Year 2055
On a summer evening, Adam, a quiet teenager, sits with his friends at one of their homes, experimenting with a new AI and programming tool. The device can program and execute a project in minutes, then print it after connecting to a 3D printer. The teenagers are working on a drone the size of a fly, equipped with a camera that can fly and record for 12 hours without needing recharging.
Everyone is excited, suggesting targets for spying as entertainment... the neighborhood girls and women, houses and shops...
Adam doesn't like the idea and expresses his disapproval because it could be used to violate others' privacy. His friends mock him, and one says:
"You're living in ancient times!" (everyone laughs) "We're just having fun."
"You don't even have a girlfriend, not even a virtual one," he continues while working on the computer.
Adam: "I haven't met the girl I'll love yet."
Everyone bursts into laughter. One of them repeats mockingly, "Love...?" while laughing, and another snorts juice from his nose and mouth as he was drinking and laughing at the same time.
Adam's friend adds: "The first person we'll spy on with the fly drone is you. You seem like someone worth paying attention to."
Adam's friends continue mocking him as they laugh, while he remains silent.
Adam leaves the house, and his wristwatch vibrates, alerting him that his psychological state requires him to go home immediately...
The world isn't the futuristic fantasy that people from the past—those from 2020 or 2026—might have imagined. But the manifestations of machines have become more visible. Global powers have shifted, and the world has become more economically and commercially unified—not in the sense of integrative unity, but unity in shared characteristics and common destiny. Human challenges have transformed; new concerns have emerged, old fears have faded, and other fears have arisen... The world has changed slightly—geographically, politically, and even economically.
March 28, 2078
"The World Conference for Dialogue of Civilizations and Peaceful Coexistence, Geneva"
A title written on a massive sign at the entrance of a large hall in the heart of Geneva, where streets are clean and organized. The weather is sunny and beautiful. The hall's lobby is packed with people, noise filling the place. Each group discusses what concerns them—journalists, researchers, professors... The hall is huge and luxurious from every angle. Robots carrying orders move in different directions.
In the midst of the crowd, Adam is talking to his girlfriend Marie on the phone. As he's about to end the call, he says excitedly:
Adam: "We need to talk and prepare the wedding. No room for delay now."
Marie: "Yes, we need to talk. Let's meet at the university tomorrow evening."
Adam: "Okay, see you tomorrow."
Adam embodies the cultured academic who carries a message, opposing rapid technological development, especially concerning artificial intelligence. A 38-year-old man of average height with a calm face.
As Adam hangs up, a mysterious man approaches him. He appears dignified, in his sixties, elegant and charming with a "vintage" style of dress. He walks slowly with a calm smile on his face, his hair completely white, with blue eyes.
Mysterious man: "Good evening, Mr. Adam. I'm Marc, head of the 'My Son' association, based here in Switzerland."
Adam: "Hello, sir."
Marc continues: "I know you're a professor at the University of Madrid, a sociology researcher, an activist in human rights and environmental issues, and concerned with preserving life and humanity. I'd like to know your opinion on the conference's outcomes. Do you think it achieved the desired results, or is it just a formal gathering?"
Adam smiles broadly, removing his glasses: "Then there's no need for me to introduce myself."
Marc smiles and continues: "Don't you think that wars are normal from a political perspective? They're leadership wars that don't pose a long-term threat to coexistence or humanity as a whole. Most are about border disputes and money. Don't you agree?"
At that moment, a small food delivery drone bumps into Adam's shoulder, but without harm. An apology message arrives directly on his phone. He glances at it without interest and turns off his phone screen as he responds.
Adam: "True. The threat is the internal problems within each country, most of which are purely social in nature. I think that's why I'm here today. I'm not a politician or a warrior. I want people to understand that the greatest danger is what we can ignore more than what we fear."
Adam says this driven by a painful experience with his brother—a rebellious personality, an ambitious teenager with strange ideas. Adam was responsible at home and was harsh with him because of the "dangerousness of his ideas," as they seemed to Adam. But he ignored that constant pressure on his brother might push him to become more dangerous.
Years ago, as Adam was returning home, he noticed the door to their annex open—usually no one entered there except him. His mother had no business in the annex, which was Adam's office where he spent his study time. He paused for a moment, then went to see who was there. He pushed the door further and found his brother hanging—he had hanged himself.
It was a catastrophe that afflicted Adam's mother and even more so Adam, who held himself responsible for his brother's death.
Adam continues his conversation with Marc:
"Hunger and diseases no longer represent a threat as much as the problem of coexistence between individuals can cause. In the past, coexistence was difficult due to race or religion." Adam raises his shoulders as if this problem was logical.
"But now religion's role and influence in societies have frighteningly declined. Perhaps some thought humans would coexist more, but the opposite is happening." He counts on his fingers: "We separate because of politics, sexual orientation, and even social choices. Even in opinion, we cannot coexist. And if we do coexist, it's 'superficially'—and this is the real problem."
"Can you imagine two groups fighting over their different desires?" Adam suddenly falls silent, remembering Marie always telling him he talks too much.
Marc: "Humanity has always survived every threat it faced. Even on the day of the Great Flood, humans built an ark, and the human race survived."
Adam: "Does anyone today believe in the story of the Flood? Technology has confused humanity and defeated religion. Do you think a young person today, communicating via satellites and tasking AI applications to do everything, can spend a fraction of a second thinking about the Flood?"
Marc: "Talking with you is enjoyable, Professor. I hope we meet another time, Mr. Adam. Here's my card." Marc taps behind Adam's device, transferring his information to Adam, and Adam does the same.
Adam: "See you."
Marc leaves and disappears into the crowd. Adam checks his mobile device for the time—he has a flight back to Madrid.
He realizes he might be late for his flight. Quickly gathering his belongings, he rushes to the airport...
Adam arrives at the airport, running, trying to make it. All passengers are in their places because airlines now know the locations of travelers on their flights. If someone is late and appears too far away or not moving toward the airport, they don't bother calling or waiting for them—except for Adam, because he refuses this service and hasn't given his consent, as it requires client approval first.
Adam runs through the airport to reach his flight. When he arrives at the boarding gate, the female employees exchange glances about Adam—the "backward" person who refused to share his location with airlines and is late.