What will AI look like in the future? According to author BJ Levey, it won't
be great. As a matter of fact, it is downright horrifying.
Many people know what it is to escape reality for a time by playing a video
game, or by scrolling on their phones, or by whatever means to take a break
from a world overloaded with information. No one is untouchable. Nearly
everyone carries a computer and information retrieval system in their pockets
or purses. Sometimes it's a blessing, other times it's a curse. One is never
out of touch to just be.
Now, take the above scenario to the extreme, and you get a story much like
this one. Where a huge corporation has everyone addicted to virtual reality and
information technology and wants to take it even further.
It is all too easy to stay out of reality and ignore all the problems
happening all around until it is too late.
Scared yet? You will be when you read this gem of a tale of four people and
their struggle to get back to living life in the real world.
I enjoyed this story that might also serve as a warning. It is dark,
fast-paced, and full of ideas to think about long into the future as the
reality of artificial Intelligence grows and what direction it will take, and
it's impact on us.
It is the end of the 21st century. The world's worst nightmare has become a
reality as the effects of climate change has caused rising oceans, drought, and
vast uninhabitable areas on the planet. Those who are able are all moving to
the north in an area controlled by the Aztec Conglomerates. Everyone has tech
implants and are subject to the will of Aztec. Following a disaster perpetrated
by the conglomerate, a planned rollout of a massive upgrade is imminent. Aztec
claims the upgrade will make life better for everyone, but not all are
convinced this is a good thing and have devoted their lives to stopping it.
Following the murder of an Aztec upgrade's lead scientist, the lives of four
people are set on a collision course that may determine the fate of what is
left of humanity.
The question is, can humanity be saved, and if it can, is it worth the price
to be paid?
Three of the four principal characters in Autumn's End are all people who
fight against impossible odds to make sure that the dystopia goes no further.
Thay have, and will have to continue, to make monumental personal sacrifices to
try to stop the nefarious upgrade. One character, the chairman of Aztec, has
invested everything he has in the great upgrade, but even as it is developed,
it becomes ever more unstable and threatening.
Every character in this tale is a tragic figure for one reason or another.
They are also to be admired as they work diligently to stop what, as far as
they are concerned, is sounding the final death knell of the human race.
My favorite point of plot in this story revolves around a single character.
An ex-cop who is promised to get his freedom from his tech implants if he
completes a particular task given to him by an Aztec controlled AI partner. But
he faces a choice, it's either his freedom or give himself over to his human
side and save the woman he loves. While his choice seems like a deeply personal
one on the one hand, his choice will have huge implications for the future.
My takeaway from Autumn's End is probably the same as it is for most of the
dystopian AI stories I have read, and that is we should take them as a warning
with what may happen in the future as this amazing technology continues to
grow. I once visited with a man who projects the current trends of technology
into the future and asked him a question about how far it things will go, and
if we will ever become victims to our own genius. His answer was that
technology will only become our masters if we allow it to. We can determine for
ourselves what will be the future reality, but we must be vigilant now. If we
wait too long, the result may be disastrous.
Autumn's End is a fascinating tale of technology running amok. I enjoyed it a
lot, but it is an unsettling story and presents a lot for us to think about.
The author says he enjoys writing dark stories, and this is only his first
novel. It can be taken as entertainment, or as a warning, but no matter how the
reader perceives it, it is a finely crafted story. The descriptions of the
setting are often poetic and set a vivid backdrop for his characters to play
in. The characters themselves, at least the human ones, are all people we can
care about and come to life as they work toward their goals. The pace is fast
and will spur the reader to move on to the next page, hardly leaving room to
breathe until the end.
The ending of this tale was incredible.
I recommend this as an important read in this growing genre of Artificial
Intelligence Sci-Fi.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As of 2024, I’m busy finishing my Master in Creative Writing at the
University of Cape Town. I’ve loved the experience and met some really great
people over the past year and half. It’s the dissertation year so I’m working
steadily at “Could Be You” – a near future science fiction thriller about a guy
who’s life is turned upside down by a deep fake. He loses his job, his sense of
purpose and steadily his grip on what’s real. As things spiral out of control,
he comes to understand he’s a small cog in a larger plan that will change
what’s normal forever.
I’m a Can-African who’s called Cape Town home since 1992. I live in the
burbs at the foot of Table Mountain with my beautiful wife Laura and our two
sons, Nicholas and Ethan. We really do live in one of the most idyllic places
on Earth and I’m grateful for it even though it comes with the downsides of
crime, the lights going out too often from load shedding and brazen government
corruption.
The dream is to become a full-time author, but the bills still demand to be
paid. So, by day, I’m a business owner running a distribution company for LED
Lighting technologies with the goal to see all of Southern Africa running
emergency efficient, totally environmentally friendly lighting for all. But by
night, and in the early mornings, and whatever other time I can scrape
together, I’m busy writing the next science fiction best seller. Stay tuned.
Well, there it is…
Qapla!
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