They Loved in 2075 A Science Fiction

They Loved in 2075. Science Fiction Novel

2075: Love, romance and human feelings will be almost like love in foreign times. And the reason! Obvious of course. In 2075, and surely by the turn of the century, humans will love and marry machines. When that happens what will become of human emotions, and will morality still have a place in human societies? 

Many believe it is very likely, because in 2075 loving someone might feel like love in foreign times. Humans will be competing with self aware machines on every front. And for machines to be our exact counterparts, they need to express emotions and feelings as we humans do. Therefore, the first battleground will be human emotions and sensitivities that the self aware machines would like to master. 

I still remember the famed movie Minority Report, where the opening scene is a crime scene. An enraged husband attempts to kill his wife and her young lover. 

I will not be surprised when someday my friend tells me that his girlfriend was swept away by a never ageing, smart, very conversant, always happy, self aware robot, and he has no clue how to win her back. Because the self aware robot that looks like and feels like a very dashing human male, is a pro, when it comes to cracking jokes. As if this were not enough, the self aware machine is extremely obedient with no signs of fatigue; mental or physical. It is then and due to these inevitable scenarios that as humans we should engage in discussions on topics like:

• Will love and humans be able to coexist with self aware machines?

• What should be the moral code that self aware machines should follow?

• To what extent should we allow these self aware machines become a part of our lives and living rooms?

• Where should we draw the line between being a human being and a self aware machine?

• How shall we define the trust factor between intelligent machines and humans?

The science fiction novel, They Loved in 2075, looks at these aspects with a brilliant plot that revolves around three clans that exist in 2075, when the Earth is dying. And humans are caught in a struggle to retain their domicile instincts e.g. expression of love, human relationships, preservation of society and preventing their only home, The Earth from transforming into a barren land where nothing grows, not even human emotions.

Caught in this seemingly endless existential risk that all humans have been dragged into, in 2075. Hope surfaces in the form of a young boy named Saabir, who is fighting two battles at the same time. That of saving his clan and the StarLight clan from extinction, and loving a beautiful woman, who happens to be a human, but lacks the ability to express love and her true feelings, due to her excessive exposure to technology. 

The Science fiction, They Loved in 2075, traverses through this situational landscape of Saabir. While narrating an engaging story it also makes genuine attempts to highlight important questions that we ought to address now, if we are to survive as a thriving community in 2075. Where loving someone does not feel like love in foreign times.

Google and few other experts in AI and Machine Learning have repeatedly warned about ​​AI’s potential in leading humans to their extinction.

BBC reference

But does that mean we should not explore AI as a science? I think that will be a wrong and premature decision. AI has tremendous potential when it comes to opening new avenues of scientific research and discoveries. At an advanced stage, AI could be a remarkable inventor as well. As we all noticed during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the help of AI, scientists and doctors were able to produce an effective vaccine within a few months. That is the power of AI.

Without the use of AI, it takes more than a year to study a protein strand. But with the help of AI we have been able to create a complete library of proteins and amino acids. Now that is a meteoric achievement within itself.

YouTube reference

This is AI today. Now imagine how intuitive it will turn all those machines using advanced versions of AI; and what computational capabilities it will possess in 2075? Then it will be less about determining structures of protein, and it will be more about dominating human free will and competing with humans at emotional, mental and physical level. It is at this stage that it gets very worrying.

I know many of you might be already branding me as a technology shy person. Hnnmmm! Well, let me tell you something. I was among the first generation in my family to use a smartphone, powerful computers and a lot more. So I am definitely not technology shy, but I definitely am technology aware and I always refrain from being addicted to it. We all know, addiction in any form is bad. And self aware machines with super fast computational capabilities can be an addiction that will be hard to rid oneself from. 

It is a pleasure that we should feel guilty of. If we let it take control of our lives and human free will. Then we shall be battling a super intelligent and self aware creation, that knows all our weaknesses, our strengths, and beats us always. Wondering why? Because it knows everything about every one of us. No wonder Napoleon once said, “ If I lose a battle. I make sure that I win and kill the rival in the second battle. Because by the time I engage with the same rival in the third battle he would know all my weaknesses.” And AI that lives in our living rooms and is so closely integrated with our day to day lives, knows us better than we know our own selves. And in its highly advanced stage, we shall be rendered defenseless, against a self aware system that learns and gets better with every second. At that stage, do you think humans will stand a chance?

I recently read an article titled, “Humans will love, marry and have sex with robots by 2050.” 

Computerworld reference

When I first read the article, it appeared to be a brave scientific undertaking. But as I finished reading the article, and reposed in the idleness of my mind. I thought like a rational human being. What would it be like when a machine that feels, looks and emotes like my wife? Will I be able to tell the difference? Immediately I realised something. Humans have a soul, and by virtue of our experiences we develop as beings with vivid and complex assortment of emotions and feelings; and when someone tells me, that she loves me, I feel something stir within me. But will I feel the same when a self aware, a stunningly beautiful machine says with perfect and situational aptness, “I love you?” How will I feel and most important of all, what will I feel? And will my wife feel jealous? After all she will be competing with a beautiful female who will never age, and is smarter, tender, and obedient. How will our society evolve at this stage? It is a debate that we all should get involved with today. If in 2075, when we truly love someone, we do not want to feel the agony of experiencing love in foreign times.

Quoting from Computerworld

“So what do researchers need to get robotics to this advanced level?

First, according to Levy, they'll need much more powerful computer hardware that can handle the complex and computational-heavy applications that will be needed to design and run conversational capabilities, along with emotions and more advanced artificial intelligence.”

As of today, I am sure few robots with these capabilities do exist and are being perfected in labs to achieve highest standards of refinement. But for these self aware machines to take over our world at mass scale, it would take a decade or more. So, 2023 is the right time to address important questions surrounding the excessive use of AI and self aware machines. Only then we as humans along with our beautiful virtue; love, can coexist with the self aware machines. Otherwise it will be a battleground where humanity and planet Earth will be the most likely losers. 

The machines can survive in extreme heat and without water, but can we, humans, be able to survive in these circumstances? The science fiction novel, They Loved in 2075, addresses these questions with a professional subtlety that I am sure will make you think, not as a reader, but as a responsible reader who cares about human relationships and planet Earth.

Machines have always interested me, and with the advent of intelligent machines, my interest levels have attained a new spike. Which is loftier than the mount everest, and whenever I climb this peak and look at the base, I see humans and intelligent machines engaged in a relentless battle. Where machines are beating us at every stage. For them, life is just a game and an algorithm, but for a human being, life is about so many rhythms: emotions, practicalities, morality, fears, strengths, weaknesses, piety, empathy, greed, need………. Ah the list is endless. However, all these factors form the master algorithm that governs human lives, and I am made to believe based on my experiences, that it manages the workings of the universe as well.

Therefore, replacing this master algorithm with Artificial Intelligence, demands lot of caution and due diligence. Not only on part of those who call themselves titans of technology, but every human being who considers himself/herself to be the resident of the planet Earth. And let us not forget, “Artificial Intelligence” is ARTIFICIAL afterall. So shall we allow it to replace the original and real intelligence?

I shall let you decide and whenever there is a debate on this topic, I promise I will be the first citizen of the Earth to speak on behalf of organic/real intelligence.

Via the science fiction novel, They Loved in 2075, I have already cast myself into this debate. Because I believe in humanity, I believe in the magical impact it had on me whenever I called an American client, and he/she addressed me as “son!” I felt deeply touched and it made me realise what made America so great. It was the love of America for humanity, and its pursuit to promote the well-being of all humans. No wonder it is a super power. It had the privilege to stand on the shoulders of the Titans like “Mr. Abraham Lincoln” and see farther than others. 

And never was it so important than as it is today, that we as humans have to look farther into the future if we are to survive as a species. And it shall not be the responsibility of Americans alone, but that of great civilizations like Europe, India, China, UAE and Japan too. Because the real freedom of any individual can always be measured by the amount of responsibility which he/she must assume for his/her own welfare and security. 

And right now it is our collective responsibility to understand how humans will experience love in 2075. And the science fiction novel, They Loved in 2075, navigates through the possibility of men and women falling in love with machines, without knowing they are robots imitating human emotions. Will you still dare to fall in love in 2075 or will you strive to tell the difference between a human lover and a robotic lover?

I will conclude this blog post with a wonderful quotation, “Nothing can be held accountable for both good and bad in your life. It is the way that you choose to handle and accept them.” And if we handle AI-like technologies well, there is nothing that can prevent us from becoming an interstellar species, exploring new planets where life can thrive. But wherever we may go in the future, let us carry our morality and our Gods with us. For they offer hope in times of absolute helplessness and by virtue of being unseen, Gods makes us believe that anything is possible. So let humans tread with the Gods, for without them we shall be reduced to cosmic nomads. The choice rests with us. Let us choose well and love well in 2075. For it would be a wonderful sensation to experience in 2075, when we hear someone say, “They Loved in 2075” and they loved and lived well!