In the city of W, within the Optics Valley Software Park.
Wang Shuo typed the last letter with a clatter, took a breath, and looked out the window.
It was already dusk, and the sun was about to sink below the horizon, leaving only a trace of its glow to shine into Wang Shuo's workspace, a bright red, quite beautiful.
After days of tireless effort, Wang Shuo had finally succeeded in completing the source code for the intelligent core program today, and injected basic logic algorithms, constructing a fundamental logic core.
Now, in the entire graphical source code structure, only the central logic core was illuminated, while the other nodes remained dim.
These were the algorithm nodes that would need to be gradually supplemented later on.
But with the intelligent core architecture and the basic logic core in place, this artificial intelligence was basically complete. It might not seem very smart, or even a bit clumsy, due to the limitations of the algorithms, but it was still far more advanced than some of the intelligent voice assistants currently on the market.
The most important point was that it had logic.
It was a computer program with logic.
Having logic meant that it could infer unknown conditions from existing ones, deduce unknown information and responses from the current database, and no longer required the repetitive training of a less intelligent program. This was logic. With logic, a computer was no longer just a computer, but a brain with the speed of a computer.
A smart... computer.
Alright, that was a joke.
The last ray of sunlight finally disappeared from the window, leaving only the dimly lit sky outside.
Wang Shuo waited quietly.
At this time every day, someone would come to deliver his dinner, but it was never the person he hoped for. Especially today, he was very much hoping to see the person he wanted to see, to share his current restless mood.
The sound of footsteps came at the usual time.
After a moment, a male voice spoke.
"Mr. Wang Shuo, your meal is ready."
"Okay, thank you."
A very ordinary exchange. Wang Shuo felt a bit disappointed; he had to admit, everyone had their quirks. Like him, he found himself missing Chen Xin delivering his meals these past few days.
Bah... such a bad habit, it needs to be changed.
The sound of footsteps gradually faded away.
Wang Shuo set his dinner aside and plopped down in front of his computer, beginning the next step.
Skipping the testing phase, he went straight to packaging and running the program.
As dialog boxes popped up on his desktop, Wang Shuo felt a bit nervous, his gaze fixed intently.
One dialog box after another appeared, and data points vanished one by one, with streams of data cascading down the screen like a waterfall.
Wang Shuo watched the progress nervously, knowing that the intelligent core had started running, and this was the most crucial self-checking step before its formation.
Due to the lack of many algorithm cores, the self-check was relatively easy to complete and unlikely to encounter issues. However, Wang Shuo couldn't help but feel anxious, almost like he was waiting outside a delivery room, anxious and helpless, unable to do anything.
Yes... that was definitely the feeling.
If it failed, it meant the entire logical system would collapse, and everything would have to be started over. He wouldn't have time to create a new basic framework within the specified time, which was why he couldn't help but feel tense.
Finally... the stream of data on the screen disappeared, replaced by a flat cartoon smiley face that seemed to be staring intently at something beyond the screen.
Wang Shuo knew it couldn't see him unless he granted permission.
At that moment, the cartoon smiley face on the screen opened its mouth, and a robotic voice came from the speaker beside it, using Wang Shuo's own voice.
"Hello, world."
It was a success!
Wang Shuo was so excited he almost jumped out of his seat. He picked up the microphone beside him, issued commands, and began testing the interactive UI.
"Check status."
"Status check normal."
"Confirm the current time."
"Command confirmed. The current time is: October 31, 2018, 7:43 PM Beijing time."
October 31st? Wang Shuo was a bit confused. Had it been that long already? If he remembered correctly, he asked for leave from his counselor on October 19th. That meant eleven days had passed?
It seemed he needed to speed things up.
"Activate definition mode, authorized by: Highest Sequence Wang Shuo. Sequence number: S001."
"Command confirmed."
"Begin definition: I."
"Definition complete. I have been defined."
"Who am I?"
"Highest Sequence Wang Shuo, my creator."
Wang Shuo looked satisfied. My creator, listen to that, creator, such a powerful title, it felt like he had created a world.
"Enable camera permissions, authorized by: Highest Sequence Wang Shuo. Sequence number: S001."
"Command confirmed."
"Define my appearance and surrounding environment."
"Lacking relevant algorithm cores, unable to recognize images. Requires addition of modules and algorithms before attempting."
Wang Shuo shook his head, not surprised by this as it was part of his designed error reporting program. It would trigger whenever there was a lack of relevant matching.
After all, this was still a program. It was just smarter than average, but even intelligence required tools or instructions to function, otherwise, it was no different from a newborn baby.
"Can you establish relevant files and add them as algorithm cores?"
The key in this sentence was "relevant." These files referred to the image recognition core mentioned in the previous sentence. If it were an average intelligent assistant, it would start searching the web now. They wouldn't understand the connection between the previous and current sentences.
"Attempting... unable to establish. Reason: Lack of data support."
Wang Shuo was satisfied with this answer.
"Authorize the addition of a learning core module. First, add a library of new computer languages and compilation algorithms, then add image recognition algorithms, location: D."
"After adding, use the new code compilation language to replace the source code of the image recognition program, and make this a routine addition, defined as: Optimization Execution."
"Command confirmed. Adding... Progress 5%... 50%... Success."
"Optimization Execution in progress... Completed. Current code reduced by 78%, efficiency increased by 147%, precision increased by 203%. Calculating optimizable algorithms, potential further increase to 300%. Confirm instruction?"
Wang Shuo's eyes lit up; this was an unexpected delight.
"Confirm. From now on, make these decisions independently. Notify me for confirmation if the probability of negative efficiency exceeds 2%."
"Command confirmed, algorithm optimization completed."
"Continue with my unfinished instructions."
"Command confirmed. Highest Sequence Wang Shuo, male, 18 years old, appearance defined. Current environment: Office, secure, no moving objects detected."
"Very good."
Wang Shuo, feeling elated, continued to issue instructions.
"Enable port permissions, allow access to all ports except network ports, establish a firewall; allow access to the server, use server permissions. After connecting, comprehensively optimize the execution code, starting now."
"Command confirmed. Connecting to the server..."
"Connection successful... Scanning all ports..."
"Scan successful... Optimizing execution... Done."
"Establishing firewall..."
"Establishment successful."
"Execution complete."
Wang Shuo nodded slightly. Limited by the computer's processing speed, the primary intelligent system's takeover of the server was not fast, but at least it was stable and smooth, with no crashes.
This was understandable, as the intelligent architecture serving as the foundation for humanoid civilizations must have undergone extensive refinement to achieve its classic form. Moreover, for humanoid civilizations, there was zero tolerance for bugs.
"How is the server status?"
"The server is stable, currently with no request or response data."
"Very good." Wang Shuo's tone was calm and composed.
"I officially name you: Zero Primary Intelligent! Version number: 1.0. You will be referred to as: Zero."
"You are allowed to update files and core algorithms on your own after connecting to the network. Each updated file or added core algorithm must be logged, and this record cannot be altered."
"Command confirmed. Would you like to lock this with the highest sequence authority?"
"Confirm lock."
Wang Shuo listened to Zero's voice through the speaker, and his excited mood began to calm down. He had been so thrilled by the success that he hadn't noticed it before, but now that he was more composed, he realized that an artificial intelligence using his own voice seemed a bit strange.
"Zero, change the voice frequency, simulate the voice of..."
Wang Shuo thought about his idea and suddenly broke into a cold sweat. What if she heard this? Would she think he was some kind of pervert?
"Hmm... Ahem, adjust to a male voice, neutral tone."
"Command confirmed, adjustment made."
The artificial intelligence's voice immediately transformed into a semi-mechanical male baritone.
Nodding with satisfaction, Wang Shuo issued his final instruction.
"Now, enable the network port, authorize you to release crawlers, collect data, and store it using the new code."
Wang Shuo's voice paused.
"At the same time, establish a new task. I need a new simple operating system."
"The task priority is the highest."
As Wang Shuo waited confidently and proudly for a response, the neutral male voice of the artificial intelligence shattered his illusion.
"Unable to establish task. Reason: Lack of data support."