by Eva Ihnenfeld

Freia wakes up – 10.00

Your meeting with the other social artists is at 2:00. She still has time. It’s quiet outside. She looks out the window. Some people are on the road, doing jobs for the numerous robots or chauffeuring them when manual controls are more efficient for the machines. People only exist to ensure that the AI infrastructure runs smoothly. Freia and some other artists are there to keep the emotional balance of these people.

Unconditional Basic Income and the “Paradise-Aera

Freia remembers the time when people were still needed to consume products

With a so-called “unconditional basic income”, the precarious sector was subsidised, as the economy of the time was dependent on mass production and consumption.

In this short “Paradise-Aera” there were all kinds of gamers, artists, freaks, rebels, DIY craftsmen, creative people, social artists, and all kinds of hedonists and criminals. Of course the model could not work in the long run. If people are only there for people, there is no profit for the owners of the means of production. Capitalism needs growth. Capitalism needs profit.

After the great war

The number of people worldwide had been reduced to those who are of existential importance for the machines. Since then, peace and equanimity have reigned among the survivors. Social artists are there to maintain the physical, mental and spiritual health of the machine slaves.

It’s 2 pm – Meeting with the other social artists

Freia and her colleagues discuss the action plan for the next four weeks. Freia, together with three other social artists, is responsible for 25 slaves who manage an area of around 25 square kilometres for the machines.

Creative design is Freida’s field of activity. One colleague is responsible for thinking and feeling imbued with meaning, one colleague for physical exercise, another for lust and playfulness.

Freia knows she never had a choice

The last rebels were eliminated when she was a young woman – that was shortly after the Great War. Today she is greying and enjoys high esteem among the human slaves of her region. It encourages, consoles, cares, selects and trains new social artists. She accompanies the useless to the euthanasia station and teaches maternal slaves how to nurture and care for newborn human slaves.

Do you think she likes living?

Freia doesn’t know. None of the survivors asks this question, thinking about “life” is a taboo. She does what she has to do and thanks to artificial hormones she keeps her mental balance constant. Should she at some point no longer succeed in doing so, she will be selected herself. There is no way out, no alternative, no utopia – man has made himself obsolete. It’s over.