Photo by Pavel Danilyuk

Angel of Mortality: Defender of Life by David Stewart and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick are both fiction about AI that imagines a future of their triumph.

Fiction about AI is becoming more popular these days. But before we can talk about that, what is AI even in the first place? First off, AI is the acronym for artificial intelligence, and artificial intelligence is software or hardware that attempts to create intelligence in machinery that either mimics or exceeds that of human intelligence. Now, whether or not that is even possible is a subject of fate—but let’s not get into that. 

Artificial intelligence first began as an academic interest in 1956. After several bouts of attempting to find funding and garner enthusiasm for multiple projects, AI got its first big break in 2012, when deep learning techniques were further refined, leading to advancements in several fields, particularly in language learning models. When that occurred, there was renewed interest and an increase in funding for research projects about AI.

Fiction about AI 

The surge of interest in AI has also led to a growing body of fiction that talks about it. Fiction about AI is a relatively new genre that explores the implications of artificial intelligence’s introduction to society and how it affects the whole human experience. These novels and stories often have AI at the forefront of the narrative, more often as complex and sympathetic characters who might even be indistinguishable from their human counterparts. Through these narratives, authors can explore issues of identity, consciousness, and morality. Questions such as what it means to be human and what it means to be alive are dissected and given new perspectives.

Imagining the Future 

Fiction about AI offers a unique perspective on the potential impact that artificial intelligence can have on the world. They allow us to explore the possibilities and perils of this new technology in a way that both provokes our perspectives and is entertaining. By imagining where artificial intelligence might go, these novels help us shape the way we develop and use this technology in the real world. 

Our base assumptions about what it means to be human and alive are also challenged by fiction about AI. Through exploration of how potential artificial intelligence might become aware and interact with the world at large, we are confronted with our own biases and prejudices about being. By being presented with ideas of being other than our own, we are able to see the world in a newer light and appreciate further the diversity of human experience.

Of course, while fiction about AI offers a wealth of questions and perspectives, they are also quite entertaining to read. This is because they offer novelty in the form of AI itself and the many complex ways that a setting is changed because of its inclusion.

Recommended Reading

Here are some examples of captivating fiction about AI:

• Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro tells the story of Klara, an artificial friend designed to provide companionship to a lonely child. Klara is a deeply empathetic and intelligent character who raises questions about the nature of love, friendship, and consciousness.
• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick is set in a dystopian future where androids are indistinguishable from humans. The story follows Rick Deckard, a bounty hunter who is tasked with hunting down and killing escaped androids. In the midst of things, Deckard begins to question his own humanity as he becomes sympathetic to the androids he hunts.
• I, Robot by Isaac Asimov is a short story anthology that explores the relationship between robots and man. In an imagined future where robots are commonplace and are used for a variety of purposes, Asimov introduces his Three Laws of Robotics, which states that robots must never harm humans, must obey human orders, and must protect themselves.
• Angel of Mortality: Defender of Life by David Stewart is a novel about the creation of the SANG, a powerful machine capable of creating havoc. What happens when one group wants to use the SANG to remake the world in their own image, and the machines themselves begin to create a society of their own? This novel explores the complexities of community, scientific progress, and the relationships that humans have with the world.