Artificial Wisdom
A Novel
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4.4 • 16 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
In this propulsive near-future thriller, a journalist uncovers a plot that will upend the order of our world, involving a mysterious murder, a global political battle between a human politician and an AI, and the fight for survival in a climate-ravaged landscape.
In 2050, investigative journalist Marcus Tully is still grieving the loss of his wife and unborn child in the deadly heatwave that struck the Persian Gulf ten years ago.
Now, the world is both burning and drowning, and the decision has been taken to elect a global leader to steer humanity through the worsening climate apocalypse. The final two candidates are ex-US president Lockwood, and Solomon, an Artificial Intelligence.
As election day races closer, Tully begins to unravel a conspiracy that goes to the highest level. Then Solomon’s creator is murdered, and Tully is pulled in to find the culprit.
As the two investigations intertwine in ways he could never have imagined and the world hurtles ever closer to the brink, Tully must find the truth, convince the world to face it and make impossible choices to secure the future of the species.
But will humanity ultimately choose salvation over freedom, whatever the cost?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Weaver's chilling debut imagines a climate-ravaged near future where the fortunate live on floating islands and a new world leader is about to be elected. Striving to accurately inform the voters of 2050 is influential journalist Marcus Tully, who works with a team of assistants in London, which, like all formerly great capitals, has been reduced to a crime-filled cesspool seared by soaring temperatures. Lately, Tully has been covering the race between former U.S. president Lawrence Lockwood and Solomon, an AI who claims to possess the sort of cold, rational leadership style that humanity needs to survive the climate crisis. The election is thrown into turmoil when master scientist Martha Chandra, who invented Solomon, is killed by a rare and complex poison. The death leaves Tully with the confounding question of which candidate may have been behind the murder, and what effect it could have on the election. Originally self-published in 2024, this rip-roaring tale moves with rattling momentum and exhibits Weaver's knack for worldbuilding. His concerns about AI feel measured and well-informed, setting this apart from the histrionics of lesser techno-thrillers. Readers will eagerly await the sequel.
