by P. W. Singer
“I’ll think about it. Can you send TAMS back in here?”
“Sure thing.”
Noritz disappeared and TAMS returned, alone. It presented itself as if at attention. The scars that decorated its chest were akin to a row of medals that it should feel pride in, if it could.
“What was the very last thing that I said to you?” she asked.
“Thank you,” TAMS replied.
Keegan reflected on this for a moment. “I have to say that again, for more than you know.”
TAMS looked back at her and she wanted to believe it comprehended her unspoken meaning—and for all she knew, it did. She wasn’t sure of anything anymore. Despite herself, she had come to trust this machine to which she now owed everything. Yet that very same trust made their partnership a new kind of danger.1 Every second she spent with TAMS, everything she taught it, would only bring it closer to the moment they had already arrived at once—the moment that could end everything.
Keegan surveyed the rows of get-well cards, the top of Shaw’s card lurking just behind them.
Fuck it. It was a risk she’d just have to take.
“TAMS, you all powered up and ready to get back to work?”
“OK,” said TAMS.
“Because once I get out of this hospital, we’ve got a new case to pursue.”
Acknowledgments
Just like the reader’s experience, the act of writing a book is a journey that involves a cast of memorable characters.
Alex Littlefield, Gretchen Stelter, and Olivia Bartz and the entire editorial and production team at HMH shepherded Burn-In from mere concept to the product in your hand, while the indefatigable Michelle Triant and the marketing and publicity teams worked to spread the good word about it. We fully recognize that this meld of fiction and nonfiction is a different kind of proposition for a publisher and we are so grateful for their support in making it real.
We were also aided by a cohort of experts and friends, who did everything from answer research questions to provide invaluable creative feedback on early drafts. Some have to remain anonymous because of their jobs, which ranged from FBI agents and CIA officers to executives of AI companies. But many can and should be thanked, including Che Bolden, Marcus Carey, Sam Cole, Sam Freund, Matt Gallagher, Josh Geltzer, Mark Hagerott, Amir Husain, Phil Klay, Brian Michelson, Ian Morrison, Tyler Quinn, Tammy Schultz, Kristin Sharp, Peter Tieryas, Dan Wilson, Beau Woods, and Nicholas Wright.
Our agents Dan Mandel and Katherine Flynn have represented us for years, serving as everything from representatives to deeply appreciated sounding boards on issues large and small.
Books also require a setting that makes that journey possible. New America, led by Anne-Marie Slaughter, truly is the only think tank that could have housed a project like this that crosses research on issues ranging from the future of tech to cyber threats, while making use of something other than a traditional white paper to communicate it. Crucial support in this was also kindly provided by the Smith Richardson Foundation and Arizona State University’s Center on the Future of War, two organizations that have made their mission to aid the broader world in preparing for tomorrow.
Yet, just like in the book, the most important part of the journey comes from the most personal of ties. As for Keegan, our identity is as much defined by the balancing act of parenting and work as by anything else. We wrote scenes while sitting on uncomfortable gym benches, as basketball practice took place below, and edited on family car trips, as the new Taylor Swift album blared in the background. And we loved every minute of it. Catherine and Madeleine, Owen and Liam, you are our joy.
Most of all we’d like to thank our wives, who supported us every step of the way, not just in the book, but in life’s journey. They encouraged and inspired us in all ways, and we could not be more thankful to have them as our true partners.
References
Burn-In is a work of fiction.
It also wrestles with real issues that will have to be faced in the coming years.
Automation, robotics, and ever more capable artificial intelligence are no longer just science fiction. Their ongoing advancement and application, across nearly every segment of society, will create amazing new possibilities and efficiencies. As we go through what is best understood as a new industrial revolution, however, there will also be political, economic, social, and cultural disruptions and debates, as well as security threats, of a scale not experienced for generations, if not ever before. What is worrisome is how poorly understood this all is, both by the public and policymakers. It is not just that too many lack a sense of the scale of change that is to come, but also the ability to visualize it.
This is what motivated us to write Burn-In, not just to create and share new characters and stories, but also to aid broader engagement with the thorny issues related to technology and society that will soon become all too real. In the past we’ve termed this approach as the concept of “useful fiction.”1 It also explains those little numbers that popped up in the text as Keegan and TAMS went on their journey. They both validate that moment in the text and credit the writers or researchers whose hard work lay behind it. That is, in this differing approach of a novel woven with real-world research, the following endnotes serve the very same purpose that they would serve in a work of traditional nonfiction: to provide a source for the fact or concept being communicated.
Yet we also hope that you see the following references as an opportunity. They are potential threads to pull on further, just like TAMS did, to seek greater understanding. It might be to learn more about a certain technology that excited you, which seemed like science fiction in the story but turns out to be real. Or it might be to dive deeper into a particular concept, dilemma, or debate, as it may not be theoretical for much longer. Most of all, we hope that the combination of the story and these sources leaves you empowered with new knowledge as you navigate these issues in the real world.
Notes
1. CAPITOL HILL
1. Ritika Trikha, “The History of ‘Hello, World.’” HackerRank, April 21, 2015. https://blog.hackerrank.com/the-history-of-hello-world/.
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2. Adam Conner-Simons and Rachel Gordon, “ ‘Superhero’ Robot Wears Different Outfits for Different Tasks.” MIT News, September 27, 2017. http://news.mit.edu/2017/superhero-robot-wears-different-outfits-different-tasks-0927.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, “Robot Origami: Robot Self-folds, Walks, and Completes Tasks.” YouTube, June 11, 2015. Video, 2:43. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVYz7g-qLjs.
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3. Clark Construction, “Washington Post Press Facility.” Accessed April 3, 2019. https://www.clarkconstruction.com/our-work/projects/washington-post-press-facility.
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4. Arthur Holland Michel, “Amazon Delivery Drone Patents.” Center for the Study of the Drone, September 2017. https://dronecenter.bard.edu/files/2017/09/CSD-Amazons-Drone-Patents-1.pdf.
[back]
5. History.com, “1932: Bonus Marchers Evicted by U.S. Army.” February 9, 2010. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/bonus-marchers-evicted-by-u-s-army.
[back]
6. US Marine Corps, “New Marine Corps Tattoo Regulations.” Marines.mil, June 2, 2016. https://www.marines.mil/News/News-Display/Article/788805/new-marine-corps-tattoo-regulations/.
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7. Leo Shane III, “Veterans, Military Retirees to See a 1.6 Percent Cost-of-Living Boost in Benefits.” Military Times, October 11, 2019. https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2019/10/11/veterans-military-retirees-to-see-a-16-percent-cost-of-living-boost-in-benefits/.
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8. Lara Seligman, “In Overflowing Syrian Refugee Camps, Extremism Takes Root.” Foreign Policy, July 29, 2019. https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/07/29/in-overflowing-syrian-refugee-camps-extremism-takes-root-syria-bashar-assad-islamic-state-isis/.
Garrett Graff, The Threat Matrix: The FBI at War in the Age of Global Terror. New
York: Little Brown and Co., 2011.
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9. Peter Diamandis, “Convergence in VR/AR: 5 Anticipated Breakthroughs to Watch.” LinkedIn. May 6, 2019. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/convergence-vrar-5-anticipated-breakthroughs-watch-peter-h-diamandis/.
John James, “Future OE Mission Command and Future OE Decision Cycles.” US Army Mad Scientist Laboratory, May 16, 2019. https://madsciblog.tradoc.army.mil/145-future-oe-mission-command-and-future-oe-decision-cycles/.
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10. Vlad Savov, “Nubia’s Wearable Smartphone Is a Preview of Our Flexible OLED Future.” The Verge, September 4, 2018. https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/9/4/17817416/wearable-smartphone-nubia-alpha-flexible-oled-ifa-2018.
Zachariah Yuzon, “Nubia’s Alpha Wearable Is the Craziest Gadget at MWC 2019.” Mashable, February 28, 2019. Video, 00:50. https://mashable.com/video/nubia-alpha/#kFH57ndsemqR.
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11. Jeremy Hsu, “Out of the Way, Human! Delivery Robots Want a Share of Your Sidewalk.” Scientific American, February 19, 2019. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/out-of-the-way-human-delivery-robots-want-a-share-of-your-sidewalk/.
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12. Ina Fried, “Preparing for a Future of Augmented Reality.” Axios, September 27, 2019. https://www.axios.com/augmented-reality-future-personal-privacy-concerns-797deaf0-3a24-4eb4-98d7-99e304608c88.html.
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13. Amanda Lentino, “This Chinese Facial-Recognition Start-up Can Identify a Person in Seconds.” CNBC.com, May 16, 2019. https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/16/this-chinese-facial-recognition-start-up-can-id-a-person-in-seconds.html.
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14. Direct quote from China Electronics Technology Corp. presentation. Chris Buckley and Paul Mozur, “How China Uses High-Tech Surveillance to Subdue Minorities.” New York Times, May 22, 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/22/world/asia/china-surveillance-xinjiang.html.
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15. Julien Happich, “The Future of Video Surveillance: HD, Hyperspectral and Stereoscopic.” EeNews Europe, February 5, 2014. http://www.eenewseurope.com/news/future-video-surveillance-hd-hyperspectral-and-stereoscopic.
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16. Jonathan Hilburg, “Elon Musk Receives Exploratory Permit for D.C. to NYC Hyperloop.” The Architect’s Newspaper, February 21, 2018. https://archpaper.com/2018/02/elon-musks-boring-company-exploratory-permit-dc-hyperloop/.
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17. Steve Hanley, “Tesla Model 3 Stuns German Engineers with Its Wonders.” CleanTechnica, February 19, 2018. https://cleantechnica.com/2018/02/19/tesla-model-3-stuns-german-engineers-wonders/.
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18. Selfdefense.com, “Stun Gun Batons.” Accessed July 27, 2019. https://www.srselfdefense.com/stun-gun-batons/.
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19. Aaron C. Davis, Emma Brown, and Michael Miller, “Inside Casa Padre, the Converted Walmart Where the U.S. Is Holding Nearly 1,500 Immigrant Children.” Washington Post, June 14, 2018. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/inside-casa-padre-the-converted-walmart-where-the-us-is-holding-nearly-1500-immigrant-children/2018/06/14/0cd65ce4-6eba-11e8-bd50-b80389a4e569_story.html.
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20. Andrew Giambrone, “Trump Reportedly Wants to Keep the FBI HQ in D.C. and Oversee Its Redevelopment.” Curbed Washington DC, July 30, 2018. https://dc.curbed.com/2018/7/30/17631828/trump-fbi-hq-redevelopment-washington-brutalism-architecture.
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21. CV Dazzle. Accessed November 5, 2019. https://cvdazzle.com/.
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22. James Vincent, “Google’s AI Thinks This Turtle Looks Like a Gun, Which Is a Problem.” The Verge, November 2, 2017. https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/2/16597276/google-ai-image-attacks-adversarial-turtle-rifle-3d-printed.
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23. James Vincent, “These Glasses Trick Facial Recognition Software into Thinking You’re Someone Else.” The Verge, November 3, 2016. https://www.theverge.com/2016/11/3/13507542/facial-recognition-glasses-trick-impersonate-fool.
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24. Guy Cramer, “Quantum Stealth; The Invisible Military Becomes a Reality.” HyperStealth, October 19, 2012. http://www.hyperstealth.com/Quantum-Stealth.
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25. Quran.com, “Sura 43: Az-Zukhruf, The Ornaments of Gold.” https://quran.com/43.
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26. Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai, “Hackers Behind WannaCry Cashed Out Bitcoin While No One Was Watching.” Vice, August 3, 2017. https://motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/qvky75/hackers-behind-wannacry-cashed-out-bitcoin-while-no-one-was-watching.
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2. PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
1. Jennifer Greenstein Altmann, “Venerable Lecture Hall Reaches Century Milestone.” Princeton.edu, August 16, 2007. https://www.princeton.edu/news/2007/08/16/venerable-lecture-hall-reaches-century-milestone.
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2. “Linux Kernel.” Wikipedia. Accessed May 15, 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_kernel.
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3. Kirkpatrick Sale, Rebels Against the Future: The Luddites and Their War on the Industrial Revolution: Lessons for the Computer Age. New York: Basic Books, 1996.
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4. MΔDΞRΔS, “Improvements Like These Have Interesting Implications.” Twitter, March 9, 2019. pic.twitter.com/ZywUM4XsBn.
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5. Will Knight, “Meet the Fake Celebrities Dreamed Up by AI.” MIT Technology Review, October 31, 2017. https://www.technologyreview.com/the-download/609290/meet-the-fake-celebrities-dreamed-up-by-ai/.
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6. Greg Synek, “Gait Recognition Tech Can Identify People Even with Their Backs Turned.” TechSpot, November 7, 2018. https://www.techspot.com/news/77298-gait-recognition-tech-can-identify-people-even-their.html.
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7. Parmy Olson, “Image-Recognition Technology May Not Be as Secure as We Think.” Wall Street Journal, June 4, 2019. https://www.wsj.com/articles/image-recognition-technology-may-not-be-as-secure-as-we-think-11559700300.
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8. Angela Chen, “Inmates in Finland Are Training AI as Part of Prison Labor.” The Verge, March 28, 2019. https://www.theverge.com/2019/3/28/18285572/prison-labor-finland-artificial-intelligence-data-tagging-vainu.
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9. Based on a quote from Roger McNamee, one of the original funders of Facebook, on the problem with the libertarian tech tycoons funded by Peter Thiel, etc. Roger McNamee, “Roger McNamee: ‘It’s Bigger Than Facebook. This Is a Problem with the Entire Industry.’” Interview by Alex Hern, The Guardian, February 16, 2019. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/feb/16/roger-mcnamee-zucked-waking-up-to-the-facebook-catastrophe-interview.
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10. Gregg Maisel, Ken Kohl, and Deborah Curtis, “National Security.” US Department of Justice. Updated December 22, 2017. https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/criminal-division/national-security.
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11. FragranceAdvisors.com, “Top 5 Best Pheromone Colognes for Men in 2019.” https://www.fragranceadvisors.com/best-pheromone-cologne-men/.
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12. FBI, Investigative Programs: Critical Incident Response Group. Accessed July 19, 2019. https://www2.fbi.gov/hq/isd/cirg/ncavc.htm.
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13. Nick Lavars, “Robotic Leg Leans on Animal Evolution to Teach Itself to Walk.” New Atlas, March 12, 2019. https://newatlas.com/robotic-leg-teaches-walk/58817/.
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14. James Vincent, “Boston Dynamics’ Robots Are Preparing to Leave the Lab—But Is the World Ready?” The Verge, July 17, 2019. https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/17/20697540/boston-dynamics-robots-commercial-real-world-business-spot-on-sale.
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15. “burn-in,” Merriam-Webster.com. Accessed November 5, 2019. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/burn-in.
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16. Charlotte Jee, “Female Voice Assistants Fuel Damaging Gender Stereotypes, Says a UN Study.” MIT Technology Review, May 22, 2019. https://www.technologyreview.com/f/613569/female-voice-assist
ants-fuel-damaging-gender-stereotypes-says-un-study/.
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17. AI is an incredibly contested term, with at least 70 different definitions according to one study (Shane Legg and Marcus Hutter, “A Collection of Definitions of Intelligence,” IDSIA report, 2007. https://arxiv.org/pdf/0706.3639.pdf). It has come to encompass anything from a “narrow” or “weak” task of human intelligence being performed by a machine to one requiring “general” or even “super” intelligence. It is often expanded to include everything from “machine learning,” where a machine is trained to do the task, to approaches like “multi-agent systems” and artificial “neural networks” to create more expansive “deep learning,” where the machine operates in ways akin to the human brain, to “neuromorphic chips,” which allow individual chips to do massive calculations, enabling further supercomputing breakthroughs and pushing intelligence outward to individual systems or even sensors.
The US military has officially defined AI as “the ability of machines to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence—for example, recognizing patterns, learning from experience, drawing conclusions, making predictions, or taking action—whether digitally or as the smart software behind autonomous physical systems” (US Department of Defense, “Summary of the 2018 Department of Defense Artificial Intelligence Strategy,” available at https://media.defense.gov/2019/Feb/12/2002088963/-1/-1/1/SUMMARY-OF-DOD-AI-STRATEGY.PDF). For our general purposes, we use it in broad terms to mean the capability of a machine to imitate, match, or surpass an intelligent human behavior or task, with “intelligent” defined as able to function appropriately and with foresight in its environment.
For further background on the terming issues, see also Nils J. Nilsson, The Quest for Artificial Intelligence: A History of Ideas and Achievements (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2010), and Peter Stone et al., “Artificial Intelligence and Life in 2030.” One Hundred Year Study on Artificial Intelligence: Report of the 2015–2016 Study Panel, Stanford University, September 2016. http://ai100.stanford.edu/2016-report.