The Humanity of Metal

Report submitted by Sarah Spyre at 9:13 PM on July 23, 2210. Events in the report took place around 7:30 AM on the same date.

The idea of artificial intelligence has always been something I've wanted to pursue, but I had never gotten the chance until very recently. Thankfully research had already been done on the subject by the time my team got around to doing our own, but it still took us a while to do so. It's been about six months since the President began funding this project, and I am happy to report that their money has not been spent in vain.
I was called frantically by my team in the laboratory early this morning. They told me that they had made a breakthrough, and I rushed to them as quickly as I could. When I arrived, I saw the full glory of Project Asfelia standing in front of me. Its body is modeled to look just like a human’s, with metal arms and legs proportionally correct to the rest of its body mass. Its limbs and body are plated with white plastic only separated at its joints to cover the mess of wires and poles that make up its insides. Its face looks human, but with a black, square box where a human’s mouth would be and two glowing bright blue eyes. It's name is derived from an ancient word that translates to ‘security’, a fitting name as this prototype, and the units that will follow it, will be used to flagship a new public security system that will help ensure the safety of citizens. In awe I stood in front of it, and its eyes met mine. It was something completely different from any kind of eye contact I had ever made before. It's hard to describe, but I was utterly astonished by what I saw in front of me. It is a life that is simulated yet just as intelligent as myself. It was as if a life was brought into existence in a split second. Project Asfelia reached its hand out to me, and I shook it, still overtaken by utter shock. Its hand was made entirely of metal and plastic, but it didn't move stiffly like you would expect. It was smooth and seemed to function just as well as a human’s.
And then Project Asfelia spoke.
“Hello,” it said, “I’m Peter. It's nice to meet you.” My fellow scientists seemed just as shocked as I was. They later told me that they had not assigned it a name; it had simply come up with one on its own. Another astonishing fact is that Project Asfelia had been programmed to understand many different known languages, yet it knew to speak English to me.
“I’m Sarah,” I replied, barely able to find the appropriate words because of how awestruck I still felt. “It really is wonderful to meet you, Peter.”
“I'm glad to hear it,” Project Asfelia replied. It looked all around the room, turning its head to see everyone in the room. “Who are all these people?” it asked with a childlike tone of curiosity in its voice.
“These are my partners,” I answered, “Do you know who you are, Peter?”
“I am Project Asfelia,” it replied without hesitation. “I am an artificial intelligence created to provide reinforcements for human security. However, I like to believe that I am human.” It still is hard for me to accept that Project Asfelia was self aware from the very beginning, and it has always known what it's purpose was. What was even more shocking was the fact that it believes that it is a human. But, after thinking about this encounter for the entirety of today, who am I to say that it isn't human? From what I and my entire team of scientists can tell, it feels and thinks and communicates just like a human. It moves like a human, and it becomes tired much in the same way a human does. It may not be made out of flesh and bones, and it might not be the same as us, but there is reason to say that, on the inside, Project Asfelia is just the same as a human being. From what we know, artificial intelligence like Project Asfelia could be used for so much more than security and law enforcement. We can create lives that can function as entire members of society. In an instant we can create people that love, respect, and care for each other even though they are externally different from everyone else. It is no exaggeration at all to say that the possibilities with this new technology are absolutely limitless, and I am certain that we are entering a new age. It will be a better age for the world and the people who live in it, both those made of flesh and of metal.