AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future by Kai-Fu Lee & Chen Qiufan

Author:Kai-Fu Lee & Chen Qiufan [Lee, Kai-Fu & Qiufan, Chen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780593238301
Google: cw0PEAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Crown
Published: 2021-09-13T23:00:00+00:00

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CHAMAL AND UNCLE JUNIUS took the elevator to Basement Level 3 of the ReelX Center, a gleaming new four-story building in downtown Colombo. As soon as the doors opened, a uniformed young Sri Lankan woman greeted them with an amiable smile. Then Uncle Junius spoke.

“Chamal, I’m going to hand you over to Miss Alice here. She will be very nice to you. Show them what a great driver you are, okay?” Junius winked at Alice, who ignored him.

“Say goodbye to your uncle, Chamal,” said Alice. “Follow me.”

Chamal trotted after Alice down a wide hallway. The walls and floors of the office—or was it a laboratory?—were pristine, glistening with the reflection of the overhead lights. White-coated staff hurried about. They carried digital tablets displaying flashing numbers, graphs, and charts. When someone needed free hands, they pressed the soft, smooth, almost leathery tablet to their uniform, and the tablet would contour itself to their body like clothing.

Despite all the workers, it was oddly quiet, thought Chamal. He could hear nothing but some soft whispers. In contrast to the VR Café, or the roads outside, there was no engine roar, no screeching tires, not even the click and bang of opening and closing doors.

Alice led Chamal to a small room the size of a doctor’s examination room, and told him to get changed. A black haptic suit was hanging on the door, alongside a matching helmet. Chamal frowned. He wasn’t particularly fond of the color black. Mother used to say that the color white represented holiness, while black meant bad luck. Sri Lankans rarely dressed themselves in black. Usually they preferred bright colors, and they wore white only for holidays and religious rituals.

The suit was made from extremely stretchy material, and it felt like a second skin against Chamal’s body. It fit perfectly. The temperature was just right. Chamal turned in circles, twisting his body while observing his reflection. The boy in the mirror almost looked like one of those superheroes from his favorite comics, Chamal thought to himself—although a stick-figure version with a comically large helmet.

“Chamal, I’m going to show you something important now. Pay attention, okay?” said Alice, who had been waiting outside the room. She motioned for Chamal to follow her down another corridor.

Beneath the heavy helmet, Chamal observed Alice. She has dark brown eyes just like Mother, he thought.

They entered a large room. Colored lights blinked at them from almost every corner. Eight pod-like cockpits extended across the room in two rows, each connected to engines by wires and cables as thick as old tree vines. Behind each cockpit was an enormous screen. On one of the screens was a display—to Chamal, it looked like the livecast of a racing game. Alongside the video, Chamal could see a constantly updating feed of what looked like physiological measurements.

“Soon, you’ll be put inside a virtual reality cockpit,” Alice told Chamal as he marveled at the room and its sensory overload. “Your uncle says you’re a whiz at VR racing games.

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