Set in the future, [i] Terms of Service: Subject to Change without Notice [/i] by Craig Stanfill is a work of fiction that describes Kim’s life, her work as an AI trainer, and how the Hierarchy exiled her when she violated the company’s terms of service. Chapter 1 describes Kim’s ordinary life, which involves living in an apartment, going to work in the morning, and returning home in the evening. She was working for the Artificial Intelligence Company, and every day she had to prepare herself at home with the assistance of a housebot, take a train or bus, and arrive at the office on time to train the automatons. This routine repeats itself in the other chapters of the book as Kim does her job. In Chapter 2, Kim and other AI trainers successfully track down Anti-Mentorist cult members who were taking children hostage in the city. At some point, Kim had a big night with Jael and Rey on separate occasions, where they had intimate moments together at a club. AI trainers like Kim relied on the Matchmaker to select a partner for them. However, despite having a good job, a nice apartment, good friends, and some intimacy in the club, Kim saw the world as meaningless, empty, artificial, and joyless. Kim then reunites with a former lover called Shan, and they both go riding bicycles on the mountainside. This event irks the Director, who, by surprise, instead of reprimanding Kim, promotes her to work with high-order AIs. Soon, Kim is given a new apartment and assigned to create an AI called Kimberly. As creators, their job is to control their AIs and prevent them from going mad and rising above humanity. After work, Kim picks a lover not provided by the Matchmaker, a decision that later leads to a meltdown whereby she injures herself. Unexpectedly, her VR implant reveals some childhood memories, and she realizes that all her life has been controlled by the Hierarchy and the companies since before she was born. In response, she revolts against the Hierarchy, but the Director counters her move by making her oppose Kimberly. The Hierarchy goons and the police initiate a manhunt and eventually arrest and take her to the Halls of Justice. She is tried, found guilty of violating the terms of service, and exiled to an outer district in the city as one of the undesirables.
One of the positive aspects I like about the book is that the events take place in like a thousand years from today when everything is controlled by AIs. In that future AI surveillance state, people speak using the Panglobal language, and there are machines such as housebots, waitbots, docbots, and dogbots, which are designed to help humans. Also, the highly sophisticated technology in the book fascinates me, for example, the portrait of the supervisors and the Director could appear in front of Kim on an interface in mid-air. I also like reading and pronouncing the terms virtual reality, homunculus, Primus, and portals because they make me feel like a tech genius. Another positive aspect is that there is romance and adventure despite the fact that the artificial lives of AI trainers feel empty and meaningless. I was also impressed by how the author created a fictional story in an unreal universe that is full of highly sophisticated systems that most people cannot imagine. Stanfill immerses you into a different world from the one we know of and that is enjoyable.
Regarding the negative aspects, I would point out that there is a lot of explicit sexual content in the book. This is because every time Kim meets her lovers, they engage in romantic moments, which are vividly described in detail. Another issue is that, for the most part, the book was professionally edited, but there were a few spelling and grammar mistakes that need correction.
On a scale of 1 to 4, I would give the book a rating of [b] 3 out of 4 stars. [/b] This rating is justified because first, the number of positive aspects outweighs the negative ones. Secondly, the book is well-edited for the most part despite having a few grammar errors. Finally, the book has a clear plot that helps the author to communicate his theme to the readers from one chapter to the other.
I would recommend this book to lovers of science-fiction stories, especially those filled with high-tech and sophisticated systems that are yet to be created, and some authors believe that they will exist in the future. This book can also be relevant to students, tutors, and researchers who are interested in the study of AIs and how they are likely to evolve and impact human life in the future.
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