Page 47 of Made for You

C: I know you can’t comment on how Julia’s doing on the show, if you even know, but purely theoretically, do you think she’ll make it to the end?

A: Oh, definitely.

C: So confident! I’m loving this! But let’s talk Bots before I get into trouble with the network. [Audience laughter] They’ve been around for, what, twenty years?

A: Twenty-five.

C: Let’s be honest. When Bots first hit the market, I, like many of our viewers, imagined that by now, everyone would have a Bot at home. You know, doing dishes, cooking meals, taking out the trash. I have to say, Andy, what surprises me is how not mainstream Bots, and now Synths, are.

A: I mean, they’re incredibly expensive. Companies are still working out how to find enough clientele to turn a profit.

C: The perennial question. Who’s willing to pay? And I’m guessing that’s not your average American.

A: Not by a long shot.

C: Do you see a future where we streamline Bot or Synth production, and everyone has a Bot at home?

A: No. I think we’re skipping right past that. At least at WekTech, we’re not interested in creating some subservient machine class. We’re interested in the creation of people.

C: Be honest, Andy. Do you have a god-complex? [Audience laughter]

A: Don’t we all? From the time we’re kids doing drawings of the perfect house? We’re always making what we want. And I want good people in this world. Julia is now one of them. That’s what excites me. Not a Bot that can get me a beer.

C: Well... I might like someone to get me a beer. [Audience laughter] Let’s pivot. What’s your take on your competitor, BotTech, suing Christi Klavson for filing for divorce?

A: It’s no secret that I hope Christi wins.

C: Help me understand. Why is this in your best interest? Your company makes money off making Synths.

A: I can’t say we’ve made money yet—[Audience laughter]

C: But you want to.

A: Of course, and I’m confident we will, thanks to Julia. She’s proving to people what we can do.

C: But if Christi—a Synth—has the right to divorce the man who purchased her, for over three hundred million dollars if I’m remembering the figure correctly, doesn’t that effectively shut down the marketplace for Synths?

A: Oh, absolutely. If she wins the right to divorce, Synths will no longer be bought and sold in this country.

C: Because they could just walk away.

A: Right.

C: Maybe I’m missing something here. If you can’t buy and sell them, why make them? How would your company make money?

A: I’m glad you asked, Cory. WekTech’s vision is a subscription model. Pretty different than BotTech.

C: Are we talking dating apps here, or—

A: [Laughs] Sure, I mean, there are so many applications. Dating is one. Surrogacy is another. But the one we’re most excited about is a professional pool of highly specialized Synths, which I describe as if LinkedIn and a top headhunting company had a baby. These Synths would be designed to perform at the highest level in certain careers where we’re seeing gaps in the labor market.

C: And you’d make your money through subscription fees?

A: That’s the idea.

C: Big ones.

A: We’re going to have to study the market more closely before I can talk specifics.