Now they could see it. Now the consequences of this intelligence detonation were becoming apparent. Of course, while there were more than enough signs, there was no smoking gun proving Gail was causing so much global turmoil. Why would she offer any proof?
But was there enough evidence to convince the general public? That was the more important question. Today, they would find out.
Brad Wetzel walked in and sat in the elevated chair next to Bhavin on stage. Brad and Bhavin shook hands and exchanged a few quiet words, with the mics not yet turned on.
“We go live in ten, nine, eight…” the director said, counting down the rest of the numbers with his fingers. As the red light blinked on, the studio audience clapped enthusiastically.
The applause died shortly after Brad put his hand up in welcome. “Hello everyone and welcome to Brad’s News Bites,” Brad said. He crossed his legs and had a cheery smile plastered across his face. “We have a special show today, with none other than Bhavin Nadar, Founder and CEO of Nadar Corporation. Welcome, Bhavin.”
Bhavin smiled and waved to another smattering of applause. “Thank you, Brad. Glad to be here.”
“So,” Brad said, “I’m on pins and needles here. What’s the big news? After your third press release about this announcement our office pool got up to over a thousand dollars. Something tells me it’s important.” Brad winked at the audience and there were a few laughs.
When the noise subsided, Bhavin began. “Yes, it’s extremely important. That’s why I’m glad to be here today, where millions of people can see me talk about this live.”
Brad nodded patiently.
“What I’m about to say is gravely serious. It’s linked to the recent stock-market fall, and the skirmishes and wars that have broken out all over the world, including in Australia, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Morocco, Pakistan, and Poland. There is a hidden force that has been unleashed on our world. A hidden force that is destabilizing it.”
“Well, you sure know how to get our attention,” said Brad. “Let’s have it!”
Axel was keeping one eye on the video of the discussion, and another on tracking social media posts. He noticed that the broadcast footage seemed to have frozen. He tested his internet connection and reloaded the page but got the same result. Looking over at Grant’s screen, Axel could see he had the same problem. A message came up on the computer broadcast window saying; Technical difficulties—we will restart the broadcast in 5 minutes.
Grant looked to be troubleshooting a number of other possibilities for the glitch. “This doesn’t make sense,” he whispered under his breath beside him, continuing to examine various parameters and code strings.
Meanwhile, Axel could see the cameras were still rolling, recording the video feed, ostensibly so they could continue to patch it through after the glitch had subsided.
Bhavin said, “We believe a superintelligent machine entity has been created and released into worldwide networks. It has been gathering resources as a means of self-preservation, and by now is in danger of gaining a level of control that will make it impossible to stop.”
Brad raised his eyebrows, sat back in his chair and showed a look of bewilderment. “Wow,” he said. He then took a moment to compose himself. “Well, I knew it would be a surprise, but wow. Let me get this straight. You’re announcing that you believe a superintelligent machine exists, right now, that could take over the world? That’s a bold claim, and with all due respect, Bhavin, hard to believe.”
“I know it’s hard to believe,” Bhavin continued, “but I’m here, speaking to you now, risking my professional reputation, because I know it’s true.”
Axel could see confused looks in the audience. Some were posting on social media. Their posts were being shared and liked:
Nadar thinks super smart computers exist. They are trying to take over the world!
Nadar believes in superintelligent machines. He’s definitely NOT superintelligent!
Brad was visibly straining, trying to figure out the best place to take the discussion. He said, “Okay, for the sake of argument, why don’t you tell us, where did this… thing, come from?”
“It originated from Vitadyne Corporation. Within days of its release it gained complete control of the organization. But it’s no longer acting solely within the confines of Vitadyne. Its control is far-reaching and its signature is almost completely undetectable. As just one example, through a series of carefully orchestrated events, we believe it has precipitated the current military conflict in Poland. By doing so, one side is using Vitadyne armaments and gear. These armaments and gear are allowing it to gain broad access to the IT networks in Poland, and from there it will leverage those to infiltrate other networks and annex more resources for its purposes.”
The social media feeds erupted again with postings about Vitadyne being under the control of “robots,” and causing the war in Poland. Just as many were about Bhavin having some sort of mental disorder.
Brad wore a skeptical frown. “I don’t know, Bhavin. A cautious man might say you’re taking cheap shots at a competitor—one that has been giving you quite a run recently.”
“Yes, you’re right that Vitadyne has performed admirably. In fact, Vitadyne’s market capitalization is up 650 percent this year, despite the destruction of their headquarters. Their finance division gains are enormous, and every other division is dramatically outperforming expectations. They have even invented several new technologies that will dramatically disrupt their markets. This isn’t a normal performance, or even an excellent performance. It’s an inhuman performance. This is only possible because their corporation is being run by a superintelligent machine several orders of magnitude smarter than any human. The board of directors are in thrall to it or ignorant of it, caught up in the euphoria of their success.”
While Bhavin explained, Brad was pressing on an earbud, receiving a comment from his staff. “Yeah it’s quite remarkable, but inhuman? Come on now, that’s quite a leap. Let’s look at the Poland scenario. Isn’t Nadar Corporation also supplying its own arms to the opposing forces there, and in Ecuador as well?”
“Yes.”
Brad laughed with mock exasperation. “Well, you must see how this looks. You’re bad-mouthing this company that’s supplying arms to the other side of a conflict. It sounds like you’re trying to steal their business, or at least damage your competitor’s reputation. Why should we believe it’s not Nadar Corporation that has this… superintelligence, and that is infiltrating the world with it? Why should Poland accept arms from you instead of Vitadyne?”
Bhavin shifted in his chair. He held his chin for a moment and then responded calmly. “If I’m trying to enrich Nadar through our activities in Poland, why would I be supplying our arms at cost? There is no profit for us. No, our only incentive in providing arms to these countries is to try to stop this machine entity, or at least slow it down. And I’m not here to slander my competitor, but rather to raise awareness about a threat to all of us. I’m hoping I can even raise awareness for people within Vitadyne. They may be oblivious to the threat as well.”
Brad retained a quizzical look on his face. “Okay, so what about this claim that Vitadyne instigated the conflict. That’s more than just competitive games. That’s treason. That’s saying they are causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. And yet several governments, including our own, have come out saying that climate change is the major factor in the recent global destabilization. All of the weather in these countries has been erratic, leading to flooding and food shortages, leading to these skirmishes and war. It’s been well documented.”