In this blog post, we’ll examine the relationship between artificial intelligence and humanity as portrayed in the movie “The Matrix” and consider whether a future in which AI dominates humans is realistically possible.
The movie ‘The Matrix’ gained explosive popularity worldwide by presenting the theme that the lives we live are merely simulations created by computer programs, using spectacular visual effects and a solid narrative. The film posits that what we perceive as “real” and “actual” is nothing more than electronic signals interpreted by the brain, and that this world is a dream world—a virtual reality (the Matrix)—created by a computer manipulating our brains. The Matrix depicted in the film is the result of a war between artificial intelligence—a product of science and technology—and humanity. Artificial intelligence, developed by humans for convenience, ends up dominating humanity in the future. The backdrop of the film is that the artificial intelligence of the future uses humans as an energy source to prolong its own existence, implanting a program called “The Matrix” into human brain cells to make them experience virtual reality. One of the most horrifying scenes in the film showed humans being “cultivated” in countless artificial wombs, with wires plugged into the backs of their necks. The film argues that this horrific scene could very well become our future.
Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to technology that implements human capabilities—such as learning, reasoning, perception, and natural language understanding—through computer programs. In other words, it enables computers to mimic human intelligent behavior. In today’s world, there are very active efforts to incorporate AI elements into various fields of technology to solve problems in those areas; as such, AI is indispensable for future scientific and technological advancement. In particular, AI technology is an essential element in robotics. Rather than leaving robot control solely to humans, automation that allows robots to make their own judgments and act independently will yield better results in terms of work efficiency and cost. In fact, academic researchers in the fields of computer science and control systems are constantly studying this very topic.
Nevertheless, some warn of the dangers of the unchecked development of artificial intelligence, while others are actively advocating for certain restrictions on its advancement. Films such as ‘The Matrix’ and ‘The Terminator’ are prime examples of this. As mentioned earlier, ‘The Matrix’ warned that an era might come in which AI dominates humans, while ‘The Terminator’ depicted a terrifying future in which intelligent machines rebel against humans and wage war against them. Such movies and novels have sparked curiosity among people about whether AI could indeed break free from human control and harm humanity. Of course, while these are science fiction films based on fictional scenarios, their compelling arguments are backed by solid theoretical foundations, instilling in viewers a sense of wonder—“That could really happen!”—along with a slight fear of artificial intelligence.
However, I believe there is absolutely no chance that such a future will come to pass. Since artificial intelligence will not harm us, scientists should redouble their efforts in AI research. My reasoning is as follows:
First, the two films mentioned earlier do not provide sufficient grounds for depicting such a bleak future. Of course, the concept of virtual reality in ‘The Matrix’ is a topic that has already been the subject of extensive philosophical discussion and reflection. Questions such as whether the acts we perform right now—walking, eating, and speaking—are actually happening, or whether we truly understand them, are among the questions posed by “epistemology.” However, regardless of the philosophical implications, the outcome is not the result of a so-called “AI rebellion.” ‘The Matrix’ merely depicts the bleak future portrayed in the film without describing how that era evolved from the present. Because the concept of virtual reality feels both complex and novel, viewers tend to focus on it so intently that they accept—without question—the notion that artificial intelligence is the cause. Similarly, the movie ‘Terminator’ merely states that the cause of the future war between machines and humans is an “AI rebellion,” but it does not explain the detailed process—why the AI harbored hostility toward humans or what went wrong to trigger the war.
Furthermore, many people hold the mistaken belief that “artificial intelligence = robots.” There are movies that claim humans will be overrun by future robots once artificial intelligence is developed. This notion stems from the misconception that artificial intelligence is limited to robots. As mentioned earlier, artificial intelligence is merely a technology essential to robotics; it does not equate to robots. In fact, artificial intelligence can be used to commercialize automatic translation systems, such as natural language processing, or to develop expert systems for tasks like assessing mineral reserves, measuring the structures of chemical compounds, and processing insurance claims for damages. It can also be utilized in various ways, such as providing voice recognition, character recognition, and speech synthesis for people with physical disabilities, or by mimicking the human brain to create neural network structures composed of networks of numerous simple processors. The robots that people fear correspond specifically to the “neural networks” subfield within the diverse subfields of artificial intelligence, which is a very narrow scope.
One might then ask: even if it is a very narrow scope, won’t artificial intelligence in the form of “neural networks”—which mimic the human brain—eventually acquire superior intelligence and break free from human control? In response, we need to focus on the word “mimic.” Let’s consider the example of young children learning to speak. The syllabic sounds (babbling) that a child first produces are similar among all children worldwide. These sounds gradually change to resemble the child’s native language due to linguistic stimulation from parents or acquaintances who speak that language. However, does this linguistic stimulation stop just because the child begins to produce sounds similar to the native language? No. The child remains continuously exposed to the linguistic environment, and parents guide the child’s language development in the direction they desire. The language of a child raised by parents who use abusive language is clearly different from that of a child raised in a linguistic environment conducive to emotional development. What this example illustrates is that the structure of a robot’s neural network varies depending on how we regulate it. Just because a robot’s neural network begins to function similarly to our brains doesn’t mean we should cut off all support, does it? We will continuously expose robots to an information environment and guide their neural networks in the direction humans desire.
So far, I’ve presented my own reasoning regarding whether the despairing future caused by artificial intelligence—as depicted in the movie ‘The Matrix’—is actually plausible. As such, I believe that artificial intelligence dominating humans is, quite literally, something that only happens in movies; it’s impossible in reality. Science fiction movies often draw on imagination to depict dystopian futures like this, simply because films with such themes tend to be box-office hits. And I, too, enjoy these kinds of movies. I’m amazed by the imagination of the production team behind them and marvel at the visual technology used to bring them to life, while also enjoying pondering whether such events could ever actually happen. In fact, if you give these movies just a little thought, you might conclude that they don’t make sense. No matter how much I think about it, if such a scenario were realistic, the movie wouldn’t be made for entertainment—it would be a warning meant to raise awareness. Therefore, there’s no need to take the futures depicted in these movies at face value. We should place our hopes in the positive effects of artificial intelligence—which holds limitless potential for development and can bring us various benefits—and scientists should redouble their efforts in AI development.
