As long as we've been self-aware, we've desired companionship. And yet, we are not enough for one another; we hunger for something more - something that folklore, imaginary friends, and now technology have attempted to satisfy. Today, we stand at a crossroads beyond which is a future full of artificial lives. What kinds of minds will we create for ourselves? And what kind of future will those minds make for us?

Links

• "The Measure of a Man," Season 2, Episode 9 of Star Trek: The Next Generation
• Her
• "Be Right Back," Season 2, Episode 1 of Black Mirror
• THX 1138
• The confession scene in THX 1138
• "When her best friend died, she rebuilt him using artificial intelligence."
• The tablets on Star Trek: The Next Generation were called PADDs
• ...and there were a lot of them

Music

All music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.

• MD by r beny
• But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton, by Chris Zabriskie
• Cities Sleep Like Seeds by r beny
• The Sea's Sullen Green by r beny
• Empty Grinds by r beny
• Glisten by r beny

Credits

Design Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.

You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.

Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

---

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.