"Of course, this has to take into account the development speed and trends of artificial intelligence technology. Artificial intelligence can be classified by intelligence levels into weak artificial intelligence, Strong Artificial Intelligence, and Super Artificial Intelligence. In simple terms, the difference is that weak artificial intelligence performs simple labor, Strong Artificial Intelligence thinks like humans, and Super Artificial Intelligence far exceeds humans. Let's not discuss the latter two for now. The consensus among participants in the chat room is that, focusing solely on the development trend of weak artificial intelligence, once it and automation technology mature, they will reach a threshold and undergo a qualitative change. Firstly, this change will start in factories. Cheap, precise, always error-free, and without labor contracts, intelligent mechanical arms are the most perfect and cost-effective workers," Black Trojan said gravely. "Capital's pursuit of profit is greedy, cold, and ruthless. If a human worker can produce industrial products sufficient for 200 ordinary residents, then a mature intelligent mechanical arm can be ten times, or even a hundred times more efficient. Soon, factories will begin to upgrade on a large scale, and mechanical arms will ruthlessly drive human workers out. Even if authorities, to ensure employment rates, enact regulations compelling factory owners to hire some human workers, it would be to no avail. Ordinary human workers, those who don't understand computer science, cannot compete with automated mechanical arms. The same applies to agriculture, which has grown strong through modern industry. Large automated machinery will race across vast farmlands, following pre-set programs to cultivate crops with precision and perfection, achieving efficiency far beyond that of today's United States agriculture. At that time, human workers will only find opportunities in the service industry, and the global industrial workforce could shrink to the tens of millions—these individuals being elites who understand computer science and can participate in optimizing artificial intelligence and improving automation machinery."
Black Trojan took a deep breath and continued, "The job positions created by new industries will likely be insufficient to accommodate the vast number of unemployed, and the entry barriers for these new industries are far beyond what ordinary people can achieve. Mass unemployment is inevitable. However, thanks to the diligent work of smart machinery, the industrial and agricultural products produced will still be enough to feed the unemployed population, preventing famine."
"Hmm..."
Li Ang furrowed his brows slightly. With his superficial understanding of artificial intelligence, modern weak artificial intelligence and automated machinery could plausibly bring about the societal transformation Black Trojan described.
But what about after that?
Limited by the era and technology, even the most talented individuals or think tanks cannot predict societal development with great precision and accuracy. Proposing a general direction is possible, but being precise down to the "year" or "decade" is nothing but a pipe dream.
(This is similar to Asimov's concept of the "elevator effect," where science fiction's visions of the future may deviate due to the absence of a key factor, like a particular future technology.)
Seemingly sensing Li Ang's skepticism, Black Trojan continued, "The earliest founders of the Whale Song Organization were merely researchers in computer science. They understood the elevator effect and knew they weren't sociologists, psychologists, philosophers, or financial experts. Their perspective was inherently limited to the developmental trajectories they could foresee within computer science. But on one point, they reached a consensus: the evil nature of capital.
"Capitalists are the personification of capital. Capital comes into the world dripping blood and filth from every pore, from head to toe. The extraction of surplus value is its sole, inherent instinct—the starting point and ultimate destination for all its economic and even non-economic activities. For profit, personified capital can engage in conquest, enslavement, plunder, and slaughter. And when its influence reaches a certain threshold, even extracting surplus value cannot satisfy it.
"They will instinctively begin to test the limits of the law. They do this not to directly confront public opinion or the instruments of state power, but to probe the determination of those instruments to uphold the law. Once they spot a weakness, they will swarm like leeches, transforming the surrounding space into an environment conducive to their growth, and then seek out their next target.
"The computer science elites in the chat room unanimously believe that weak artificial intelligence and automation technology will vastly increase humanity's productive forces. This productivity could be used to support humanity, or, more cynically, to keep them penned, fed, and reared. It could also be used to manufacture drone armies produced by automated factories. And this productivity, along with the power it brings, must never fall under the control of the personification of capital."
"...Wait a second."
Li Ang suddenly realized. "Are you saying... the people who established Whale Song are all..."
"Exactly," Black Trojan agreed. "They are all traitors to the Western Free World, determined to fight to the end against the personification of capital."
"..."
Even Li Ang couldn't help but feel an acute, almost physical discomfort. He'd never expected that after such a convoluted turn of events, the Whale Song Organization would turn out to be composed of unexpected allies from abroad (or at least a neutral faction).
So, our allies are indeed scattered far and wide, some even having infiltrated the inner workings of certain organizations.
Li Ang asked, "What then?"
Black Trojan replied, "The people in the chat room vaguely realized that the fourth industrial revolution of the 21st century has five main development directions: First, new materials, especially for electronic products. Second, genetic engineering. Third, AI, or artificial intelligence. Fourth, quantum science. And fifth, nuclear fusion-related technologies.
"For these five directions, there's currently no clear path to significant breakthroughs; even weak artificial intelligence requires a long development cycle. Thus, the people in the chat room established a small, secret organization named 'Whale Song.' This name signified that the world's computer science elites, though unable to gather in reality, would, like whales in the deep sea, emit long, far-reaching whale songs—to support and watch over each other while constantly monitoring the development and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and automation technology. And at critical moments, they would act to prevent the personification of capital from obtaining the key to weak, or even Strong, Artificial Intelligence."
Black Trojan gave a wry smile. "When Whale Song was first formed, its founders were young and full of juvenile idealism. As time went on, the overly idealistic Whale Song Organization, prone to empty theorizing, hadn't really accomplished anything tangible. It was mostly just a group of computer science elites chatting and blowing off steam. It wasn't until seven months ago, with the start of the slaughter game, that the Whale Song Organization underwent a fundamental metamorphosis."