Page 48 of Made for You
C: So...it’s not like we’re going to see a lot of Synths delivering pizza all of a sudden.
A: I mean, why not, eventually? The market will evolve, and change, and we’ll see. But for now, we’re talking highly compensated positions. Companies would pay a premium to have access to that labor pool.
C: Of course, going back to Christi’s controversial divorce, they could quit the jobs they were made to do, right?
A: Sure. But they’ll be less likely to quit if they’ve been designed, for example, to love coding for twelve hours a day.
C: What’s the line between coding someone to enjoy working all day, and exploitation?
A: It’s something we’re thinking about very hard right now.
C: Lawmakers out there gonna get in a damn tizzy! [Audience laughter]
A: I’m sure they will. That’s their job. [Laughs] But we have big fish to fry. We want to revolutionize the workforce.
C: I hate to bring up fairness. But let’s take a scenario: a top surgeon. Let’s take a Synth with all the information downloaded versus a person who’s suffered through medical school and gone into a lot of debt for their education. Why should the Synth have the leg up?
A: We can’t make this personal. The point is to have qualified, successful surgeons who are saving lives and not making mistakes. It’s the outcome that matters. How we get there is extremely secondary.
C: My son who’s in medical school might argue different.
A: [Laughs] Congrats to your son. And yeah, I can understand that. But still. This is big-picture thinking, and it’s the way of the future.
C: If Christi wins this court case.
A: Of course.
C: And if she doesn’t?
A: There will be another case. Maybe not this year, but the next, or in ten years, or twenty. Eventually, Synths are going to be so woven into the fabric of society, we won’t even distinguish them as anything different than us.
C: Correct me if I’m wrong, but you recently got into an argument on Twitter when someone referred to Synths as AI.
A: Not my finest moment, Cory. [Audience laughter] But I stand by the point. This is beyond AI. Julia’s body, you could call artificial. Even though it perfectly mimics natural processes, I’ll concede that. But there is nothing artificial about her mind. Post Launch Day, no one is controlling her learning and development. Her process is as natural as yours or mine. Just like her ability to give and receive love.
C: And you think people are ready to accept that?
A: Let’s sit down again in twenty years. We’ll be having a very different conversation. Synths will be our wives and husbands, our mothers, our friends, our coworkers—and our pizza delivery drivers. [Audience laughter] People won’t remember what it was like without them, and the idea that once upon a time they didn’t have as many rights as any other person? We’ll see that as barbaric.
C: [Points aggressively to audience] So get used to it, you barbarians! [Audience laughter] And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you’ve been waiting for—the exclusive teaser for the upcoming season of... THE PROPOSAL!
NOW
“Pad Thai, tofu, extra lime on the side,” says Andy. “Thanks.”
“And I’ll have the panang chicken, medium spice,” I say, returning the plastic menu to the server.
Andy and I are sitting at a little table by the window at Siam House on Fourth Street, an eclectic restaurant in what was formerly a Victorian house, with tables scattered through a maze of interconnected rooms, alcoves and nooks. It smells delicious, rich and sweet and tangy all at once, and my stomach is growling. Annaleigh, tummy finally full, is mercifully asleep in her bucket-style car seat with a blanket thrown over top. Rain patters against the window, and Fourth Street is full of umbrellas. We drove here from campus in my car, since Andy’s car is, in his words, a dump on wheels.
“So—” starts Andy, but I gesture for him to wait. My phone, face up on the table, has just lit up.
“Hello?” I say.
“This is Mitchell.” The sheriff’s voice is a deep growl, like he’s already irritated.
“Yes! Hi! Have you found Josh?”
“Nope. And funny thing, I can’t find you either.”