to our way of life so again it should be a very open-ended open-minded process no force no blame shaming or nothing imposing or forced out of it. But at least we should start thinking on those lines because the current system is antiquated and archaic and I think we can really use technology. We were trying to go to Mars but there is so much work over here to be done.

We are thinking that we can be multi-planetary species but Flint, Michigan still doesn't have the perfect water. So the thing is, we should, again, the rules of power are redefining. It's now beyond cryptocurrency and money and nuclear weapons. So that's a little bit of overview of my vision for Life Immortal.

Sharmin Prince
Thank you. What was that pivotal moment or story that transformed you from software developer into someone driven to create life immortal.

Matt Melvin
Okay so yeah so I have a lot of friends who are in organ transplant doctors working for donate life in Texas and here in New York as well and I used to hear their stories but one time around COVID I think I visited American Dream here in New Jersey and I saw a non-profit doing the signups in person and I thought at that time I was working for HHS and I thought why not me do something like that and So I started thinking because that was just an idea about how to transform it into an interface, make it safe and make it, you know, safe mostly because there is a lot of issues, you know, cultural inhibitions and then regulatory issues involved. And then there is a stigma of organ trading as well.

So I just wanted to come up with an interface which is foolproof and which is very receptive and fun to use as well and sort of create a new culture for organ donation because the younger generation is very receptive to new ideas and is more selfless than us. So I just wanted to transform that cause into an app and luckily This year in January, when I met Charmin Yu as well, and as they say, the rest is history and we are slowly growing and trying to expand. I reached out to RFK Junior as well, but no responses yet. No news is good news in this context, but I'm trying to take it to the next level.

Jeff Strunkard is also doing a project with mental health and with NIH, but his research grants are frozen for now because of the change of administration. I was off using that platform, but we are slowly expanding our database, trying to get mergers and collaborations going on, trying to push my app through music and comedy. Sometimes I mentioned it on stage as well, just to create awareness, not just about the app, but also the cause in general.

Sharmin Prince
Thank you, Atif. We know that tech can be cold, but Life Immortal is deeply human. How do you build trust and compassion into the platform of Life Immortal?

Matt Melvin
So mostly the way I look at it is that I am trying to using it as a vehicle because in the yesteryears back in 90s and 80s it used to be newspapers people used to publish their requirements in newspapers and then somebody told me that they saw something like one of my friends who is a doctor he just flies all over the world all over the US with urgent donations of organs through charter planes and wherever the need is and so he told me that someone was wearing a t-shirt and Disney and they need an organ which was very heartbreaking for me and kind of embarrassing as a human being that we still don't have tools. I see people posting on Facebook about their organ donation needs.

But these social media apps are just a mode of dopamine hits. And so there is an option in Life Immortal where you can share your Facebook post into our app and also post our bulletin boards on our app and then cross-share it in any platform as well. So what I'm trying to do is that there should be some definitive window where everyone should know if there is some panic, something urgent, something, some emergency. Because what happens is that, for example, if you have a match and you are not on the list, then the organ is given to somebody else and then you're pushed up, you're boosted in the list.

So again, I think it's very archaic and antiquated and There's a lot more that can be done, not only in terms of deploying a life model, but also using AI to match organs and maybe some sort of a system, some sort of a device where you have a network of people who are available, living donors and know what's going on what's the availability because it's really bureaucratic and red tape right now and there is a lot of uncertainty and the saddest part is that in terms of need the emotional toll is is huge and the insecurity. Just yesterday I was speaking to one of the organ donors, Lisa.

I'm gonna post their podcast pretty soon. So she fell in love and she donated her kidney right away. and then she got divorced so I told her that I never heard any love story like that it's the greatest love story that I will ever hear probably it's beyond Romeo Juliet or whatever or any rom-com but what I'm trying to say is that they're trying to make organs in artificially as well And I think they can use deploy AI really to speed up the process.

They have already invented this gel that improves arthritis or joint pain in Germany. So, I'm really optimistic by somehow I can get hold of someone high up in Google or any these big techs then they can really speed up the process or we can have some philanthropist heavyweight or you know even a couple of million dollars then who can really support our project then there's a lot of work that can be done and we can have much more fulfilling outcomes from this process because there are a lot of barriers, gaps, and like President Obama says, you know, we are looking for bridges and you want to build the bridges so we can deploy tech to fill up those gaps and make this journey of finding an organ less emotionally taxing.

Sharmin Prince
Thank you for that. Go ahead, Meeti. I'm just curious, you know, a lot of people probably, you mentioned obviously there's living donors and then there's deceased donors and this is sort of more for the living donor matching. Could you talk a little bit about which organs somebody can donate as a living donor to someone else?

Sharmin Prince
Because I know, I think it's either your liver or your kidney. One of them completely regenerates.

Matt Melvin
Liver.

Sharmin Prince
Yeah. So a lot of people don't realize that is if you donate your liver to someone, it will regenerate and you will be whole again, so to speak, but you will also have helped save someone's life.

Matt Melvin
Yeah, absolutely. There is a lot of data that's available on our website as well, life-immortal.com. However, today there is a lot that can be donated because we are living in an age of stem cells and egg donations and stuff like that. Bone marrow.

cartilage, skin, cornea. So we have separate categories on our app as well, that you know, whatever you're looking for, you just click it and it will show up. So I'm not a doctor, I'm not a technical person, but what I can tell you is that a single person can help a lot of people at one time. We have so much need of life and you can make it immortal by helping someone else.

again, helping someone else give you a better reason to live. I was listening to Sam Altman's interview two days ago and he was talking about assisted suicide in various countries and right now ChadGBT doesn't have that capability of, you know, be restricted to different national rules and laws so if there is a void if there is a gap is there is a vacuum just give it gifted to somebody else and you find bigger reason to live on and feel happy if we cannot live beyond two minutes of not constraining our breathing process. So, uh, we breathe 23,000 times a day and we take it for granted.

We don't care. And the same is about water. Same is about, uh, uh, food, vegetables, fruits, life is so beautiful and so full of magic and I recently studied essentialism as well so everything around us is so productive if only we have gratitude.

Sharmin Prince
Atif, you mentioned stem cell and the technology that artificial organs, but I've read a few studies where they've used organs of the pig to help humans. Have you thought of connecting with those researchers who are using the pig organs to partner and collaborate.

Matt Melvin
So this big thing is going on since a long time, like since 1998. Lisa was also telling me today when she donated back in 98, there was still this thing going on. It requires research and development and constant revisiting and pursuing the outcome. And yesterday I was reading, in fact today, that they have biohacked the age reverse aged species of monkeys and they joined up their mitochondria and saw the results which is amazing.

The mortality ratio has already increased since 80s. 1980s and we'll be in five years time. We'll be able to see 100 and 110 will be common so with regards to Research Yes We need that kind of research. But again, research requires capital.

But unfortunately, we the capitalists and the venture capitalists end up investing in places like cryptocurrency. And there was this giant scam from Silicon Valley where this lady was selling this chip on which all your data would be stored. I'm not sure if you had seen this documentary on Netflix. and so there's a lot of work that can be done and I've not yet spoken because since then a lot of research has been done and has been going on but if we can make raw meat back in the day they started making meat in a lab for

KFC So why not make human meat, you know, or human organs, which is very doable. All the, you know, large language models, LLMs available around us. It's just an amazing time in the history, where we saw the emergence of Google and then the advent of AI and, it's just mind boggling that no inquiry can go unanswered. I recently wrote a book on Proce AI Legal Mastery, which is available on Amazon.

again we need people to come forward and look beyond numbers and optics because many times they think that because they see those indicators which look bankable and investable but for larger than life projects such as this you need to have compassion and that's where I came from my consent my the focus or drive was or motivation was solely based on helping someone because it could be anyone it could be any one of us anybody could need anything anytime and so There is definitely this room. It's hardcore research, but I'm sure somewhere in Europe, Germany, Japan, something is definite. I spoke to one of the leading companies in Eastern Europe.

I forgot the name. they're doing something remarkable in terms of statistics and data and you know various regions and there are various legal environments in Latin America, Thailand, even India, Pakistan or Africa, Middle East, you know, different regulations. A couple of days, somebody reached out to me and said that I wanted to donate my kidney. I said, this is the app, go register yourself.

And yes, that's an easy way for me to direct someone. And then it's very open-ended if somebody wants a kidney and if you match. Because I am meeting a lot of people of faith during these podcasts that I'm conducting for Life Immortal. and it's mind-boggling how uh i'm not a i'm a skeptic i'm not a faith-driven person so to say i'm more a humanist yeah but how uh this quantum entanglement i should call it or uh synchronicity or karma or i would i don't know how to name it maybe

there is no name until now maybe it's still evolving but these people are very selfless when it comes to organ donation and in a day and age where everything is transactional. I think the rural America is more human-centered and ironically or I don't know symbolically they are less material and then probably more connected to their communities. That's why in New York, the mayor is single, the previous governor was single and we are all single and you know, living a life where connection is the main thing, huge expectations. But again, life is beyond transactions and beyond zero sum games.

Sharmin Prince
At Teeb, we're coming up on a little bit of time, one of our favorite portions with with transforming lives is our rapid fire segment. So what we're going to do is we're going to have Sherman ask you a couple of quick questions in succession.

Matt Melvin
We want

Sharmin Prince
your quick and your instinct responses to them because they're sort of part of the field.

Matt Melvin
So

Sharmin Prince
Sherman,

Matt Melvin
take it away. Your rapid fire is very famous. I heard about it. Yeah.

Sharmin Prince
Okay. First question, Atif. App Store or Google Play?

Matt Melvin
App store. App store for me, but for development, I launch it on Google because Google is so less restrictive. And if everything is fine with Google, then we go to Apple because Apple is a big pain in ass.

Sharmin Prince
Code now or coffee first?

Matt Melvin
What is that? I don't have idea. Code

Sharmin Prince
as a software developer. Coding. And? Or coffee first?

You code now or, or, or a code. Okay.

Matt Melvin
Yeah. You know, I don't think biggest tech pet peeve, biggest tech pet peeve, uh, uh, attention deficit

Sharmin Prince
in one word, the goal of life, immortal

Matt Melvin
to be everywhere. And one, in one word, uh, I would say you'd be cautious.

Sharmin Prince
iOS or Android?

Matt Melvin
iOS.

Sharmin Prince
Thriller or Beat It?

Matt Melvin
Beat It.

Sharmin Prince
Stand-up comedy or crowd work? Stand-up comedy. I'm gonna ask you the worst joke you ever told but I'm gonna skip that question.

Matt Melvin
Because all my jokes are really, you know, cancelable.

Sharmin Prince
Okay. Stage fright. Yes or no?

Matt Melvin
Sorry?

Sharmin Prince
Stage fright.

Matt Melvin
No.

Sharmin Prince
Lab coat or sequined glove?

Matt Melvin
Lab coat.

Sharmin Prince
Morning person or night owl?

Matt Melvin
Morning, definitely.

Sharmin Prince
Biggest inspiration, a tech CEO, a tech CEO, or a comedian? A

Matt Melvin
comedian.

Sharmin Prince
If Michael Jackson needed an organ, what would his profile on life immortal say?

Matt Melvin
Can you feel it?

Sharmin Prince
What's the Billie Jean of organ donation?

Matt Melvin
Billie Jean of organ donation is probably kidney.

Sharmin Prince
And final question or your final message to the audience.

Matt Melvin
Yes, so my final message is life is beautiful. Enjoy your life as it doesn't require any big bucks. A good book, a good movie, a good song, a good stand-up comedy. That's the zest of life for me.

And it doesn't require a lot. We think that everything, enjoyment or entertainment or happiness is in numbers. It's not in numbers. It's in the way we observe the world.

And that's how it reflects back to us. So keep the faith, not literally, but stay optimistic. If it's not a puzzle, for us to learn and connect the dots, and that makes life fun and challenging.

Sharmin Prince
Wonderful. Thank you so much, Atif, for connecting with us today. Can you let our audience know how they can connect with you?

Matt Melvin
Okay, we have a website www.life-immortal.com and our app is available on App Store as well as Google Play. And yeah, just it's a soft sell. Just join the community, enjoy. If you join it, there is no force or there's nothing mandatory that you have to donate anything.

but just see that how we tend to find try to find love in the wrong places. So just fill up the need where people really need you and you know celebrate every breath like we started this podcast.

Sharmin Prince
Thank you so much for joining us today Atif.

Matt Melvin
You're welcome.