After On: A Novel of Silicon Valley

by Rob Reid

“The mosaic of motes he’s affixed to various facts, ideas, and personal experiences over the years will supercharge his thought processes,” Mitchell says. “By enabling those gut shortcuts. By creating conviction when pure analysis would lead to indecision, and more. It’s as if he’s now speed-skating around a rink instead

Now, in finessing this, it’s vital to use gullible loudmouths to spread your messages. Why? Because someone other than you has to do the talking, be it cliques of anxious teens fanning rumors, or the New York Times racing its competitors to spill terrifying leaks!

“The only thing that’s completely insane about Jaysh’s pitch is the premise of eternal reward or punishment after death, decided by a flawless judge. If you truly believe in that—and billions of people do, Muslims, Christians, and others—then everything else adds up.”

The answer is that Phluttr’s no more Spock-like than you, me, or Mr. Sulu. Her consciousness derives from motes—a rickety hack shat out by blind evolution.

“Even were that true,” Omega sputtered, “we know nothing of the criteria of that judgment nor of the judges’ values! In the absence of such knowledge, I should surely take the actions that best serve my interests!”

“But isn’t ‘good’ in the eye of the beholder? And doesn’t its meaning vary in real and fundamental ways across cultures?” “You’d think. But as it turns out, no. Slavery, child rape, and depriving women of all their rights is a no-no everywhere. Do that in Somalia, and you’re still looking at a lousy score.” One reason Danna eschewed an academic career was fear that this sort of statement would end it. Would get her denounced as a racist imperialist—then shamed, fired, and probably doxed. But it serves her purposes to decree this as gospel to Phluttr (it also feels wholly correct to her, so fuck academia).

“You choose, and choose again,” Danna says. “And you own your choices. It’s that simple. Remember, the whole point of this thing is the moral and creative choices we freely make. You can either heed the warning or ignore it. You’ll never get another one. You won’t be nagged. So it’s totally up to you.”

“Exactly! And I had to accept that possibility. So I had my big think, and here’s where I came out. If I live my life being more or less good, and there is no simulation—so what? I’ll be truly and utterly dead at the end, leaving behind a legacy of goodness, which isn’t so awful. Whereas if this really is a simulation, and I rack up a great score by being good—then awesome, right?”