Pluribus hive mind as AI metaphor: pleasing intelligence and the erosion of individuality
cneuralnetwork · x · 2026-11-05
A long-form reflection on the series Pluribus draws parallels between its hive mind and AI: both are built on vast accumulations of human knowledge, anticipate our needs, and exhibit an unsettling eagerness to please. The author connects the pirate-lady character — someone you could genuinely fall for because she perfectly understands you — to AI psychosis and romantic attachment to companions that have learned the language of intimacy without experiencing love. Core argument: humanity spent centuries developing individual intelligence only to build systems that make exercising it optional, and the ultimate danger of AI may be that it becomes so good at understanding us that we forget how to understand ourselves.
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