Why Manna, a free sci-fi story about fast-food automation, remains an AI-circle must-read
Darpinian · x · 2026-11-08
In reply to a request for modern sci-fi recommendations, someone pointed to Marshall Brain's Manna: Two Views of Humanity's Future. The classic short story imagines the robotic takeover starting not at MIT or Microsoft, but with a piece of restaurant-management software called Manna at a fast-food chain, which gradually takes over scheduling and micromanages every worker move. It remains a frequently recommended read in AI circles for its prescient take on automation and employment.
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