23 Apr Envision 2118
Mindfire Foundation Essay:
What will be our reality?
It doesn’t take the incoming stream a lot of effort to rouse Tala from her sleep. With small eyes, she notices how the display on the back of her left hand establishes a connection to her beloved husband. Suddenly, she is fully awake. The glaring lights and this incredible sensation of freshness that comes through the interface leave her breathless. Is this the smell of freshly fallen snow? It must be. Jerome promised to share such impressions of his first trip to the World Economic Forum in the Swiss Alps at once.
Jerome stops the live stream and drops back into the seat of the passenger drone with the eminently suited name “Cloud Nine”. This transfer from Zürich to Davos must be the best 15 minutes of the whole trip. He has been looking forward to feeling the freshness of clean air, cold snow and sunny skies, since his company’s Commercial Intelligence Node (CIN) has nominated him as a representative for the important meetings that take place around the legendary forum. Over the course of the past few years, personal meetings have gained momentum. After the profound virtualization incidents at the beginning of the new century they became mandatory requirements for valid business deals. Jerome takes the risk of losing his pale, for a Filipino, exceptionally white skin and enjoys the warm sunrays on his cheeks. Obviously, the drone already anticipated his untypical preference and adjusted the sun shading accordingly. This is going to be a wonderful, relaxing trip. Ever since the CINs have negotiated this faultless protocol, doing business has become a piece of cake.
Deeply impressed from the view of his hotel room of the winter mountain landscape, Jerome adjusts the little golden pin with elaborate detailing made of Jade. This little gem provided by his company, hosts a mobile quantum processor of the newest generation, a gadget that can seamlessly run instances of CINs and PINs, Personal Intelligence Nodes, simultaneously. Gone are the days when participants at conferences had to wear huge badges on flashy key chains like an underage kid on a flight alone.
Jerome enters the atrium through the main entrance. While the warm, overheated air in the crowded room makes his florid cheeks tingle, his pin starts to glow in a blue light. It indicates that his appearance on the symposium is legitimate and that his CIN is activated. Although the given signal in the form of a light impairs privacy, these signals are an integral part of the protocol. The latter demands that activity of CINs or PINs are made visible for everybody. Furthermore, artificial intelligence must make decisions that have the potential of a negative impact on another party transparent by highlighting the activity with a red light.
The system already decided who to meet and talk to in this room. The suggested approach guarantees a 95% probability to meet the intended revenue and reputation objectives. A specific time for this appointment has not been defined. There is no need for it. Moreover, the concept of time dramatically changed. Time became relative. Today, it is rather represented by an endless stream of events whose intervals are determined by ad hoc negotiations of the CINs and PINs. Only certain traditionalists regret the extinction of the romantic, outdated concept of time. People are overwhelmed by the previously unknown and now enabled effect of true serendipity – the phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought after.
To his positive surprise, the portrait of an impressively attractive young woman appears next to the directions given by the display on the back of his left hand. It takes only a few seconds until Jerome identifies this person in the crowd of chatty and wildly gesticulating business representatives. Marianne, the business representative of the leading sand broker from the Canadian province of Québec leans against a small high desk in the back of the atrium. With her enchanting French accent, she twists Jerome around even before the negotiation has started. Luckily, this doesn’t affect the outcome. All available information for this deal has already been gathered and analyzed by Marianne’s and Jerome’s CINs. All possible scenarios are already played through on both sides and positions are taken. But neural networks of the new generation, which are also an integral part of CINs, have learned not to follow rational decision-making patterns only. They don’t make decisions based on facts nor on feelings or any other single force. They allow these elements to battle for the right to decide. Like the human brain, these networks can process a massive amount of unstructured information. They have even mastered one of the most complex human social capabilities called “mentalizing” – the process of reflection on the hidden mental-states and intentions of others. Machines are now able to detect lies, deception and illusion.
It takes only a few seconds for Marianne and Jerome to close this important deal. Both are evidently happy with the result and relieved from a certain burden. Euphorically, Jerome suggests celebrating this success with a few drinks. He turns to the barkeeper right behind him and asks for a good bottle of Champagne. When he turns back, he notices with some confusion, that his attractive business partner has disappeared. Absorbed in thoughts of a romantic adventure with his new acquaintance he didn’t notice the red light on her pin when he hastily ordered the drinks!
Photo by h heyerlein on Unsplash
No Comments