Andy Shivaram's Blog
January 30, 2019
“Lifebots in our midst” is an exciting novel about an interesting subject.
This book is an attempt to stimulate discussion about a growing phenomenon, through a hypothetical yet plausible story.
Robots armed with AI are increasingly appearing on our landscape in various forms; ticket checkers, stock traders, manufacturers, drivers to name only a few. Eventually life-like robots will make their appearance and alter our human reality.
It is important for all of us to be aware of these changes creeping up on us in an unregulated manner. Ofcourse this phenomenon has many benefits but can also create unemployment and much misery. Progress must happen but let’s do it thoughtfully.
A summary from the book back cover is given below:
Susan gets a life-like robot (lifebot) after her husband dies to provide companionship and help her with her household chores.
Steve wants a beautiful lifebot partner who can look after his kids and his needs and doesn’t mind his many dates; an excellent arrangement to suit his lifestyle.
Nick is a small-time crook who wants to train his lifebot to a lucrative life of crime.
Tom’s job has been replaced a couple of times by robots, and he gives up looking for a job to start a life on Universal Basic Income.
Single-mum, Kelly, is given a live-in lifebot by the council as an alternative to taking her child into care while she sorts out her life.
Such are examples of life, some twenty-five years from now. Robots increasingly take human jobs and life-like robots, with artificial intelligence (AI), permeate work and home life, while parliament debates the pros and cons, furiously passing laws to control the negative consequences.
This novel portrays the lives of ordinary people, where loving and caring relationships between lifebots and people living together, is interwoven with sprinklings of jealousy and aggression, with a dash of sex and crime thrown in, to make a compelling story that will appeal to everybody
Available at your local Amazon site as paperback or e-book that can be downloaded to your phone, kindle, tablet or laptop via the kindle app. Please review and recommend if you like it. Thanks
Robots armed with AI are increasingly appearing on our landscape in various forms; ticket checkers, stock traders, manufacturers, drivers to name only a few. Eventually life-like robots will make their appearance and alter our human reality.
It is important for all of us to be aware of these changes creeping up on us in an unregulated manner. Ofcourse this phenomenon has many benefits but can also create unemployment and much misery. Progress must happen but let’s do it thoughtfully.
A summary from the book back cover is given below:
Susan gets a life-like robot (lifebot) after her husband dies to provide companionship and help her with her household chores.
Steve wants a beautiful lifebot partner who can look after his kids and his needs and doesn’t mind his many dates; an excellent arrangement to suit his lifestyle.
Nick is a small-time crook who wants to train his lifebot to a lucrative life of crime.
Tom’s job has been replaced a couple of times by robots, and he gives up looking for a job to start a life on Universal Basic Income.
Single-mum, Kelly, is given a live-in lifebot by the council as an alternative to taking her child into care while she sorts out her life.
Such are examples of life, some twenty-five years from now. Robots increasingly take human jobs and life-like robots, with artificial intelligence (AI), permeate work and home life, while parliament debates the pros and cons, furiously passing laws to control the negative consequences.
This novel portrays the lives of ordinary people, where loving and caring relationships between lifebots and people living together, is interwoven with sprinklings of jealousy and aggression, with a dash of sex and crime thrown in, to make a compelling story that will appeal to everybody
Available at your local Amazon site as paperback or e-book that can be downloaded to your phone, kindle, tablet or laptop via the kindle app. Please review and recommend if you like it. Thanks
