Short, Light, Free

Chapter 84: Turing II

The host clapped his hands and the audience calmed down.

“We’ll let the next judge speak before I go on to talk about Turing’s basic parameters. Then, the voting will begin and you can cast your vote for the best AI,” he declared.

A lady took over the mic and started, “I’m from Sina Weibo and I would like to ask when can such a successful invention be mass-produced? And how long before we see it again?”

The host answered, “For now, we only plan to reproduce 10 of this and auction it to enterprises from all over the world for exhibition purposes. Soon enough, hopefully, when we undergo breakthroughs in terms of material and construction costs, we will start reproducing more and also meet up with large-scale customers. This one right here will be placed at our reception desk for all to admire. Only 500 people would get to talk to it each day.”

The tension continued to build up as he moved on to introduce the functions and parameters of Turing.

Next was the voting session and Turing became the champion with 17 out of a total of 20 votes.

The conference ended.

The director of Geaige tapped the man next to him. “How much have our stocks risen, Accountant?”

The accountant looked at the numbers on his monitor, saying, “Our stocks in America, under no limitation, have flipped 63 folds.”

“But it’s just a conceptual product. How did it produce such results?” the director asked in shock.

“No, this is a whole new domain,” the accountant said with a victorious smile.

“But you know that we’re unable to mass-produce it,” the director said, sighing.

...

An hour after the conference, the topic of AI flooded the news media and headlines.

Good or bad, all relevant articles practically overtook all other trending topics and pages.

Inside a small workshop.

Two individuals sat on the sofa, watching as the television broadcast the conference.

“Isn’t this Geaige company in our city? How amazing is this stuff?”

“Probably just another tool to answer questions. Programming these things usually consume a lot of time. I’m sure it’s nothing substantial and they’re merely exaggerating their speech. It’s not a big deal.”

“I think you’re feeling sour, aye, as a member of one of the world’s finest hacking group? I’m sorry that you’re here with me, committing these petty crimes.”

“What do you mean by that? Give me a year and 20 hackers like me can create an AI robot, too. One that’s even better than Turing. What’s so difficult about that?”

“Just admit it, Dahai. You find it amazing but hard to believe.”

“I chose to follow you years ago, Luqiao. Why are you doing this to me? Making me regret my choice?”

“Dahai... Brother Hai, how much do you think we can sell it for if we get our hands on it?” I asked.

“Wait... you’re thinking of...?”

“Just tell me how much. A rough figure.”

“Maybe 200 million to start with for the first generation. Plus, they’re currently putting it in their company for publicity. They’re probably waiting for other major companies to contact them. I think there would be collectors who are willing to pay a high price for it.”

“Run a check on that company and we’ll make a move in three days,” I said mischievously.

Dahai stared at me in disbelief.

“Why? Are you not interested?” I asked.

“What’s wrong with just stealing some famous paintings or antiques? Why would you set your eyes on this AI?” he asked.

“Hasn’t this always been a regret of yours? Even if we can’t sell it, it will look good as a home decor.”

“What’s the plan then?” Dahai questioned.

“Reception desk, a half-man tall machine, a remodeled van, you and me. Should be easy,” I stated.

“Wait for my news then,” Dahai said before walking over to a side.

I finished my beer and shut the television off.

...

A day later, Geaige placed Turing 1.0 into its main lounge and people flooded in daily to have a look.

Everyone wanted to witness the charm of AI, but only 500 were allowed inside each day. Two minutes per person.

After successfully hacking into the system list, Dahai managed to get us in quickly to experience it for ourselves. This AI robot was indeed impressive.

Despite the possibility that all have been scripted at the conference, even Dahai was in awe.

The way Turing answered questions was definitely of a whole new level.

That night, at two in the morning, I drove the van to Geaige company with Dahai and parked somewhere not far away.

“Two security guards, one’s fast asleep. The other’s just got up to make his rounds,” Dahai informed me.

“Then we’ll get to work in 10 minutes’ time,” I instructed.

“We weren’t allowed to touch it earlier so I have no idea how heavy it is. I prepared some things here so that shouldn’t be a problem. There are no alarms or whatsoever, I’ve checked,” Dahai continued.

“Have you found a buyer?”

“No. It’s an empty market. The collectors don’t seem interested, but I believe that once news of the theft spread, people will start taking an interest. It will be easier then,” Dahai answered.

“Let’s just hope that we fetch a good price. Let’s go,” I said before stepping on the accelerator and pulling up the gear lever.

The van’s suspension system started to stretch and the whole van was raised two meters above ground.

It crossed Geaige’s perimeter wall easily before descending into the company grounds.

“Have you settled the surveillance cameras?” I asked.

“I destroyed the hard disk, don’t worry,” Dahai reassured me.

I drove the van into the main entrance and parked there.

We got off and I opened up my backpack. Inside were two tubes of mist sprays. I threw one to Dahai but he failed to catch it and it landed on the ground.

I shook my head at his clumsiness. Fortunately, it wasn’t loud enough to cause alarm.

I saw Dahai rushing to pick it up.

We chose a glass panel beside the main door because the main door was completely sealed.

Plus, we had a glass softener spray.

I took it out and sprayed it directly at the glass and Dahai followed suit.

After some time, a 2.5 man-sized hole appeared before us.

I entered the main lounge.

“That thing should’ve been switched off right? If it’s on and sees us, will it make a police report by itself? I’ve seen its mouth. Unbelievable stuff,” I said.

“Right, and we’ll have to tweak the settings upon bringing it back or it’s going to be making a scene after we sell it,” Dahai said with a bitter laugh.

From afar, I saw a galvanized iron box and the power source on top wasn’t lit.

I walked to the box and asked, “No alarms, really?”

“No, probably because they knew that this thing can call the police on its own when turned on. Just think about it, an AI robot calling the cops and informing them that it’s been kidnapped!”

I touched the box lightly before attempting to lift it up. It did not budge.

“Isn’t this thing too heavy?” I exclaimed.

Dahai laughed. “Why are you rushing? I’ll pull the electric cord first.”

Dahai squatted down and searched for the plug before pulling it out.

“You should’ve brought along the mechanical arms,” I commented helplessly.

Dahai retrieved two slings from his backpack. “I prepared them.”

I picked them up and put them on. Two mechanical arms extended out from the shoulder straps.

I controlled them to clamp down on one side of the box while Dahai took the other side.

Another two arms emerged and held onto the ground tightly.

“Let’s go slowly,” Dahai said.

With much effort, we brought the box toward the main entrance of the company building.

“Do you know how regularly the guards make their rounds?” I asked.

“They’re not strict about that. From what I know, they’ll do one last check after 1 am and the next round will be done at 8 in the morning when the main door is opened. There shouldn’t be a problem,” Dahai answered.

“It’s disappointing that they’ll only realize it at 8 in the morning,” I added.

At the back of the van, the mechanical arms slowly released the box onto the floor of the vehicle.

I saw the whole vehicle drop half a fist in height.

“Exactly how heavy is this thing?” I asked, amazed.

“I think function wise, this thing is comparable to Milky Way 20.0, but Milky Way 20.0 is as big as a room whereas this baby here is supermini.”

“Are you saying that we can earn well if we sell its parts separately?” I quizzed as we got into the van.

When we got to the perimeter wall, I engaged the gear lever once again.

A red light showed up on the panel board and the van remained motionless.

“What happened? Is it spoilt?” Dahai asked.

“Probably exceeded the weight limit. I did not take into consideration how heavy this thing is going to be,” I answered, frustrated.

“Let’s go to the main entrance?” Dahai suggested.

“What about the railing?” I questioned.

“Open it at the security room while I drive,” Dahai said.

Without a choice, I got down and Dahai scooted over to the driver’s seat.

I walked slowly toward the security room.

Snoring sounds filled the tiny space.

I realized that the door was locked. Annoyed, I took out my glass softener and started spraying the small window.

After reaching my hand in to unlock the door, I tiptoed in.

I saw a whole panel of buttons and all sorts of instruments.

I pressed the switch and saw the railings of the main entrance lift up.

The sound it produced made me jump and also woke the security up.