An AI to mastermind the WEC

Berserker79

New member
These past days I've been thinking again of an idea I had a few time ago dealing with Crusader story development. I'm still not sure this might be something someone in the Crusader team talked about way back, but it always intrigued me.

Well, does any of you remember that leaflet in No Remorse box? The one meant to be a sort of newspaper of the WEC with articles on a tv programme where the main character was a Silencer and other piece of news? Anyway, one of the news dealt with the developments on AI, suggesting the WEC scientists would soon have working AIs.

So, I thought that maybe new news was partly faked and the WEC might have already an AI working. After all they are amoral enough to spread news about Hoffman being a benefactor, why should they tell the truth about having a working AI to the population?

Now imagine this AI is very developed, sorta Skynet in Terminator or anything like that. I once imagined that this AI may be directing the whole WEC, that it might have found a way to kill Gauthier and take its place. After all, in No Regret no one except Draygan sees the president. The AI might have replaced him with a computer generated simulacrum for comms.It could have used the Gauthier simulacrum tell that the president does not want to be seen in public to solve any issue and limit his appearance to video transmission only.

What do you think could this work? Or did the Crusader guys already thought of this matter earlier? I never understood the reason for talking about AIs in that "newspaper" and always though that the AI topic would find its way into Crusader's plot somehow! :)
 
Here's the newspaper you're talking about:

http://cyberionsystems.com/echosector/forum/index.php?topic=85.msg390;topicseen#msg390

I think the main reason why they talked about an AI is because the year earlier, a game called System Shock just came out... and the AI in that game was called SHODAN. I think they used it just to plug System Shock. BUT you could be onto something.  :)
 
Yeah.  Pop culture references rule, especially when you're making a reference to something that rules, such as the System Shock games.
 
:eek: Shame on me, how could I forget about System Shock?!? Now that you pointed it out, the whole AI thing seems so plainly visible I can't believe I didn't get it myself...

Still, I think an AI controlling the WEC might suit well the Crusader plot...
 
Why?

Bureaucracy is hideously inefficient.

Now, an AI at the hub of the world's computer network, deliberately screwing with the WEC's computer systems because it wants the Resistance to win...
 
Shadowen link said:
Why?

Bureaucracy is hideously efficient.

Now, an AI at the hub of the world's computer network, deliberately screwing with the WEC's computer systems because it wants the Resistance to win...

Well, because that WEC bureaucracy seems a bit too efficient. I thought about an evil bent AI running the world could be interesting, albeit not much original.

An AI working for the Resistance seems good as well. What if the cybernetic routines of that AI suddenly understand ther WEC has to be stopped? Still, if the WEC could tinker with human genes to suppress morality within the second batch of Silencer, thanks to Dr. Hoffman's work, I doubt they could not eradicate this kind of behaviour from a computer... Sounds interesting enough anyway... I gotta try writing somethign down one of these days... :)
 
Crusader seems relatively low-tech.  There don't seem to be interplanetary warships; projectile weapons are still the most common personal-scale weapons available and are even found on fixed emplacements; genetic engineering is possible but doesn't seem to be advanced.  Robots are like armored animals, with only rudimentary intelligence.

This could all be a smokescreen, of course.  But to me, a true AI in Crusader would have to be nascent, unique, a top-secret project, and thought to be potentially dangerous.  For example, in another thread I have a character who's a brilliant economist and a foul human being, viciously and jealously guarding his territory.  You think he'd stand for an AI that could outstrip him in every way being anything more than an experiment?
 
Shadowen link said:
genetic engineering is possible but doesn't seem to be advanced.

You make some interesting points regarding the AI; all in all given what the background world of Crusader looks, an AI would very much likely very hidden secret.

Concerning you comment on genetic engineering however, I believe that Hoffman's work seems to be quite advanced; consider he has mastered cloning techniques and that's no small effort considering the load of stuff he would have to have mastered before being able to create even a single clone.
 
Well yes, but the only real trick to his research is (apparently) time--he can grow a fetus to physical adulthood in a matter of months, weeks, or possibly even days.  The rest is all stuff that modern scientists already know is theoretically possible.
 
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