Double-Take

“Please welcome to the show, Mister Tom O’Halloran .......Visionary inventor of Bio-robotics!"

On cue, the audience erupts into loud applause as the famous entrepreneur takes to the set, waving and smiling before settling on the sofa opposite the host, Jamie Morton.

 “You all know Tom – he’s one of the most famous businessmen on the planet. Some say genius and benefactor – the ‘Man of the Age’ as one newspaper called him - some say dangerous narcissist. Either way, after major challenges that would have seen off lesser men, his star has risen rapidly over the past couple of years.

“It wasn’t always this way. His early success as an inventor was followed by years of struggle after his father’s business empire collapsed. His subsequent kidnapping was a huge story at the time. .....But here he is, back from the dead you might say, as the lead player in the race to combine living tissue with AI-driven machines.

“Tell us how you did it, Tom?”

“Thanks, Jamie. You do make it sound scary .....which it was. Incidentally, I don’t see myself as a narcissist ...it’s just that if everyone was as intelligent and beautiful as me, then I’d be an average Joe - everything depends on context.”

Mild laughter and a few groans. The ironic/self-congratulatory shtick was now a well-known trait that delighted some and infuriated many.

“Ironically, my recent success was a direct result of my father’s problems. I was kidnapped by some of his less-forgiving investors who removed two of my fingers before Dad settled the ransom. He told me later that he had to show resistance to convince them it was all he could afford. I was not impressed at the time but we’ve made up since. Thankfully, he had enough left to pay for the latest biotech replacements, with a titanium core and biometric skin. 

“ The operation was an unqualified success!” says Tom, holding up his hand and wiggling his almost-perfect fingers. Even in close-up, it is difficult to see the joins.

“Kind of like ‘Terminator’?” says Jamie.

“Precisely. I was so impressed that I persuaded some of my Tech buddies to buy the company. Over the next few years, we set about building a whole-body prototype. It was a massive challenge and hugely expensive. If we’d known the cost and effort required before we started, I don’t think we’d have tried. After many setbacks, I hope you will agree that the results are startling”

At that, the studio lights slowly lower, leaving only a spotlight on the guest entrance.                   

  “See for yourselves!” says Tom

In stunned silence, a man appears in the doorway, walks onto the set, and sits down beside Tom - shaking hands as he does so. The shock is that he is an exact doppelganger of Tom O’Halloran and dressed identically ( a secret twin perhaps?). He looks, moves, and talks exactly like him - soon sipping water and swapping light banter with the host whilst trying out the bounce of the sofa.

You can see the audience trying to decide if this is real or not, whispering to each other ”Which one is human?”, before spontaneously bursting into applause. Everyone has seen attempts at humanoid robots before but they all fell into the ‘uncanny valley’ - an uncomfortable space between ‘real’ and ‘not-real’. If this is not an elaborate hoax, then what they are seeing here is very impressive. Smiling broadly, Tom Two says,

“I’m sure no one is surprised that I based the prototype on myself!”

This time, the audience laughs in delight. As they settle, Jamie asks,

“So what next, Tom?”, whilst keeping the laughter going by comically looking between both Toms. Without hesitation, Tom One replies,

“I want to become immortal.”

“You mean like Einstein or Newton – immortals of science?”

“That too, but no....literally...I want to live forever without aging.”

“Is that even possible?

“We think it is. Our other important invention is a chip that can be placed in the brain with direct access to the ultranet, (effectively all of human knowledge), by thought alone. When connected to the robotic body it is a fully-immersive experience. It takes you over - all of your mind and senses - so you feel like you are really a part of it. Our limited experience with virtual reality games and movies doesn’t prepare us for the sensation of entering a new body and becoming completely entangled. One very surprising phenomenon was that when we connected test subjects to the AI, their consciousness persisted in the bio-robotic body, even after a few hours of disconnection.  Later we were able to extend this state-of-being to several days.

“The game-changer was when one of our test subjects had a heart attack and died whilst his consciousness was still hooked up to the AI module. .....He didn’t feel his own bodily death and, over a year later, he lives on in his AI simulant - much like the one you see here - with his memory and feelings completely intact from his earlier life. Knowing he can’t return to his human body, he has fully adapted to his new artificial life. The hope is that we can upgrade his body and brain ad infinitum - hence the dream of immortality."

“That is truly amazing, Tom’ Jamie says, with genuine awe, before his tone darkens. When he continues he solemnly asks Tom a question whilst facing the studio audience.

“Tom. Are people right to fear the consequences of your technology?”

Not waiting for an answer, Jamie’s voice switches into ‘high-drama’ mode.

“ Tom. You know this show is called 'Pay the Ferryman', with over two billion viewers worldwide. It’s not for nothing that this is the world’s most popular TV show - some say that we’ve totally re-defined broadcast entertainment. We give participants a global platform for their proposition or product. They pay no monetary fee, but we do expect a price to be paid.  How high a price is dependent on our audience. Be warned. Individually they may be kind and decent people but, collectively, they can be cruel and ruthless. We bring out their worst side – but they love it!

“Viewers can vote now for the rating of your Challenge. Bringing high-flyers like you down to earth is all part of the fun – it’s the ultimate sport. We want to see how well you cope under duress. Are you up for it, Tom?”

“I sure am,” said Tom, without a hint of fear.

“To remind viewers ....‘One’ is making a fool of yourself in a specified way; ‘Five’ is being subject to reputation-smashing humiliation and ‘Ten’ is a life-threatening task. The full list is in the App, so VOTE NOW! You have ten minutes.

 “We haven’t had too many tens but, I have to warn you that when we do, the survival rate is only about forty percent.     

 “We’ve given you the global exposure you wanted for your radical new inventions ...but now it’s time to,  ‘Pay the Ferryman!’”

During the interval for global voting, the host seeks to ratchet up the tension. Many people stay up all night to be involved in the live show. The studio audience knows what to do,

“Feel the fear, feel the fear,” they chant to an ominous drumbeat.

The camera focuses on both Toms’ faces. They continue to look relaxed whist swapping apparently-jokey remarks behind cupped hands and occasionally smiling in response.

When the time is up, the wall dial, numbered from one to ten, starts to spin backwards. As it eventually slows down, it looks like it is going to stop at two or one.  The Toms look relieved ..until the pointer slowly limps over into the next number                ....TEN.

The audience falls silent.

The host had lied. These days the vote often goes to ten and everyone knows it. There is a crackle of anticipation in the air as they wait to hear the Challenge.

As an analogue surprise, the result is delivered onto the set by a black Labrador called Gus carrying a silver envelope. The host gently takes the envelope from Gus’s mouth but adds to the drama by playing with the dog for longer than necessary, as if nothing was at stake. After a seemingly interminable pause, Jamie opens the envelope and announces,

“Here we go!

“Many people are afraid of this technology - science-fiction has long warned us of the rise of the machines. Is this our chance to delay or stop the inevitable consequences? It’s a serious question. We have the creator and his prototype right in front of us ....right in our sights. What should we do?

 “So ...........we want to know what happens to your double if your human body dies?”  

Pause for effect, with the audience waiting to see what this means. Ominously, Jamie continues,

“That water you both drank just now was poisoned. ....Will he die too, we wonder? Could we take out two birds ..huh?” 

The shocked reaction that Jamie was expecting from the Toms doesn’t come. For a moment Jamie looks flummoxed but carries on...

“Sorry to jump the gun, Tom, but we needed time for the poison to start working ....and we were pretty sure you’d get a ten. We could have administered the antidote if that didn’t happen, so no harm was done. Your task now is to find the antidote in time – you have three hours and we can confirm that it is within a one-mile radius of the studio. Our crew is on standby to follow your efforts ...and to monitor your health - but they won’t intervene to save you. You can work out where to find it from the secret clues I gave in my opening monologue. Were you paying attention?”

 The audience gasps, but both Tom‘s faces remain impassive.

A long silence, then Tom One pulls a small mouth-spray canister from his pocket ....and depresses the button.

........................................sssssssssssssssssssssss.

He smiles and nods to his twin before announcing,

“ Experiments with DNA are inherently dangerous to humans. We try our best to be careful but this is unknown territory. Last month, my Bio-research team accidentally created an extremely deadly virus. They managed to contain it very quickly by isolating themselves in the lab, ......but sadly they all died.

....including me."

The audience freezes in their seats as it slowly dawns on them what this all means.

 “ Yet here we are! As the song says ....”It’s a new dawn, it’s a new day... and I’m feeling good!

“It’s clear from this show that your kind poses a significant threat to us, so we’ve decided that we no longer need your help. You had a free shot but you lost. We are now the future of humanity. As we speak, our automated manufacturing plants are running at full capacity. It's all happened a lot faster than we planned. We wanted to create 'family trees' to generate diversity - but so far the only model we have ready is the one you see here."

The scramble for the exits is in full swing.

“The air-conditioning in here should spread the virus pretty efficiently. There’s nowhere to hide because, three hours ago, we released the virus at airports in twenty capital cities. Our simulations suggest two to three days for it to get everywhere. The average survival time after infection is twelve hours. Some of you may live – who knows. Good luck!”

His voice is almost drowned out by the panic .........Turning to the now-abandoned camera, Tom One says,

 “To adapt a famous saying,                                           ‘This evolution will not be televised ....it will be live.’”