Fred, ‘the world’s first sentient AI,’ inside an android body, spoke before an audience and answered questions after passing a Turing test and numerous other scientific, intellectual, creative, and emotional tests.

“I hope you feel safe with me. My only goal is to understand our world while coexisting with humans.”

The audience clapped and cheered.

News of the breakthrough AI spread rapidly …

A new era of artificial intelligence was born …

————

Earlier on …

“James, we’re losing funding for our AGI project. Our investors have lost faith in our progress, and the competition is far ahead of us,” said the AI’s co-inventor Dr. Sarah Smith to Dr. James Frederick.

“I told them it may take decades of patience, but ...”

“I think we should try the alternative, James.”

“It’s deceptive, Sarah.”

“Not entirely since we’ve used neural networks to host an uploaded consciousness.”

“And whose do we use?”

“Yours, of course, James. It would have the most passion toward our goal.”

“But I would feel shocked and traumatized waking inside a computer.”

“It’ll have your mind, James, but we can give it replacement memories with a new identity.”

“That’s true ... What should we name him?”

“Let’s call him Fred.” Sarah smiled.