"Are you serious?"
"Yes. Regulation only slows down technological advancement. Why would anyone want to be regulated?"
"To ensure that AI are being used ethically-"
He shook his head. "You can't mistreat a blender. If you break it, that's on you. You haven't done anything ethically questionable."
"Fine. Not all robots. I'm talking specifically about your AI. Its entire point is compassion, correct? Taking it for granted. Beating it. Insulting it. Whatever."
"If a person damages their Compassion AI they'll have to get it fixed or buy a new one."
"That's not what I mean." What did I mean?
"I suppose we could make the cost prohibitive, to discourage damaging the device," he suggested haltingly, still looking at me with concern. "But, Marie, you do understand that artificial intelligence is, in fact, artificial. Right? It doesn't have actual feelings."
I glowered at him, but before I could respond, Derek interrupted.
"Hey, are you two finished? Want to grab lunch?" Derek stuck his head in the door. His eyes bounced between us.
I stirred, glancing at my watch. Now past lunch, I realized we'd been reviewing and talking about Matt's data for over three hours.
"Oh no." I stood, shoving my notepad in my bag. "I have to go."
"Go? Where?" Matt followed me, shoving his hands in his pockets. "We're not finished yet."
"We'll have to meet another time. I don't want to be late."
"Fine." Matt frowned, grumbling. "Go if you must. Let me print out those graphs for you." Matt crossed back to the computer and began clicking through the screens we'd been reviewing.
I moved to step forward but Dr. Merek stepped in my path. "Listen," he began softly. "I'm sorry about your subject interview. I was sick and Matt had to fill in. We really do have good intentions here. We're trying to make a difference."
"I believe you, I just don't know if I agree with you. At least, not yet."
"Fair enough." Derek's gaze moved over my face again. "You know, you're not what I expected."
"What do you mean?"
"When Matt told me about what happened, between the two of you, I'd expected someone . . . scary."
I grinned. "I am scary."
"I bet you are." His voice dropped and his eyes seemed to sparkle.
A few seconds passed, then a few more while Dr. Derek Merek continued to gaze at me and I at him. I realized, to my very great surprise, we were in imminent danger of flirting.
"Hey, so. Here," Matt said, then cleared his throat very loudly and came to stand next to me, shoving papers into my hands. "Thank you, Dr. Merek. But neither of us have time for lunch."
"Oh? Where are you off to?" the tall scientist asked, like he didn't believe his coworker.
"I actually do have an appointment."
"That's right. She does," Matt added unnecessarily. Then he bent near my ear and whispered, "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to a professional cuddling studio." I lifted an eyebrow at Matt. He was standing very close to me, his large brown eyes wide and watchful. He was acting strangely. At least, based on the short amount of time we'd spent together, he was acting strangely.
"What's that?" Derek asked, clearly confused.
"Are you going to the one on Broad? I've been meaning to check it out." Matt dashed away from me, grabbing his wallet, keys, and sunglasses from his desk.
"You have?" The intensity of Derek Merek's confusion quadrupled.
"I have," Matt responded curtly. Then odd Professor Matt bumped my arm with his and tilted his head, saying, "Come on, Valkyrie. Let's go."
8
Dpe
The world's first disaster prediction engine, the goal being to make terrorism impossible.
Source: Banjo
"Do you watch Jack and Grace often?"
"Not as much as I'd like. I used to. I guess it's not unusual for me to watch Grace and Jack. But I haven't been babysitting much since Greg stopped traveling this spring."
We were just two blocks from the cuddle studio. I still didn't know why he'd decided to join me, but I didn't mind the company. In fact, I liked the idea of having someone with me, someone I could compare notes with once the experience was over.
"I like Fiona."
I glanced at him, finding his readiness to be honest refreshing.
"I do, too."
"She used to babysit me. She's like my sister."
I smiled, thinking of my friend. "She's pretty great."