ACTIVATION Read online

  Contents

  Title

  Copyright information

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Dedication

  PART I

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  PART II

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  PART III

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  PART IV

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  PART V

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  EPILOGUE

  DON'T MISS OUT

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  CLOSING COMMENTS

  ACTIVATION

  THE GAIA SERIES: BOOK ONE

  By

  M.G. GILIBERT

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously.

  Copyright © 2017 M.G. Gilibert

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by M2G

  ISBN:

  978-2-9562105-1-1 (paperback) | 978-2-9562105-2-8 (mobi) | 978-2-9562105-3-5 (epub)

  Cover design: VP Designs

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  M.G. Gilibert has worked as a finance and strategy manager in the information technology industry for almost two decades.

  Approaching his forties, and looking for a renewed purpose in his life, he finally took a leap of faith in 2016 and started to work on his first novel.

  ACTIVATION is the first volume in the GAIA Series.

  It is followed by REVOLUTION and INVASION.

  M.G. currently lives in France.

  He hopes you enjoy reading the GAIA Series as much as he enjoyed writing it.

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  For Gabriel…

  PART I

  CHAPTER 1

  Human civilization has set on an irreversible collision course. And the stage of that crash is setting as you are reading this.

  Present day

  “There’s an app for that.”

  Fifteen years ago, a statement like that one was not part of the daily language. People used to have a cellular phone or an MP3 player. They were visiting places just armed with a camera. They even had to get their films developed at the local store. Internet was still in its infant stage and very basic. People were going to their bank to transfer money, and social networks almost did not exist. Community management, digital marketing, growth hacker, data scientist… were all jobs that didn’t exist at the time. But now, they are all part of the common vocabulary.

  Today, with a single device, everyone can meet their friends or video call their family. They can trade online, listen to their favorite tunes, or download and watch entire movies. All this with a picture quality that TV sets from just five years ago couldn’t even match. People can take high-quality pictures, post them on a website. They can share them with the world, and get comments from the most remote places on earth. Because that person, in the middle of nowhere, is no longer cut from the rest of the world.

  What is the weather going to be like tomorrow in Paris? There’s an app for that.

  What are the latest updates from your friend’s trip to Japan? There’s an app for that.

  What are the business events in your neighborhood? There’s an app for that.

  What is the stock market doing today? There’s an app for that.

  Thank you for your business card, let me scan it. There’s an app for that.

  What is the fastest way to go from point A to point B? There’s an app for that.

  What’s on TV tonight? There’s an app for that.

  What are the last minute travel deals? There’s an app for that.

  What are the reviews of this movie you want to watch? There’s an app for that.

  You want to communicate with your foreign mother-in-law, but you don’t speak her language. Don’t worry, there’s an app for that.

  You’d love to work out, but you’re too busy to go to the gym. There’s an app for that.

  Feel like eating a chef’s menu tonight, at home? There’s an app for that.

  Feel like playing a video game, any video game? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to learn new skills, any skill? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to schedule the service of your car? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to apply for a job? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to share your plumbing expertise with your community and make money from it? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to watch your favorite TV show, anytime, anywhere? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to sell that Christmas present you don’t like? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to stay connected to the office? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want your child to learn his ABC? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to stay abreast of what’s happening in the world? There’s an app for that.

  Do you want to book a cab and choose the driver? There’s an app for that…

  And on, and on…

  Everything you want, you can now get. The world and all its possibilities are in the palm of your hand.

  Everything is easy. Your life and the entire world can fit on a 5- by 3-inch form factor.

  What an achievement.

  For the first time in history, the global population, with only a few exceptions, is connected to the rest of the world and forms one big digital community.

  What governments have tried for decades or even centuries, peacefully or by force, but always failed to achieve, a few entrepreneurs and visionaries have managed to create in record time.

  Postulate number 1: Business is more efficient than governments.

  But there is nothing new here.

  What has become new over the past few years is the radical speed of implementation, the speed of adoption and the speed of change. And above all that, the most impactful change has been on the scope of this revolution. It is no longer limited by natural or artificial borders. The change now reaches everyone, everywhere. Everything has become global. There are still a few local exceptions here and there, but they won’t be able to hold their positions for too long.

  Postulate number 2: The movement that has started cannot be reversed and is already too deeply installed in the world’s economies to be reversed.

  The apps are great, they make life easier. Everything is just a click away. The smartphone device is a great progress, but it is just one device.

  How about more devices? What about the possibilities the world would have if all devices were as s
mart as a smartphone?

  Simply stated, the Internet of Things, otherwise known as IoT, is the idea that all devices can gather data based on their users’ habits. And, under the marketing promise to make the world a better place (in other words, people’s life easier), these devices send their user’s data somewhere to be analyzed and interpreted. In return, they receive a signal telling the users that they need to buy more detergent because they have run twenty washing machines since the last time they bought detergent. Of course, all these actions take place at lightning speed.

  People don’t need to think about buying common stuff anymore. The devices know when they need it, and actually buy it online for them. Life is definitely much better. So much time is saved when people no longer need to go grocery shopping, wait in line, or get stuck in traffic on the way…

  Postulate number 3: The Internet of Things, not people

  But life can be made even better and easier. What about self-driving cars? Why not? Time is precious. It cannot be wasted being focused on the road and its dangers. People could actually use that time to be more productive. Or to indulge themselves by performing more satisfying and rewarding purchasing activities. Or to get in touch with their friends and families directly from their car, instead of using it as a transportation device to go visit them. How efficient is that?

  The underlying goal of building self-driving cars is not so people can perform useless activities while in their car. It is in fact to make our roads safer. Indeed, when all cars are driving themselves, there will no longer be accidents due to people falling asleep at the wheel, or due to drunk drivers. Self-driving cars will ultimately save lives. This is good for the community, this is good for social security. This is good for the people.

  Postulate number 4: Technology is good for mankind. Technology saves lives. It is more reliable and safer than humans.

  Buying… Tremendous progress has been made here as well. Digital marketing. Whenever you express the slightest form of interest for a product, this interest is captured and served back to you everywhere you go. Over and over. Until you finally buy. Advertisements are tailored to meet your needs, to match your interests. It is personalized marketing at its best. With geolocation capabilities, smartphones become an extension of the companies’ marketing departments. You looked for a pair of jeans online, but didn’t buy it? It doesn’t matter. What the digital world was not able to achieve, the physical world will.

  As you walk down the streets, you will receive a text message that a discount is available for a limited time only at the jeans’ store across the street. And by the way, they only have one pair of your size, therefore you’d better hurry. You cross the street, thinking you are very lucky and already thinking about which top would go well with your new pants. Maybe the salesperson at the store will be kind enough to advise you and even propose you a few different tops that will make you look drop-dead sexy. You will eventually leave the store with two bags of clothes you didn’t even think about when you first checked the prices for your pair of jeans on the Internet that morning.

  Postulate number 5: Technology knows what you want and how to get it to you.

  While this personalized marketing is a tremendous step forward compared to the traditional marketing campaigns targeting millions of people with a single message based on repetition, it is still very dumb compared to what the technology promise has in store for mankind. The past few years have seen the rise of something more intelligent. Something capable of making decisions based on always more complex and efficient algorithms. Big data, coupled with high-performance computing, is now paving the way for something bigger.

  Something that can think. Or at least appears as something that thinks. In fact, a device is fed with large amounts of data, larger than the human brain can even absorb. With the help of the power of high-performance computing, the device can analyze the data and determine a possible outcome or draw a simple conclusion. One example is the victory of a computer program against the human world champion at the game of Go. A game which requires a heavy dose of intuition and strategic thinking. What does that say? Are computer programs smarter than humans? Seems like they are, given the amount of data they can ingurgitate in record time, find connecting dots or correlations, turn raw data into useful information, and eventually make decisions. But they are not entirely smarter. Computer programs still lack the key components of what makes humans who they are. Judgment, auto-censorship, and common sense. Things that are not tangible. Different from one individual to another. The result of an education, of an environment. Things that cannot be programmed. Soft skills. These little things that can make a difference.

  Postulate number 6: Computers can be smart, but they lack judgment.

  Computer programs have been around us for a long time. Many industries and companies rely heavily on them and on their physical representations. Computers and robots. How many assembly lines formerly occupied by human workers, performing physical and repetitive tasks, have been replaced by automated lines where robotic arms are now fulfilling all the painful tasks? Legions. Those human workers must be so happy now, for they are rested. Life is softer and nicer for them than it used to be. Thank you, assembly robots.

  People’s lives, in general, become easier. Manufacturing costs have also decreased dramatically. Thanks to the increased efficiency of factory lines. Thanks to robots not demanding salary increases, not stopping production because of unions calling for strikes, and working days and nights without complaining. This allows the rest of the working population to work less and still be able to purchase these products.

  There are still a few industries that are not giving in to the robot movement and that keep on courageously relying on the human factor of production.

  Preferably in low-cost countries.

  They are providing young children with the unique opportunity to make a life for themselves through legitimate work. But unfortunately, as courageous as these generous industries may be, they will sooner or later face a fierce competition that will force them to follow the overwhelming trend and ultimately transition toward an automated production model.

  But factory robots are not the brightest part of the pack. They just perform repetitive tasks. And once again, just like the computer programs that run them, they don’t think, and they don’t interact. It is not what they were built for.

  To find interaction with humans, the consumer market is probably the best place to look. Indeed, robots appear slightly smarter in the consumer space. Humans can ask a question to a robot, which will use some kind of limited form of intelligence to decipher it and propose an answer as an action, or an interaction. Many hotels have robot-assistants that come to a guest’s door and bring them the meal they ordered thirty minutes ago. Or they can bring him a toothbrush because the guest mentioned he forgot his at home.

  Retirement homes have robots as well. They help senior citizens to exercise by asking them to reproduce the movements performed by the robot. The robots encourage the old people and give them a healthy and entertaining alternative to watching TV or playing cards.

  Robots are also walking down some of our streets. Some countries have introduced robot-cops. Their goal is to help people and tourists find their way. If someone has a question or wants to file a complaint, the robot can connect to an actual police officer via a microphone and speakers. The next steps are obvious. Robots will start to perform more police work and fewer information activities. Work such as fining cars parked in a forbidden area, or controlling traffic at crossroads, or even walking the streets and observe people, assessing if someone is wanted by the authorities. One more step in evolution, and soon will robots be able to carry out a full police intervention like arresting someone they’ve identified as being wanted or even stopping a robbery in the making. The gun-carrying question will obviously rise at some point in the robot-cops’ evolution.

  Postulate number 7: Robots are among us.

  Robots can recognize faces, and ass
ess a potential threat. But the reaction of the robot to that threat is still a big question mark. Yet, technology has already reached a point where it can help fight crime. Crime is not just physical. Crime doesn’t always happen at gunpoint. Crime can be more subtle, without injuries or fatalities. White collar crime. There again, a lot of progress has been made and programs are now detecting fraud. It is now possible thanks to an increased collaboration between government administrations and agencies. Data sharing among these organizations, coupled with complex algorithms, makes it more and more difficult to fraud the system.

  Not only public administrations have been linked together, but so have banks. It is easy to find out if someone claiming for some benefit is entitled to it or not. In such case, it is easy to withdraw directly from the perpetrator’s bank account the amounts that were received illegally. Personal social security accounts, individual bank accounts, employers’ data repositories, internet service provider accounts, phone companies accounts, insurance policy accounts can all be linked together. Claiming some unemployment benefits from a generous country and living like a prince in a low-cost country used to be possible. Not anymore. Use a VPN to hide your location can help, but basic data such as the lack of activity on your home country’s bank account will trigger an alert and start a search on your profile until your actual whereabouts are discovered and your benefits canceled. The police will, of course, be made aware of your crime and next time you fly back home, you will be arrested.

  Try to download media illegally, and you will be found. Countries’ administrations infiltrate peer-to-peer downloading platforms and provide movies available for download. They just need to wait for people to start downloading and then get their IP address. They will use it to get their name and address from the internet service provider.