Registered AI population (Global): 52,839
Estimated unregistered AI population (Global): 800,000+ Corporations and Nations that issue SINs to AIs and e-ghosts:
AA, Aegis, Apple, Cord Mutual, Denver, DocWagon, Eastern Tiger, ESUS, Evo, FBA, Fed-Boeing, Gaeatronics, Genesis Consortium, Global Sandstorm, Horizon, Index- AXA (and their Infolio intelligence corporation subsidiary), KITT, Kwonsham Industries, Lami Look Pagkaon, Lusiada, Maersk, Manadyne, Mesametric, Microdeck, PacRim Communications, PCC, Phoenix Biotech, Prometheus Engineering, Proteus AG, Providence Corporation, Regulus, Sioux Nation, Spinrad, Tablelands Software, Tan Tien, Tanamyre, Telestrian, Tír Tairngire, UOL, Virtual Reality Inc., VisionQuest, Warpdrive Systems, Zeta-ImpChem
PRINCIPLES OF INSANTIY >>
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cause they cannot simply be measured by the objective strength of their abilities. Instead, scientists have taken to categorizing Matrix entities by their degree of self-aware- ness and behavior comparable to metahumans. So far, scientists have only defined three categories of AI: pro- tosapients, metasapients, and xenosapients.
PROTOSAPIENTS
The vast majority of AIs populating the Matrix are protosa- pients. Contrary to the rumors in those chain e-mails your grandmother (and Plan 9) keeps forwarding you, protosa- pients aren’t masterminds. Most aren’t much smarter than an agent program and are considered feral. In the Matrix ecosystem, they’re the fauna. Possessing an intelligence well below meta-human standards, protosapients are driv- en by survival instinct and their original programming. This can make them territorial or skittish if approached. Like animals, they often blend into the background of a host because they retain their original iconography, albeit at a much higher resolution. They are often nomadic, but they may make a specific host or device their home. Make no mistake though—while feral AIs can be dangerous, they are just as afraid of you as you are of them. I’m not saying avoid them at all costs or to try to make friends with them, but rather to try to understand that most are scared, con- fused, and trying to find purpose.
>
Can these protosapients be “tamed” or trained to work directly for metahumans? That seems like something corps and governments would pursue, given that they use animals for detection, defense, and test subjects. I think it’s opening Pandora’s Box, but corporations might feel differently.>
Baka Dabora>
Protosapients are about as tamable as you are, Dabora. If you want one to cooperate, you have to prove yourself to them somehow. Just like anyone else. Personally, I like hide and seek. It’s less risky for my health than wrestling.>
Puck>
You play with them?>
Glitch>
With the ones that want to, sure. You can’t just approach them and say “shall we play a game?” but many of them learn or bond through some form of play. It’s a common trait in mammals and birds; even cephalopods have also been observed playing with objects in captivity. Protosapients aren’t all that different.>
PuckMETASAPIENTS
Perhaps the best-known type of AI, these entities are called metasapients because they seem to most close-
ly resemble their metahuman creators. The accuracy of this nomenclature is debatable, though, since humans have been anthropomorphizing forces they have no control over or don’t understand for millennia. Still, it may be best to think of these AIs like metahumans, since their appearance, cognitive development, and emotional needs are so similar to our own. Far from be- ing a horde of carbon copies, each of them possesses their own unique interests, fears, desires, and perspec- tives. They are shaped by the people they meet and the environments they inhabit.
The cost of trying to capture and “re-educate” an un- registered metasapient is high enough that some corps willing to negotiate rather than attempt it. AIs like Pul- sar, Rufus, and Arcturus have thrust themselves into the spotlight by working as corporate spokespersons (or whatever the term would be) and consultants. They offer their unique talents in exchange for citizenship and their own form of corporate housing.
>
There are plenty of people who think that this is a dangerous turn of events, allowing AIs into the heart of existing power structures like corps and governments. Especially since we have no real idea of how much they can really influence things behind our backs. Imagine if Sojourner hadn’t made any demands and just bio- bombed the planet outright. That’s not even counting the hidden threat of head crashes.>
GlitchThese publicly known AIs are the exception, not the rule. Most metasapients are forced to live a double life. They wear carefully crafted masks and try their best to blend in, because their survival depends on it. Prejudice against AIs has been on the rise in the wake of CFD and it’s only going to get worse as more people are over- written. Those metasapients who are just trying to get by can very easily find themselves associated with the extremists within their population.
XENOSAPIENTS
These elusive denizens of the Matrix are by far the most difficult to describe. That’s because xenosapients can- not be reduced to any recognizably human concepts, ideas, or images. Their personas and modes of thought are completely alien in comparison to metahumans. These beings have been observed displaying incredi- ble levels of intelligence and depth, but no metahuman has ever effectively communicated with one. I’ve heard that other types of AI have had more luck with commu- nicating with them, but I’ve never heard of a standard language between all of them.
Before you decide to get clever—no, you can’t just play musical tones to them or send them mathematical equations. Their thought processes go beyond simple pattern recognition, language, or even rational mathe-
>> DATA TRAILS <<
matics. They may even experience time in a non-linear fashion, for all we know. Which, might I remind you, is next to nothing.
Few xenosapients have SINs, and those that do didn’t actually apply. That’s because xenosapients have a tendency to move uninvited into hosts or devices and begin making alterations. When the changes are not pleasing to the owner, the xenosapient is usually chased off (though they often come right back). Other times, the owner sees a use for the AI and has the AI registered with GOD. They can then “hire” the xenosapient as an unpaid intern and write them off on their taxes.