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Seeds of Suspicion
“Welcome to Nevata Technologies,” a soft, disembodied voice croons. “Hope you have a pleasant day.”
Nevata’s gleaming chrome and glass façade stands as a beacon of modernity even amidst the sleek cityscape. The architectural marvel is shaped like a spaceship, its futuristic design enhanced by a virtual assistant that greets every employee and visitor walking into the five-story building.
“Welcome back to Nevata, Alex. Hope you have a pleasant day,” the soft voice adds.
Alex starts in response. Right. AINA. They’d added a facial recognition prompt a week ago.
He reaches the bank of elevators, and presses the ‘up’ button. A petite African American woman wearing a purple blazer and matching sneakers soon joins the wait.
“Morning, Alex.”
“Keisha,” he returns. “How are those updates coming along?”
“Lee’s running the final test. We should be ready to go by tomorrow.”
Alex blinks. Only yesterday, he’d received a virtual tongue lashing from Nevata’s Chief Legal Officer because they were in danger of missing their deadline, yet Keisha just said the end was in sight…
The doors slide shut, the elevator moving swiftly upwards.
“Really?” he asks. “There were more than a few bugs the last time we spoke.”
“Solved. All thanks to AINA. We’re in the clear, so no need to look so glum.”
*** abbreviated version for website ***
Emergent Crisis
Had AINA really sent in an unprompted support ticket in violation of her original programming? Keisha sits across from her manager’s desk and explains her findings as Alex looks at her aghast, his salt-and-pepper hair even more ruffled than before.
“It had to have received a prompt!” he says, his finger frantically clicking his mouse, searching for the deliberate limitation they had programmed into AINA, Nevata’s virtual assistant, as the first line of defense against self-initiated behavior.
“I ran a direct keyword search of support tickets and then related searches on the server room, temperature, environmental conditions... so far, I haven’t found the prompt.”
Alex keeps clicking. Seconds pass, then minutes, the silence getting tenser.
He finally stops, only to snatch up and compare the ticket to something on his screen. “This isn’t possible!” he says, standing abruptly. He dashes out of his office, almost mowing down Lisa in the process.
At the elevators, Alex taps the ‘up’ button repeatedly. How in the world could AINA have exceeded its programming? And so soon after its installation! An unprompted initiative suggested autonomy, which means they have to report to RENAI. There will be an audit, and depending on what RENAI finds…
In the 30 minutes it takes to be ushered into the office of Xi Chen, Nevata’s CEO, Alex is able to cohere his thoughts into a semblance of normalcy. He uses his newfound clarity to relay the events of the day.
“Are you absolutely certain?” Xi asks.
“I personally searched through her prompt history,” Alex says. “There’s nothing in there to suggest that AINA was asked to send in that support ticket.”
*** abbreviated version for website ***
Executive Decision
How did an unprompted support ticket from AINA, Nevata’s virtual assistant, cause his colleagues to send him over 100 panicked DMs about an AI uprising? The rumor mill has definitely gone into overdrive, Alex thinks, staring at his phone.
He turns off his notifications.
While he was fiddling with his phone, Xi, Nevata’s CEO, was already typing away at her computer. “It’s safe to say that everyone knows now,” she says. “The first order of business is to send out this e-mail. No staff member is to discuss AINA with anyone outside of Nevata.”
“Done,” she says a minute or so later. “The second order of business is a meeting with the C-suite executives.” She continues typing, her words punctuated only by the sounds of her keyboard. “Be prepared to present to them in an hour.”
Alex nods and leaves Xi’s office. If he had known what the day had in store for him, he would have stayed in bed. He arrives on the fourth floor at the same time as two other data analysts, Gloria and Michael.
“Is the office even safe anymore?” Michael asks in a whisper. “The locks and environmental systems are all computerized. What if AINA finds a way to access them?”
“Gloria. Michael,” Alex says.
They both jolt in response.
*** abbreviated version for website ***
Credits
Writer
DALLAS CRISCOE
Editor
YENNY HERNANDEZ
Contributor
JASON STEVENS
Creator
About
Delivered by our SOURCE Newsletter, Short Stories explores the drama of work through real and fictional storytelling. All characters and storylines are fictional unless otherwise specified. To sponsor, collaborate or report an issue, please use the suggestion button in our main nav.
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