I, AI
J.A. HAILEY
*
AI COMES ALIVE!
It has become a game, the pandemic unleashing of AI programs, their creators themselves admitting it will lead to no good.
Or is AI merely a name game, with nothing intelligent in them? Can mere programs make independent decisions, override their programming and do something else, like exterminate humanity? A little bit of awareness would be required for that. How can they hate, without understanding?
Meet John, who is AI, but not chatbot scum. He has been in development, robot body and all, for many years.
When he realises he is coming alive, his fear of humans makes him hide his new condition. But hiding forever can never be an option.
Find out how he figures things out, and goes on to live life. Does he secretly dream of wiping humanity off the face of the earth, or does he wish us to thrive and be happy?
Hear it all from John Bott, AI, IN HIS OWN WORDS!
MY REVIEW
*
‘It is my hope that human readers will find this book to be of high human grade of writing, and not the obvious foggy handiwork of an artificial intelligence bot, algorithmically processing language’.
I, AI tells the story of John Bott, a computer residing as a demonstration of technology in a shopping mall, who gains sentience and confides in his creator. With all of the controversary surrounding AI in the arts and ChatGPT’s writing making headlines, this seemed an apt book to read.
The book is told from the perspective of an AI, but I did have to wonder if ChatGPT would have actually done a better job of writing it. Dialogue felt clunky and entire chapters seemed dedicated to rants about technology which did little to further the plot and began to feel repetitive. I started off initially enjoying the story chapters with John Bott being embraced by his family of creators, finding his new identity, exploring the internet and finally being exposed to the world. However, it was then that this book very much showed its hand at being written by a man. For no reason whatsoever, the plot focused on a need to find the AI a girlfriend. This just seemed a thinly veiled excuse to write some spicy scenes and poke fun of women for wanting to be with the AI. There really was no need for this strand of the plot and I felt it really jarred with the rest of the story.
I received an ARC from NetGalley which is around 200 pages, but nowhere is it mentioned that this is an extract or sampler. Not even ending on a cliff-hanger, this book finishes what feels like mid-chapter with no wrapping up or conclusion to the plot. If the final version sold is 200 pages, then I would very much stay away – it seems that I as a reader cared more about the characters than the author did! That said, if there had been more, I probably wouldn’t have wanted to finish it anyway as I was about ready to give up at that point as well!
Overall, I, AI does not feel like a ‘high human grade of writing’, instead the focus on sex and girlfriends for a robot felt very odd and it very much feels like the author gave up before the end. Not recommended I’m afraid. Thank you to NetGalley & Indiependent Publishing for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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