Stones of farspeech; within a day of the intro log

[conscientiousobject]

This is very sudden, and perhaps badly timed, for which I apologise.

[He really hopes he's not wasting the time of people trapped in rockslides or something, but--well, he would also hope someone trapped in a rock slide would be focusing on that and not. This.]

But I've just... returned to this place after a long absence and I've been informed there are other robots here now?

Is this true?

My name is Epsilon, and I am--was? Am. A robot myself.

So if anyone who can hear me has any kind of AI, or a similar form of existence... at your convenience, I'd like to speak with you! It's been a long time since I've known any others.

.... also, if you do need help, Ginko and I are able to move a great deal of earth between us, so please say something.

Comments

[motherfucking_ghost]

Oh! Uhhhh. That's cool. That's really--that's awesome, that's cool, love meeting other robots. [And AI stuffed into robots! But that's still...touchy.] You've been here before? How'd you leave?

And, hey, has um, has an Agent Washington talked to you yet? Maybe made an entire asshole out of himself?

[conscientiousobject]

I don't know how I left.

I cannot say I know how I returned, either.

And I am not... one hundred percent sure whether I've spoken to Agent Washington or not.

[He's so unable to answer your questions that it's somewhere between comical and pathetic, but he's not really capable of feeling embarrassed about it.]

[motherfucking_ghost]

Eh...the rabbit works in mysterious ways. Guess it makes sense you wouldn't, like, be allowed to remember how you left or we'd all leave. Probably.

And you'll know you spoke to him if he talked about a different Epsilon AI. Which I also know, but I didn't know it well. I knew a couple AI and briefly met some others, too. And I knew a different robot, he could only talk in Spanish, pretty sure he hated his team because none of those assholes ever learned to speak it.

[conscientiousobject]

.... in that case, yes, I've spoken with him.

I didn't learn very much about this other Epsilon, only that the shared might cause some confusion... and specifically in a way that implied something negative.

[He does not know how to respond to this information about other AI in their world. Why on earth would anyone assign an AI to a 'team' without ensuring all parties shared a language...?]

Are AI a rarity in your world?

[motherfucking_ghost]

Nnnn...no? But we have like two degrees of AI. We've got smart AI that are basically next to humanity in terms of personality and consciousness and shit, and they can grow and evolve and shit, and then we've got the other AI. I dunno, dumb AI? That sounds rude, I think 'smart' is just the distinction from regular AI when you talk about AI--whatever, those ones are used in running your tanks, your spaceships, your tech when it's more efficient for a computer to run something really complex, but they don't grow or change. ...That I know of.

So, AI are common, but smart AI are rare.

[conscientiousobject]

Ah.

[That is an actual sound of comprehension, produced for Church's benefit.

He appreciates the concern about manners, though. They're all from different worlds, but with that in mind, the thought really does count.]

We actually don't even call that an AI, though if it has a body, we do still call it a robot. But it would be somewhat of a problem if you created a form of personhood just to drive your car or clean your bathroom.

[He says this in a dry voice.]

For the most part, advanced AIs are all robots, at least outside the United States of Thracia. They're a regular part of daily life, but the more complex they are, the less common it is.

I'm not even close to the most advanced robot out there, let alone the most advanced AI.