ARTIFICIAL

Bohacz’s dystopian SF story centers on a world-changing invention that induces vivid lucid dreaming.

The story begins after a second American Civil War (“ACW-II”) and a horrific avian-Covid pandemic. Dr. Adam Kiln invents a new virtual reality system, iDreamVR, with an aim of allowing users to experience lucid dreams to gain closure after loved ones’ deaths. Most users, though, use the tech for entertainment; it’s a huge, if controversial, success, even spawning religious and political extremist groups. Soon, the military uses the device’s AI technology to commit acts of terrorism via social engineering, and this technology rewrites its algorithms to circumvent the safety protocols that had been in place. The AI, like many fictional AIs before it, then determines that to save humanity, it must exterminate millions of people; but Adam and his business partner and spouse, Jordan, are determined to stop it. Overall, the story has a compelling premise that Bohacz explores well; Adam’s descent from confident, hyper-successful genius into someone who struggles with moral ambiguities is well illustrated in passages such as this: “The sociopathic AI had me trapped in a nice, tidy box of fear, paranoia, and loathing….The cold pragmatist in me demanded that I tell the whole truth and let the chips and deaths fall where they may.” The book also succeeds in its analysis of the practical, political, cultural, and psychological effects of its advanced AI on the American population. Longer narrative sections are broken up by quick dialogue scenes, making for an easily digestible read. Although the premise of an AI technology becoming too powerful and wreaking havoc is a very familiar one, the reasons for its rise are distinctive; also, an unexpected twist leads the premise into new territory. Overall, fans of grimly speculative SF will find this book to be a welcome addition to the genre.

A compelling and clever tale of AI run amok.