The second beast wants to mimic God in an effort to show that it is at least equal to God. The Lord God in the beginning had created man in his own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26–27), then breathed into the nostrils of the man the breath of life (Genesis 2:7). Why would anyone worship God if the second beast can do the same to the image people(!) make for the first beast?
15 And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain.