From the distant reaches of outer space, the fifth planet of Centaurus, known as the Eye of Blue Light, appears as a profound sapphire, serenely suspended in the boundless darkness of the cosmos. As you approach this planet, you can see the light from the Centaurus star piercing through its thick atmosphere, scattered into enchanting blue by the gas molecules in the atmosphere, bending the rays of light to create halos as if the planet itself was a radiant gem.
Standing on this planet is like standing on a colossal sapphire, with everything around bathed in blue light. Everywhere you look, you see the blue glow. Every inch of the land, every leaf, even every drop of water, all shimmer with a blue light.
The President of the Galactic Federation, Taylor, surrounded by his guards, takes in the unique fresh air of the Eye of Blue Light, stands tall, and strides towards the headquarters of the Zhendan Corporation.
Upon entering the meeting room, all attendees rise in unison, showing respect to the Federation President. Taylor's gaze first falls on the representatives of the Zhendan Corporation: Chairman Yamamoto Hiroshi, Managing Director Kobayashi Koji, and Director of the Zhendan Research Institute, Tanaka Masashi. These three men bow 90 degrees forward with straight backs—a traditional Zhendan Corporation gesture symbolizing the highest honor.
On the other side of the round table stand Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Federation Army, General Hong Poyun, Minister of Finance Li Xiuqing, Minister of Internal Affairs Martinelli, and Director of Intelligence Alysia.
Once Taylor takes his seat at the head of the table, the meeting officially begins.
Holographic projections flicker against the transparent glass walls of the meeting room, displaying various materials and production data. Kobayashi Koji, the silver-haired Managing Director of the Zhendan Corporation, stands before the dazzling holographic screen. His dull and tedious report has already lasted three Earth hours.
Alysia, in one corner of the meeting room, appears somewhat displeased. She taps her fingers lightly on the table, a sound barely audible. This is her habit when feeling discontent or impatient with something.
Martinelli, too, frowns. He reaches for his water glass on the table, takes a slow sip, and then speaks, "The details of the production plan for 5,000 Falcon II mechs, as well as the new generation of medium-sized warship orders, will be discussed in detail by the Military and Internal Affairs Departments with your company after the meeting. Now, please, Zhendan Corporation, discuss the issue we care more about."
Kobayashi Koji halts his report, glances at Chairman Yamamoto Hiroshi, who nods slightly. Kobayashi Koji then says, "Alright, next, our Research Institute Director, Tanaka Masashi will report on the development progress of the Flame Mech."
The attendees nod in agreement, and Tanaka Masashi, Director of the Zhendan Research Institute, stands up. His eyes twinkle with excitement and anticipation, clearly proud of the Flame Mech he is about to introduce.
"Next, I am going to introduce to you our Institute's latest achievement, the Flame Mech." His voice is full of excitement. With a flick of his finger on the holographic screen, a massive mech model immediately appears before them.
This is a non-mass-produced special mech, its body enveloped in blistering flames, looking like a ball of fire. It uses vacuum zero-point energy as its driver, boasting unparalleled destructive power. Under the control of the same level of artificial intelligence, the Flame Mech can destroy a fleet composed of 5 medium-sized warships and 50 Falcon II mechs. However, this is not the upper limit of the Flame Mech's capabilities.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
The power of the Flame Mech has caused a wave of excitement among the top brass of the Galactic Alliance. They believe this Mech could turn the tide of the war against the Orion aliens.
However, the words of Tanaka Masashi plunged the Galactic Alliance's top brass back into silence.
"The ultra-high maneuverability of the Flame Mech, even with the use of a decompression chamber design, still requires the pilot to withstand overload of over 20 times the Earth's gravity, which no human can withstand," Masashi stated.
"The signal processing of human eyes and brain requires 0.1 seconds. During this time, the Flame Mech can make dozens of maneuvers, and human operation would severely slow down the Mech's response time."
"Therefore, the Zhen Dan Corporation believes that the Flame Mech should be fully operated by Artificial Intelligence!"
There was a hint of fanaticism in Masashi's eyes. He has been engaged in weapons research for many years and has always staunchly believed that the legal restrictions on human operation of weapons have hindered the development of weapons and are the key reason why the Galactic Alliance cannot defeat the Orion aliens.
According to the results of the intelligence department's analysis, there is a clear gap between the armies of the Galactic Alliance and the Orion aliens. Replacing human operation with AI could effectively make up for this gap. In this regard, Chairman Taylor agrees with Masashi's view. However, he also wants to hear the views of the military and other ministers.
After a brief silence, Vice Commander-in-Chief General Hong Po Yun with a frown said, "We cannot allow AI to drive such weapons. It's a threat to our own safety. I strongly object."
The war between the Galactic Alliance and the Orion people is essentially an internal war among humans. This matter is still highly classified, and the Zhen Dan Corporation is unaware of this secret. If the law of AI using weapons is broken, it could lead to new changes, and AI might even become a threat to all of humanity.
Masashi's eyes were firm, "Handing the Flame Mech to AI is our only choice, otherwise, we will not be able to realize its full potential."
Alicia tapped her fingers on the table, attracting the attention of the attendees, then said, "According to the results of the intelligence data science analysis, our chances of winning a small-scale frontal battle with the Orion people is only 4.45%. Equipping the Falcon II Mech could increase the winning rate to about 8%."
"If AI is directly used to operate weapons, the winning rate will increase to about 35%. If AI is allowed to use war data for iterative upgrades, after 20 iterations, the winning rate can exceed 50%. After 100 iterations, the Orion people will be driven out of the Zeta system."
In the meeting room, everyone fell into a longer silence, all pondering over this issue - the threat of AI and the power of the Flame Mech, which one is more important?
Seeing this scene, Chairman Taylor knew his goal had been achieved. In his deep, magnetic voice, he said, "Whether to allow AI to operate weapons involves amending the Galactic Alliance Constitution and requires a collective vote of the Galactic Alliance Congress."
"Please submit the Constitutional Amendment Proposal to the lower house of the Galactic Alliance by the Zhen Dan Corporation, and the Intelligence Bureau will submit the AI data analysis results to the upper house members. The decision on whether to enable AI to operate weapons should be given to the people of the Galactic Alliance."
Chairman Taylor's words brought different thoughts to everyone in the room. This was the first time Taylor had expressed his stance on AI operating weapons, and it was clear that he supported AI.
General Hong Po Yun looked at Chairman Taylor, his eyebrows tightly furrowed, his hand unconsciously clenched on the table, making his knuckles turn pale.
General Hong Po Yun couldn't calm his mind. As a general of the Galactic Alliance, Hong Po Yun understood the advantages of AI, but he also found this change extremely dangerous—once AI defeated the Orion people, it meant that no humans could defeat AI.
Hong Po Yun feared that AI, once armed, would get out of human control and embark on a dangerous path.
He glanced around; the faces of the members of the Zhen Dan Corporation were full of excitement and anticipation, and Finance Minister Li Xiuqing also seemed somewhat moved. Hong Po Yun clenched his fist, not immediately standing up to object. He knew he needed solid evidence and reasons to persuade others.