This loop has been active for decades, with many tech pioneers citing classic sci-fi as inspiration.
For example, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has acknowledged that the Alexa voice assistant was inspired by the conversational computer in Star Trek. Alexa, in turn, was adapted for an in-space demonstration of an experimental AI agent called Callisto during NASA’s Artemis 1 mission in 2022.
One of the stories in Kaster’s anthology, Ocasta by Daniel H. Wilson, mirrors real-world developments.
The novella features an AI-based algorithm searching for extraterrestrial life. In reality there are AI-driven data analysis tools being developed by the University of Washington’s DiRAC Institute for the Vera C. Rubin Observatory.
Although DiRAC’s researchers aren’t specifically hunting for aliens, they are searching for other exotic phenomena like dark matter, dark energy, and active asteroids.
Beyond AI: New Frontiers in Science Fiction
While AI is a significant theme in modern science fiction, it is not the only technological frontier inspiring new tales.
