Exploring AI in Science Fiction: A Bookworm's Top Picks

Dear friends,

I am a bookworm and enjoy all kind of books. As long as they are well written.

Especially I like science-fiction. I love Dune, the Foundation Trilogy or Roadside Picnic. The classics…

But today I want to show you a selection of my favourite SciFi books that are all about AI.

Neuromancer

William Gibson, 1984

Whoever is seriously into Sci-Fi cannot get around William Gibson. Especially not around Neuromancer.

Neuromancer jumps straight into a complex and detailed cyberpunk world. This book heavily inspired the film The Matrix and is still ahead of it’s time.

It’s a pretty difficult read because it is loaded with invented tech-words and jumps between the real world and the cyberspace. Gibsons imagination goes above my own and I have difficulties to visualise everything what he is talking about. I had to read it three times to grasp at least a bit of what is happening.

I Robot

Isaac Asimov, 1950

A good old classic. Whoever is into AI, robots or Scifi cannot get around this collection of short stories. Here Asimov sets up the Three Laws of Robotics. It’s also a pretty funny read.

The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress

Robert A. Heinlein, 1966

Heinlein books are always fun to read. You can feel the freedom of the 70s. They don’t carry the weight of William Gibsons universe and are not as technically executed like the stories from Asimov.

Still Heinlein tells a great story about a colony on the moon, a revolution and about a super intelligent computer who is somehow involved as well. A good light read — but still a golden classic.

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Philip K. Dick, 1968

Whoever likes Blade Runner has to read this book. Great read, full of more information about the dystopian world in which Blade Runner is set. Of course the book came first — then they made the movie. A must read, even if you are not into all the AI stuff.

Meta Game

Sam Landstrom, 2009

It’s like Orson Wells Brave New World with more AI and VR. Maybe it won’t win a price for best written book, but it is packed with futuristic ideas and scenarios. A quick read which I recommend for the content and inspiration.

2001 A Space Odyssey

Arthur C. Clarke, 1968

Who does not know the movie Space Odyssey 2001 by Stanley Kubrick? In this case neither the movie or the book was first. Arthur C. Clarke developed the story together with Stanley Kubrick. Clarke then finished it as a novel and Kubrick as a movie.

I was surprised how much extra information the book gave me to understand what was happening in the movie. I really recommend it.

There actually is a second and a third book: 2010 Odyssey II and 2061 Odyssee III. I also read the second one and think it‘s worth a read. The third I did not read yet.

Also I recommend to dive into other books from those authors. Except Sam Landstrom, they are all SciFi legends and have a lot of amazing worlds to offer.

Much love,
Marius

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