I just finished the story. I think the main idea is obviously good, but I find the execution too simplistic. The princess’s intelligence comes off as human in her social interactions (not superhuman), and humans seem dumbed down. I don’t think the AI could have forced everyone to “upload” with the level of coercion shown in the novel.
I myself would not have uploaded unless I was already dying. I see no benign reason that the process of uploading needs to be destructive.
I also doubt people with real power would be easily swayed to upload, e.g., the original programmer. In the end, people’s values are in conflict, and there could be alien powers, etc. There is every reason to believe that whoever still controls some resources in the “real” world will still be able to “satisfy” their values more than the powerless ponies.
I just finished the story. I think the main idea is obviously good, but I find the execution too simplistic. The princess’s intelligence comes off as human in her social interactions (not superhuman), and humans seem dumbed down. I don’t think the AI could have forced everyone to “upload” with the level of coercion shown in the novel.
I myself would not have uploaded unless I was already dying. I see no benign reason that the process of uploading needs to be destructive.
I also doubt people with real power would be easily swayed to upload, e.g., the original programmer. In the end, people’s values are in conflict, and there could be alien powers, etc. There is every reason to believe that whoever still controls some resources in the “real” world will still be able to “satisfy” their values more than the powerless ponies.