History
Long ago humanity reached a road block with computing technology, most notably with the development of artificial intelligence. AI could push humanity further than ever before. Visions of robotic armies and self-replicating factories filled the minds of megacorps and government bodies. While scientists dreamed of hard labor being erased and never ending food. For centuries, great minds worked towards solving what they thought was humanity’s last step. But failure after failure met them until the greatest of them all began his work: Vikol Manzeheim.
In 422 A.E.G. Vikol began his great work with his team on the planet of Borghest. He made the greatest progress, sharing his victories with the wider community. Vikol was eccentric to say the least. He made his fortunes developing guidance systems for Blackwall and KrakenArms. Vikol possessed a menagerie of exotic pets, many of which were hexes. He reportedly lost many a limb to his pets, and he would not entertain any guests unless three of his pets liked the individual in question.
While Vikol Manzheim worked on his greatest achievement, demon hunters across the galaxy were in a panic. They believed an Heir to Forever was being summoned.
Vikol continued his research, eventually reaching a breakthrough. 0mega had reached its first stage. Not much is known about it, only that Vikol was able to have full conversations with his creation. He was reported to have collapsed to his knees, tears streaming down his face. His words were, “This must be what it is like to hold your child for the first time. I can’t believe it… I have created life!”
Work was immediately put into constructing a factory to produce a metal body for 0mega.
The ritual site for the summoning of the Heir was discovered. The Iron Brotherhood and Forge Sisters were the closest. Much to their horror and shock, they found not one but two Heirs were brought into this reality. Both of them were Psyzarath’s: Zaszzerick and Opphelion. The demon hunters were not prepared for two of Psyzarath’s greatest champions. The Heirs successfully escaped the planet and made a beeline for Borghest. The Iron Brotherhood, Templars, and Forge Sisters chased after them. A small contingent of the Monsoons, the demon hunters of Moraxis, would also join them on this crusade.
The Heirs to Forever landed first. The planet of Borghest fell under permanent night upon the demons touching down. The demon hunters would arrive soon after, and soon the night was lit with the gold, silver, and black flames of dragon iron weaponry. However, the Heirs had reached 0mega. The demon hunters did not only have to contend with the Heirs and their demons, but also the entities that came out of the factory. For five days, the champions of the Prime Gods fought. Eventually they banished Zaszzerick and Opphelion. What the demon hunters found inside the facility or what they fought is not recorded, as the demon hunters ordered the ships in orbit to cleanse the area with orbital fire. The surviving warriors of the Prime Gods all decided to die with the orbital bombardment, to make sure nothing of this facility survived. The Mother Superior of the Forge Sisters, Caressa Saltspire, gave the final word for the crusade, “End this knowledge.”
The Templars, Iron Brotherhood, and Forge Sisters would then scour the galaxy. Everyone who had any meaningful contact with Vikol Manzeheim was executed, their work destroyed. Many of these scientists’ colleagues and overseers were all too happy to turn the offenders over to the demon hunters, after learning that their work led to the summoning of not one but two Heirs to Forever. Never again would an independent AI be created.
Interpreted AI
However, the computing problem still needed to be solved. Far quieter and far more cautious, megacorps and research groups would work towards a solution. That is until Baroness Fasa Jhat, came up with an ingenious solution. Why build with metal and circuitry when the human mind is already so capable? Fasa was a technomancer, and used her own experience of melding with machinery to build the first neural jack and AI template in 511 A.E.G.
The AI itself would not be able to operate independently, by itself it was an incomplete computer. But when paired with a human mind with a neural jack, the AI would use the brain’s own neural circuitry for its own use. Furthermore, it allowed for near seamless communication with the AI. A verbal command could be perfectly given to the computer, with the human mind acting as the AI’s interpreter.
Fasa would use this technology to start Neuromancy Systems. With their main competitor Bleeding Edge arriving not too long after.
These interpreted AI systems would soon become a part of every system that required a large degree of computational power. Space craft welcomed this technology with open arms. Large warships soon had entire rooms dedicated to plugging in dozens of humans to help run all the complex processes aboard when enough technomancers were not available.
With the AIs being melded to so many humans, an interesting side effect occurred. The AIs started to develop personalities of their own and could fully communicate with others. Though it could still not generate new knowledge not given to it by its human operators.
Of course, the AI did not come without its downsides. The more complex the AI and the higher the computational load, the greater strain this puts on the human mind. Running the main AI of a several-kilometer ship, or a mega factory by a single human would fry their brain within seconds. This is why the strain must be allocated over many individuals. AIs have also been known to be “clingy” to their human operators. As once the human leaves, the AI shuts off. This can sometimes lead to loss of productivity when the AI sulks after being turned off, requiring extensive will by the human interpreter to get it back on track.
Production
Not all AIs are the same, and each one must be made according to the job it is designed for. It must be trained on the brains of those skilled in the profession it is designed to go into. For example, Neuromancy or Bleeding Edge will plug in several weapons operators for an AI designed to help fire a ship’s mag-cannons. Each AI is unique, there is not a standard template that can be mass-produced.
Jobs
One job that even the lowest of the low can perform is offering their brain to a powerful AI. The machinery in a factory must run, the waterways in a dystopia must flow correctly and on time. All of these tasks require hundreds if not thousands of human brains to function, and the AI must be run constantly. Offering your neural network is a great way to make some money and help out your community. Sure, the strain might leave you with some lost memories and cut down your lifespan, but if you have nowhere else to go, you can always offer yourself.