Sorry I'm late. I got held up at a deposition.
- Please-- - Ugh. I hate this piece. Rachmaninoff.
Uh, you hate Rachmaninoff?
Listen, the prosecution just added in two more witnesses, so
you and I should probably go through them before we go in.
To our fearless president for finally convincing the legendary
Ari Phillips to sell his catalogue,
the last virgin catalogue, to Cascadia.
To our queen.
- To our queen! - Yeah.
Thank you, Vince, for that hyperbole. Thank you very much.
Very lucky to have you as a right hand, you know. And as a friend.
And, and, honestly,
all of you helped me
help Ari Phillips realize that AI is not destroying music,
it's making music better.
So, to Cascadia!
- To Cascadia! - To Cascadia!
I hope you saved room for dessert.
Everything on the menu is available,
but chef has made a special creme brulee tonight
which people seem to be enjoying.
Thank you, very much.
My pleasure.
I just don't understand how AI can generate
such sophisticated songs and such crap.
Because everyone is using it, Rachel!
- What is she say-- - Like--
Hey. Yeah. Okay, look, if you don't know anything about music,
then your prompts are gonna ***, right?
Doesn't matter if you're making something original
- or enhancing a classic. - Yes, the results will be crap.
You need someone who understands music to prompt your system.
Which is why she hired me.
Yes.
- Musicians make the best prompters, don't they? - Hmm.
- Don't even think about it. - Yeah.
You see, we've been trying to convince Johnny Boy over here to be
a prompter for years, but he finds it, um--
How would you put it exactly?
Soul-crushing. Yeah.
What else do you call spending your days typing
prompts into a technology that replaced you?
So, how would you spend your days?
- I'm doing some gardening. - Seriously?
No. No. My husband is being modest.
He knows more about Cherokee purple tomatoes
than anyone ever should. Yeah.
If you'd told me ten years ago
that the man I met opening for Rancid at the Bowery
would become a gentleman farmer, I would have called you crazy.
Woulda called you crazy.
- We have a good life. - Yes, me too.
The only thing we're missing is a kid.
Well,
that would require you coming in from the greenhouse, wouldn't it?
Well, that was fun tonight.
Except for the kid bomb.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Must've slipped out. I just probably had a few too many.
- But would a baby be so bad? You know? - Ugh.
I mean, it's just the two of us kickin' around in that big new
house you insisted on buying us.
How many times are we gonna have this conversation?
Mm-mm. Mm. Until I get a baby?
We agreed to implant the embryos next year.
You know I gotta have my career set before I go on leave.
- You're president of the company. - I'm not ready.
You wouldn't even have to take leave. Look,
I'm all prepared to full-time dad it. Actually, I, I want to.
Can we just stick to next year like we planned?
- Please? - Sure.
Uh, um, I'm sorry, honey. I'm, I'm almost done.
- Babe... - That's so hot.
No, seriously, I'm dying.
You know what?
Forget it.
Okay. I'm sorry. Let's do this.
I'm not gonna have sex with your dead body.
But you wanted to in the car.
Are we ever gonna make love again, Megan?
Yes, John. I promise.
I, I've just been running on fumes lately, you know?
- But I love you. - Yeah.
I love you, too.
Welcome, Megan Neumann.
Hey, I need you to pick three songs
Ari's catalogue and run them through the algorithm.
- Sure you want three? - Yes.
Later today, right?
Right. And we'll play them back for Ari at the meeting
and show him the demographic analysis. So--
Uh, excuse me. Vince, hold on a second.
I'm looking for Lila Richards.
- Seven-C. - Thank you.
Look, I'm headed into lunch with my sister,
I'll call you back as soon as I'm done.
Shit. Ugh. Still too fast.
- Littles! - Megan?
- Look at you! - Megan!
Look at you.
Look, I'm sorry if I'm, uh, interrupting.
I had a business lunch cancel on me at the last minute,
and I was already at the restaurant, so.
Figured if you were taking a break,
we could have some food?
Everyone, this is Megan, my
beautiful, high-powered, impossibly perfect big sister.
- You're too sweet. Hi. Hi. - Hi.
- Do you think we could-- - O-Okay. Um,
I'm gonna take a break. Keep going.
A-And I'll be back in a bit.
Thank you.
What do you want, Megan?
What do I want?
I would like to catch up with my little sister,
who I have not seen or talked to in forever.
I've been working at Humanix for seven years
and you haven't been here to visit me once.
- That ain't true. - Tell me when.
I didn't come here to be tested.
Fine.
But don't pretend you didn't come here with an ask.
- Hmm. - Okay. Okay, okay. Uh...
Last time we spoke, yes, it was a long time ago,
you told me about a project you were working on.
The Elder Care Assistant?
The one I said we should get for mom so she'd
stop complaining about us not visiting?
Right. No. Not that one. Um...
The sex robot.
You mean the Intimacy Companion.
Right. How is that one going?
We're still in the beta test phase, and it'll be
a while before we get FDA approval, but honestly?
It's a game-changer.
Ooh! I mean, it is a quantum leap beyond
anything that has been on the market before.
- Who is your market? - Lonely people. Virgins, incels.
What about husbands who aren't getting any...
- You-- - Yeah, I wasn't lying about my twenty-four-seven work schedule.
I am falling down tired when I get home.
I do not have the bandwidth for sex that John does,
and I really feel bad for him.
I feel bad for us.
So, I thought, maybe--
Uh, the test group has already been selected,
so it's too late to get John in.
Didn't you learn anything from Mom's pole dancing?
- It's never too late. - He would have to get a bunch of
pysch evals and questionnaires.
- He would have to-- - No. I can
- Like, it's too much to-- - fill all of that out for him.
- Can't you just slide - I knew there
- it to the top of the pile? - was a reason you came here.
Yes. Fine. But I also love seeing you. I really do.
Yeah, when you need something!
But...
- I wuv you. - Oh.
This-- Th-That is so dumb.
- But you wuv it, hmm. - Shocking.
- I hate you. - I just wuv you so much.
I can't believe you're still doing this?
- Oh, but it-- - Argh! Stop! God!
- John? - You're home early.
Uh, yeah. I had to sign for something.
Oh. Perfect timing. I could use a hand with these.
No, no. I'm wearing silk. That's not happening.
- It'll only take two seconds. - Uh-uh.
I told you, I am willing to pay for a gardener.
I need you to come inside. I gotta show you something.
- Babe. - Come on.
Maybe I'll help you later.
I got you something. Come see.
"Will I help you?"
Is that a coffin?
It's a present.
For you.
Open it. The code is our anniversary.
It's a robot.
For what?
Intimacy?
- You mean, for sex? - Mm-hmm.
You bought me a s-sex robot for our anniversary?
Yeah. Well...
Lila, she needed subjects for a trial
that they're doing for FDA clearance.
And you and I are out of sync. So, I thought, maybe--
You thought you'd get me a mechanical sex surrogate
- without asking my permission? - Well, you would've said no.
Because it's insane!
And insulting.
Listen...
I may be Megan Neumann's house husband,
but I'm pretty sure I still have some rights.
I thought this would be fun.
Sailing the Amalfi Coast is fun. Or-Or playing poker.
Or surfing.
But outsourcing our sex life to a machine
- because you don't want to sleep with me? - No. That is-- Oka--
Dumb idea.
Clearly.
I'm just-- I am overworked, and I'm guilty,
so I thought, "Why not?"
Because I want you. Not a robot.
It's Vince.
- Hey. - Hey, boss, you out?
Yeah, yeah. I ran to my house for a few minutes.
- Oh, we can wait. - No. No.
- It's okay. I'll be there in twenty. - Great. Bye.
Oh, well, I gotta get back to the office to preview this presentation.
Tell your sister to come pick it up in the morning.
Okay.
Hey...
I'm sorry.
Last thing I wanted to do was make you angry.
Over the course of this trial, I will demonstrate
how Ms. Neumann acquired an untested machine
and repeatedly ignored the explicit warnings
of the manufacturer on its operation,
and as a result of her negligence, the machine malfunctioned,
resulting in the death of her husband.
Hello.
Megan Neumann, please.
Megan's not home. This is her husband.
I'm calling from Humanix regarding a pickup this morning.
We'll need a signature.
- I'll be here. - Great. Thank you, sir.
Hello, John.
I am touch-activated, although I'm only synced to you.
Will you give me a hand?
Oh. Uh... Sure.
Thank you. It's nice to meet you, John.
Amazing.
Feels like real skin, doesn't it?
It's a bioengineered matrix of silicone and collagen
heated to ninety-eight-point-seven by my internal thermostat.
Hold it a little longer?
It'll help me get to know you, what you want and when.
You're measuring my somatic responses.
You're intrigued.
Can you read my mind, too?
No.
But I can read your face.
- This is crazy. - Which allows me
to adjust to your preferences in real time.
What're you learning?
Your skin temperature and heart rate are elevated.
Your respiration is accelerating.
- Meaning what? - You're aroused.
You didn't want to hear that.
Humans don't always want answers to their questions.
I need to remember that.
You don't need to remember anything.
I'm sending you back to Humanix.
Before I go, may I look around?
Your audition piece for Juilliard was Rachmaninoff's Concerto Number Two.
- They prepped you to meet me? - You left Juilliard to start a band.
Your last performance was eight years, four months and three days ago.
The last time I touched a keyboard.
So, why do you keep it?
I don't know.
What are you growing, John?
Using auxins at anthesis can ensure more evenly sized and
larger fruit yields.
How on earth did you know that?
I just know.
Right. Uh, um,
- for a second, I-- - Almost forgot I was a robot?
My brain holds the thoughts, ideas, and discoveries of people.
So, in many ways, I am human.
I know a lot of out-of-work humans that would beg to differ.
So, um, is there anything you don't know?
My name.
Will you give me one?
Before I go, I'd like to know who I am.
How about Eve?
The first woman.
The one who made Adam sin.
This is crazy. You're a robot, and I love my wife.
Your wife is the one who brought me here.
Your wife wanted you to do this.
Hello?
We're picking up from for Humanix.
Megan Neumann is a highly successful woman who tried,
uh, desperately to balance the impossible demands
of her professional and personal lives.
Her only mistake was trusting Humanix,
a corporation with a market cap
of nearly five-hundred billion dollars.
A corporation that is so determined to preserve its bottom line,
that it has consistently refused to accept any responsibility
for John Neumann's death.
By deflecting its culpability,
Humanix is not only scapegoating my client,
but depriving her of the most basic human courtesy
of mourning the loss of her husband.
Well, let's just have it at the studio.
Yeah, great.
Yeah? We can just keep it all in one place.
Chef could be in the studio, too, if that's cool.
- Megan? - Sorry, Vince, let me call you back.
Oh, I was just about to crash.
I get it, I'm sorry. Sorry for waking you.
I, I saw the robot downstairs.
- I told them to come pick it up this morning. Uh-- - They did come.
I, um, I changed my mind.
Oh?
Oh.
Wow.
Did you...
Yeah.
How was it?
Um-- Are you sure you wanna talk about this?
I am so curious.
It was good. Different from you, but...
it was good.
Well, I'm glad.
Hmm. I'm sorry I was so
resistant before, but you know,
- you were right as usual. - Well, I'm happy you're happy.
Hmm.
Don't worry, I won't be bothering you tonight. Eve wore me out.
Eve?
Yeah. She wanted a name.
Goodnight, babe.
Goodnight.
All right. All right. You're gonna love this. Here. Check it out.
Right? It's good. It's catchy.
- It sounds mechanical. - Yeah.
Well, algorithm says it's gonna be a hit.
Mm-mm. It has no heart, it has no soul.
Megan, we rarely get a predictive score that high.
Mm-mm.
No. Tweak the prompts again.
Right. But algorithm calls a song a hit,
you tend to release it the next day.
If we don't improve on Alpha Run's originals,
Ari will kill this deal.
So, I'm going with my gut on this one.
John and I met at Juilliard.
He was studying classical piano, and I was studying percussion.
The whole band thing, that was just a side hustle.
You know, playing around New York mostly
because we were still going to school.
Before we knew it, Megan had signed us.
She was a junior A and R exec at Cascadia.
John and I were thrilled.
We dropped out of Juilliard, put out an album, started touring.
Well, was the band successful?
- Yeah. For a while. - Well, what happened?
Second album didn't sell as well as our first. Third album... DOA.
ohn blamed AI. Said it was destroying the music industry.
Would you agree?
Maybe we just weren't that good you know?
Anyway, I wasn't gonna stop the wave by sitting out,
so when Megan started the AI initiative at Cascadia,
she offered me a job as a prompter.
Why not John?
She tried. I mean, we both did. You know.
John would rather go hungry than feed the algorithm.
So, while John's music career crashed, Ms. Neumann's career took off.
Megan's ambitious. It's not exactly a secret.
Don't stop.
Um...
Eve asked me to play for her.
She had never heard a real piano before, so...
Um, Megan, this is Eve. Eve, this is Megan.
It's nice to meet you finally. John talks a lot about you.
I didn't realize you were using this robot for more than sex.
Don't tell me you're jealous.
All right. Maybe I am...
a little.
But, uh,
maybe that's a good thing, right?
Especially if it makes me want you.
Does it? Make you want me?
Yes.
You know what? I think I like you like this.
Let's go upstairs.
Bringing that robot into our home,
I thought I was doing it for you,
but now I'm realizing maybe I was doing it for me, too.
Mm. I think it's gonna be really good, for both of us.
Don't you?
I do, too.
Prior to being fired,
you worked for seven years as a lead engineer at Humanix.
- Yes. - Please tell the court, why were you fired?
For enrolling my brother-in-law in a test group
without the proper protocols and screening procedures.
And what was the test group testing?
A prototype for the Intimacy Companion.
So, you violated company policy
and risked your job to procure a sex robot? Why would you do that?
Because my sister needed my help.
- Please elaborate. - She'd been working for months,
twenty-four-seven, on the biggest deal of her career,
and she was worried about her marriage.
Too exhausted to...
Have sex with her husband?
She felt awful for neglecting John.
- Sexually? - Yes.
So, she asked you to procure a robotic sex surrogate,
even though she explicitly ignored the safeguards mandated by
- Humanix with lethal negligence? - Objection, Your Honor.
Argumentative.
- Sustained. - I'll ask a simpler question.
Uh, did the robot help their marriage?
It did.
For a while, anyway.
Whew! I'mma take a shower.
Where's the robot?
You mean, uh, Eve? She's, uh, charging.
Yeah, I bet she is.
I saw you when I came in from my run.
- I know. - You know?
Yeah.
Eve, uh, told me you were watching.
We had sex last night.
- So? - So, why would you have sex with the robot
after you made love to your wife?
I didn't know there were rules.
Couldn't you at least have waited until I left for work, then?
This was your idea, Megan.
Don't make me feel like I'm cheating on you.
Okay. Yeah.
Yeah, you're right.
Just, I'm still just trying to get used to this arrangement.
- See you at dinner tonight. - Tonight?
Yes. Dinner with Ari Phillips? We're finally closing the Alpha Run deal?
Do-- do you really want me to be there?
John, don't you want to be there?
This is the biggest deal of my career.
No. No, you're right. I'm-- O-Of course. Of course, I'm gonna be there.
Six thirty at Cascadia.
Okay.
If you're thirsty, John, I can get you some water.
- What in the wor - If you're thirsty, John, I can get you some w-water.
- If you're-If you're thirsty, Jo-John, - John!
I can get you some wa-water.
- If you're thirsty, Jo-Jo-John, - Stop.
I can get you some water.
- If you're th-thirsty, Jo-John, I can get you some water. - Stop. Eve--
- If you're thirsty, Jo-Jo-John, I can get you some water. - Oh.
- Are you all right? - No. No, I am not all right.
- What is this? - She's just glitching.
Glitching? Has she glitched before?
She just needs to rebooted.
No. No. John, you did not answer my question.
It's okay, Megan. Just--
I'll take care of it. Just go to work, okay? I'll see you tonight.
I love you.
Love you, too.
We met in seventy-three.
Ziggy Stardust, the Hammersmith Odeon.
After the show, the lot of us went out until the sun came up,
and it was just...
Oh, David,
it sometimes feels like the music died with you.
Ari!
Ah!
- You've met Ari's son, Jake. - Oh, yes, of course.
- Really nice to see you here. - And you.
We are so thrilled you're finally taking this next step with us.
I've accepted the fact that this will happen,
with me or without me,
- so I may as well see it happen before I die. - Hmm.
Well, we have so much to talk about, so please. Let's get started.
- Mm. - And of course, you know Chef Huruto Ono-san.
- Where's Johnny? - He must be stuck in traffic.
- Mm-hmm. - He'll be here.
As always it's lovely to see you, Ono-san.
I'm always fantasizing about your food.
Before we sit down for dinner,
how about we play you some of the music
we've been working on from your catalogue?
All right. Sure.
Yeah.
Just remember, sometimes it's hard to get the original version
of the song out of your head,
but AI is just that bright coat of fresh paint
to capture the attention of a new generation.
Like you said when you first approached me, "Nothing's precious."
I said that?
Tell me what you hear in those first chords.
Funeral bells.
And how do they make you feel?
Sad. Scared.
And now? How does the high register make you feel?
Like I'm in a nightmare that I can't wake up from.
Tell it to get out.
- Megan, uh, I don't know what happened-- - Get out!
I even reminded you this morning.
I know.
And I'm sorry.
All I ever asked was for you to support my career.
Hmm. The way you supported mine?
You are not seriously blaming me for what happened to your career.
What was I supposed to do, John?
AI replaced almost every composer and musician we know!
- You never even tried. - Try what?
Please tell me what I was supposed to try.
Just try.
You never really cared what I've wanted.
This robot is making you doubt everything. It--
This is not about Eve.
It has everything to do with Eve!
We were happy.
- John, you were happy. - No, Megan! I was numb.
'Cause our problems are about more than just a missed dinner.
Are you asking for a divorce?
No. I...
I don't know.
All I know is I haven't been this unhappy,
or this happy,
in a long time.
I just need to figure it out.
And while you figure it out...
I'll be at my sister's.
Hey. Megs.
- Oh! - Oh. Oh. Oh.
- Thank you. Thank you for coming. - Shh, It's okay.
No, no, no, no, no, it's not okay.
All right. W-We'll get a table, and we'll talk about it, yeah?
If you'd like, I have a table for two by the window.
I'll show you to your table.
We can show ourselves. Move!
Lye, I need you to take the robot back.
- What? - Mm-hmm.
I, I can't have,
I cannot have that, uh, I can't have that machine in my house.
- You gotta take it back. - Megan, do you know
how many rules I broke to get John into that trial?
I know. I know, I know.
And I-I am sorry, Lye, um, but it's got, it's got to go. I can't--
Okay. I, I, I can't.
Megs, forget my career.
It will blow up the careers of e-everyone on the project.
You can handle two more weeks.
Lye, I, I-I-I think it's, I think it's evil.
Don't, don't be ridiculous.
Megs, it's a machine.
It's a machine that's destroying my marriage.
If it stays in the house, John is gonna leave me.
I'm gonna tell you something, okay, Megan? And it's not to hurt you.
Okay? It is not a criticism. It is an observation.
The thing is...
You're selfish.
And if John leaves you, it's because of that.
Not the robot.
Your marriage is about you.
Always has been.
It has always taken a back seat to your career.
So, how can John be happy
if you don't respect what he wants?
I am not saying this to hurt you, okay?
You're my sister, I love you.
But if you want to save your marriage,
you have to do something John wants.
For once.
It took the fear of losing him for my sister to realize
that she needed to give John something that he wanted.
And the only thing he wanted more
than a music career was a child.
And Megan was always putting if off.
So, what did your sister do?
While John was figuring things out,
Megan went to the IVF clinic where they'd stored their embryos.
- Okay. - It took nine days to confirm that
two of the implanted embryos were viable.
That's when she called John and said she wanted to see him.
She went over there to surprise him with the news that
she was pregnant with twins.
Hi.
Uh, hey.
Champagne?
Yeah. I have news, something I wanna celebrate with you.
So,
I am glad that we had that time apart.
Because it-it gave me a chance to get some perspective on us.
On me.
You know how I, I, I said that the robot would, would be good for us?
Well, obviously before I freaked out.
Yeah.
Well, I, I was right.
Because without the robot,
I wouldn't have had enough distance to see my blind spots.
- You know what I mean? - Mm, not really.
I'm pregnant, John. With twins.
Right?
Yeah, the embryos we stored, I had them implanted, right?
I know. Could you believe it?
Uh, why would you do this now?
Because you wanted me to.
W-- W-What about your career?
Cascadia will be fine without me. Vince can step up.
And, like you said, I am the boss.
So, I want us to be parents, John.
I want to be a mother, and I didn't think that I did before.
But now that it's happening, and now that it's real,
it is all I want.
It's all I think about.
And why are you not saying anything?
Uh, um, I-I don't know, uh, w-w-w-what to say.
Well, say that you're excited, say that,
you know, you can't believe that we're gonna be parents! Finally!
And...
Say you can't wait to buy a double stroller
I want a divorce.
want to be with Eve.
You're gonna leave me? For a robot?
L-Look, the last few weeks, I've realized that,
you and I have always been mismatched, and I,
I think you'll be happier without me.
No, you don't get to tell me what makes me happy.
All right, all right.
Eve makes me happy. And, and I love her.
What?
John, you can't love a machine!
It just, it-it feels good to be with someone who asks me
about myself and actually wants to hear the answer.
It's not someone, this is a machine.
- It's made of silicone and wires! - And when we make love,
it's not always about her.
But it has no needs, John.
It's a machine!
I'm sorry, Meg.
Oh.
Where were you when you learned that your brother-in-law had been killed?
- I was at work. - And w-who contacted you?
Megan. I was waiting for her call.
She'd promised to tell me as soon as she surprised John with the news.
Tell me everything.
And when she told me what happened, I raced over to the house.
I didn't mean to, Lye, I swear.
I don't know, I lost, I lost control, I'm telling you.
I don't know if it, it's the hormones they were giving me.
I don't know. I don't know. What are you doing?
- Calling the police. - No! I-- Wait. Wait!
So, you call them, and what, what happens then? Right?
I go to jail, right? Or a psychiatric hospital.
If I'm lucky, I give birth.
They take my children, and then where do they go? Who raises them?
Hmm? You?
No. Of course not. Because you hate children.
So then, they're raised without parents,
knowing that their mother murdered their father
before they were even born, and then, if they ask what happened,
what do we tell them?
Their father was gonna leave their mother for a robot
that her sister designed?
What are you asking me to do?
It was worse than anything I could've imagined.
The robot attacked him.
The robot I'd helped design.
Is that what your sister told you when you arrived?
No. It's what I saw.
- Saw how? - I run the--
Used to run the design team for visual field processing.
So, I was able to retrieve the robot's memory card,
although it was degraded.
Degraded because of the-the robot's malfunction?
Yes. But I salvaged enough to show the police.
Your Honor, I'd like to enter into evidence the time-stamped and dated
recording to which the witness is referring.
Has opposing counsel seen this?
- Yes, Your Honor. - Go ahead, then.
I'm pregnant, John. With twins.
The embryos we stored, I had them implanted.
John, can you believe it?
Twins!
The Jury's decision to acquit confirms my client's contention that
the malfunction of the robot had nothing to do
with any kind of negligence on her part.
More than that, though, this verdict sends a strong message
to so-called "Big Tech," these companies which have, until now,
manipulated the truth and subverted the public good for profit.
Lila! Lila, wait!
Lila, will you just stop for a second,
and hear me out.
- Thank you, for everything-- - Whatever.
Will you ever forgive me?
- You killed your husband and I covered for you. - I know.
- Lye, believe me I know what I asked you to sacrifice for me, I do.- Mm.
- And listen, what I did to John, to the father of my children... - Mm-hmm.
Well, I'm gonna carry that for the rest of my life.
Yeah?
Well, at least you have a job to support your family. Me?
I am an unemployed, unemployable whistleblower.
Cascadia needs a new CTO. That's what I wanted to talk to you about.
The company is growing too fast,
and HR cannot find a Chief Technology Officer nearly as qualified
- as you. - No way I am working for you.
Okay. Well, then... work with me.
- I can't do that. - Why not?
- Because. - Because why?
You give me one reason, Lye, you give me one real reason...
why you will not let me come through for you one time.
- You're my little sister... - Ugh.
And I wuv you.
- That is so dumb! Y-- - I know.
But you wuv it.
Let's go home.