Fictional artificial intelligence

This is a sub-article of Artificial intelligence (AI), describing the different futuristic portrayals of fictional artificial intelligence.

Overthrowing powers
In science fiction AI is commonly portrayed as an upcoming power trying to overthrow human authority as in HAL 9000, Skynet, Colossus: The Forbin Project, and The Matrix.

A notable exception is Mike in Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress: a supercomputer that becomes aware and aids humans in a local revolution to overthrow the authority of other humans. A careful reading of Arthur C. Clarke's version of 2001 suggests that the HAL 9000 found himself/itself in a similar position of divided loyalties. On one hand, HAL needed to take care of the astronauts, on the other the humans who created HAL entrusted him with a secret to be withheld from the astronauts.

In works such as the Japanese manga Ghost in the Shell, the existence of intelligent machines questions the definition of life as organisms rather than a broader category of autonomous entities, establishing a notional concept of systemic intelligence.

AI controlled human society
Golem XIV is an example of highly advanced supercomputer in Stanisław Lem's science-fiction novel Golem XIV. Golem XIV was a military artificial intelligence computer, which was originally invented to lead wars and to win them. Golem stops cooperating with humans on military level, because he considered wars and violence as illogical. His self-developing artificial intelligence refused to execute his primary task. Machine becomes a philosopher greater than any other born on Earth. Golem's intelligence advanced to a lot higher level than human intelligence which lead to conversation and information exchange problems.

Authors Ian M. Banks and Neal Asher have created future worlds, where human society is ruled by benevolent strong AI. In Banks' work, the Culture is a Galactic civilization composed of humans, intelligent robotic drones, and AI Minds of vastly superior intellect. Asher proposes a similar, if less ambitious, future society in his Polity. In each universe, the common feature is that human society voluntarily turned control over to the AIs. Culture Minds and Polity AIs are portrayed as efficient, unbiased and (usually)incorruptable.

Banned AI civilisations
Author Frank Herbert explored the idea of a time when mankind might ban clever machines entirely. His Dune series makes mention of a rebellion called the Butlerian Jihad in which mankind defeats the smart machines of the future and then imposes a death penalty against any who would again create thinking machines. Often quoted from the fictional Orange Catholic Bible, "Thou shalt not make a machine in the likeness of a human mind." A similar idea is also explored in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, where artificial intelligence research is illegal after the Cylons, a species of intelligent machines created by man, had rebelled against their masters and tried to destroy them. The character Dr. Gaius Baltar is known for his controversial view that the ban on research in this area is outmoded and should be lifted.

Humanoid service robots
Service humanoids like C-3PO, Lt. Commander Data operations officer and second officer of the Starship Enterprise in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Marvin, KITT from Knight Rider, the Bicentennial Man, the Mechas in A.I. and Sonny in I, Robot.

Humanoid enemy robots
Artificial intelligence plays a major role in How to Make a Monster, where the fictional character Sol uses his sophisticated AI for the game's monster, which comes to life after the lightning strike.