you No one likes nasty surprises. Like when your favorite artist brings out a concept album that on listening should probably have been kept as just an idea. That's why with QuickCheck, you can check if you're eligible for a Capital One credit card without affecting your credit score. And you'll always know the API you'll get before applying. Credit with no nasty surprises. That's one good thing.
Search Capital One. 34.9% APR representative variable. T's and C's apply. Adobe Express is the quick and easy Create Anything app. It's a game changer for my business. my go-to for creating content. From social posts to images, videos, flyers, whatever I need to stand out. With customizable templates and smart features, it saved me endless hours. And the best bit... It's free. Search for Adobe Express to find out more and get started today.
All eyes in the moonshot were glued to the array of flat screens hanging above the bar. Normally, the displays would show what beers were on tap and how much of each draft was left in the kegs behind the wall. But for this special occasion, the bartender had switched the video feeds to iARPA's secure stream from the first challenge site.
It had been hours since the official end of the challenge, and everyone was wondering, some louder and more drunk than others, what was taking the judges so long to evaluate and score each team's build? The trash-talking back and forth between DevLock and WatchOver employees had threatened to escalate several times.
But in each instance, a physical altercation was avoided, either by a third party stepping in, usually the bartender, sometimes pseudo, or because someone noticed the code overload reporter, Watanabe, poking his nose into the fray. Even though both companies' respective heads had long since departed the moonshot, they would quickly get wind of anything that got live-streamed on the internet. Nobody wanted to lose the challenge, But nobody wanted to lose their job even more.
Finally, less than half an hour before the bartender would legally need to stop serving alcohol, the screens flickered and stopped playing the slideshow of requirements for the first challenge. Emilio had done his best to ignore the slides, but he couldn't completely suppress the hardwired human need to pay attention to moving lights. He thought he might have most of the slides memorized at this point.
Several people began shouting and whooping at the please stand by signs that now glowed above the bar below IARPA Marsite logos. Everyone moved forward to get into position for when there would actually be something to see. Tama looked around. didn't see Cameron, and was about to ask someone if they'd seen them, when the Wunderkind themselves shuffled in from outside, their cheeks red from the cold. What had they been doing outside? They didn't smoke.
Tama waved them over to where the watch over team was clustered. You're just in time, Tama said. You got a drink? Cameron looked around at all the other developers holding pint glasses with varying levels and colors of liquids. Do I need one? You're going to want one for toasting when we find out just how much we dominated.
Tama said, directing the last line at the nearest DevLock programmer. Emilio raised an eyebrow at Tama, then turned to the dark-skinned woman who had just pushed her way up to the bar. Did you hear something just now, Nor? Kind of like an annoying buzzing sound? Nor shook her head, and Tama noticed her cheeks were also pretty rosy. Interesting.
I'm not getting in the middle of this pissing contest, Emilio. It's a building contest, Emilio said, waving up at the screens. And may the best robot win. Robots. Tama hissed, throwing an arm around Cameron. Plural. Strength in numbers. Isn't that right, Cameron? I am very uncomfortable right now. Cameron deadpanned. Sorry. Tama withdrew his arm. I'll get my own drink, thanks. Cameron moved away, but their eyes kept cutting back to the bar, and Nor, if Tama wasn't mistaken.
Another loud murmur rustled through the crowd as the flat screens changed again, the Marsite logo dissolving into a blank grid with obscure column headings. Murmurs became words as the assembled coders attempted to decode the abbreviations and acronyms. ESP? The fuck is that? Someone slurred. Are we looking for psychic powers now?
Electrostatic particles. Someone else chatted back. Martian dust, man. Sticks to everything. IARPA said they were going to simulate it in the challenge. See how well our bots dealt with it. Thought we just had to keep our build from falling over in the wind. Mars has barely any atmosphere, said another voice, and the implied, you idiot, was clear in the speaker's tone.
Winds, not the problem. Reduced visibility and sunlight is. No solar power, no line of sight, came yet another voice. That's why our bots needed to be able to make decisions based on limited input signals. That's right, fully autonomous. Two raised hands met in a loud high five at the end of the bar. Your mom's fully autonomous.
When the grid began filling with numbers, Tama forgot about watching Cameron to see if they were, in fact, trying to get closer to Noor. On screen, the far left column remained empty. It seemed that the company names wouldn't appear until after all the data was shared. Holy shit, that can't be right, someone said. Are those numbers right? Can we ask for a recount?
It's not an election, dipshit, came another voice. Judge's decision is final. Damn, said someone else. That's a big gap between first and second place. Names! Another person shouted, show us the names. That started a chant of names, names, names. which continued and grew louder until the far left column of the score grid began populating with company names, starting at the bottom and going upward.
The entire bar fell into silence while the bottom half of the grid filled in. Tama had to hand it to whoever was running this show at IARPA. They sure knew how to build suspense. The murmuring began again when only the top three places were still blank, and neither DevLock nor Watchover's names had appeared yet. Hero was panning his camera around the room, recording people's reactions.
While the watch over murmuring seemed hopeful, the DevLock noises were more disgruntled. Everyone had expected DevLock to score pretty high. But DevLock clearly hadn't expected an upstart like WatchOver to make it this far up the leaderboard. The number three spot filled in, Ty Young Corp. The murmuring grew louder. The number two spot filled, and the room went completely quiet. DevLock. Number one was watch over by a huge margin.
Before anyone could react, a variety of buzzes, beeps, and ringtones began going off all around the room. The crowd dispersed as people checked their phones. Everyone had an idea of what to expect, but now they had to do something. Tama high-fived a couple of watch-over coders on his way to gloat at Emilio. The devlock programmer held out his hand for a contrite shake.
Congratulations, Emilio said. You're the ones to beat now. Yeah, no rest for the wicked. Tama held up his phone. Bosses want us back to talk about next steps. You can say party. Emilio said. It's okay. Tama grinned. What about you lockers? Back to the drawing board? Well, if I know our glorious leader, Emilio said, looking down at his phone. This impromptu all-hands meeting is not going to be fun for any of us.
Cameron got up to the bar as the exodus continued, but kept their distance from Noor. It wouldn't be good for either of them if that reporter caught Cameron and Noor becoming too friendly on camera. especially now that the rivalry between their companies was heating up. Cameron couldn't help but smile, thinking of Romeo and Juliet. Sometimes the forbidden fruit was the most tempting.
The few people lingering behind to study the scoreboard were surprised when the iARPA feed switched to a series of short video clips showing the final results of each team's build. It looked like IARPA had used drones to do fly-by-passes of each structure. The clips were presented in the same bottom-up order as the score grid had filled. Not deep enough.
Someone said, pointing up at a toppled over structure. They needed a better foundation there. A lot of these are collapsed, said someone else. That can't be from wind, can it? Using construction materials found on site... Noor said, quoting the challenge specifications. The bots had to analyze what they were digging up and decide what to use for building. Poor sensors, maybe? Or not enough time, Cameron said, risking a glance over at Noor.
We only had 48 hours to land, dig, and build something to survive the storm. Noor looked back at them, and Cameron clutched the edge of the bar to keep themselves from lunging over there for another kiss. Additional commentary buzzed through the crowd with each successive video clip. Some of the competitors hadn't found the subsurface water at all.
Other systems had found the water, but been unprepared to handle the flow of liquid out of the ground. More than a few structures were toppled over in puddles of mud. There's DevLock, the first commenter pointed up at the screens. Still standing. Looks like only minor damage. Looks like a Borg cube, said the second commenter. Ugly as fu- It's a building contest, not a beauty contest, retorted the first commenter.
Fuck me, Thomas said, coming up to the bar next to Cameron. What the fuck is that? The screen now showed what Watchover's bots had built, and it was nothing like any of the other structures. Most of the teams had constructed basic shapes, cubes or pyramids or domes, things that were easy to model with simple mathematics. But Watchover's build was anything but simple.
A large dome rose in the center of a dugout crater, supported by four spherical triangular arches beneath. Four tall, thin towers rose around the perimeter of the dome. It took Noor a few seconds to recognize the building. Haya Sophia, she said. What? Emilio said behind her. Noor repeated the name. In Turkey.
Istanbul, former mosque, that's a, that's the same architecture. The arches give it away. Pendentives, that's what they're called. She's right. Tama held up his phone, showing an image of the monument. He looked at Cameron. Our bots decided to build an ancient church on Mars? Architecture, Cameron said, trying to sound nonchalant while drumming their fingers on the bar.
We gave E a database of building techniques. They chose which ones to implement. It was a purely technical decision, not an aesthetic one. Are you sure? Tama pointed at the screen. Cause that is a fucking work of art. Form follows function, Nor said, turning to Cameron. Cameron gripped the bar with both hands, catching Noor's look and remembering the kiss on the rooftop and wanting more. So much more. Every phone in the bar began buzzing and ringing again.
Tama and Emilio herded their respective colleagues out, ignoring any protests, suddenly reminded that their two companies were arch rivals now. Sudo emerged from the back room just as the last person left the bar, carrying a tray with a single highball glass on it. The glass was filled with a blue liquid, and a white vapor rolled off the top and cascaded down onto the tray before dissipating. What have you got there, buddy? The bartender knelt down to inspect the drink.
Sudo barked softly, and a name scrolled across its display. I'm afraid everyone's left for now. The bartender dipped a finger in the drink and tasted it. You came up with this one yourself? Sudo barked again and displayed the recipe. Huh, the bartender said. They didn't ask for dry ice. You picked that. Another bark. The bartender glanced up at the screens, then back at Sudo. Things just got a lot more interesting, didn't they?
Wynne Mallory didn't recognize the incoming number that lit up her phone's screen, but it was from an area code and prefix that she knew iARPA used. She answered the call. This is Wynne Mallory. You know they cheated, don't you? Are you investigating this outrage? Mr. Lowell. Wynne opened her desk drawer and pulled out a bottle of ibuprofen for the headache she knew she'd have after this call.
This would be inappropriate contact, even if you weren't spoofing your number. I'm hanging up now. No, wait! She disconnected the call and put her phone back in the drawer with the bottle, then closed the drawer and downed two tablets with water, ignoring the buzzing from inside her desk.
Wynn opened the file for the second Marsite challenge, which was waiting for her final review before it went to the next stage. She stared at it for a few minutes before giving up and going back to the results of the first trial.
Damn it, Trey, she muttered while scrolling through the data again. It wasn't that he was getting on her nerves. The problem was he had gotten into her head. Ever since Watchover's participation had been made public, DevLock, mostly Trey Lowell himself, had been pestering IARBA about alleged irregularities with the newer company.
First, their legal counsel had gone through the Mars site guidelines with a fine-toothed comb, looking for any language that would disqualify watch over from competing. And, when that hadn't panned out... Trey had moved on to more serious accusations of corporate espionage. Wynn knew that Trey had a personal grudge against Watchover's co-founders.
But she also knew that he wouldn't go to these lengths and stay angry for such a long time if he didn't feel there was some rational basis to his complaints. Not that he always expressed that in the best way, but he wasn't an idiot. And Wynne couldn't afford even the appearance of impropriety or favoritism during this competition. This was her watch, her big show, and if anything wasn't totally by the book, she'd be skinned alive for not catching it.
The watch over drones had done something so spectacular, so far beyond any of the other construction projects, that there were sure to be questions. Had they gotten access to confidential IRPA data that helped them gain an advantage? Was Wynne incompetent? Or helping them cheat? Or both? And if she didn't have something to back up her denials when accused... Damn it. Wynn wasn't going to get to sleep anytime soon. Code Overload Magazine. Embedded Reporter Life Log Entry 891.
Okay, so here I am talking to myself again. Small price to pay, I suppose, for this level of access to the inner workings here at DevLock. Don't know how much of this footage they'll ever let me share, but it's good background, if nothing else. Since the lighting in here is so bad and code overload won't let me use the infrared mode on this camera, something about privacy laws, I don't know, write a letter to the editor if you want, friends. Let me just narrate the scene.
Also, for myself, in case I forget. Though that seems unlikely. Tonight's been pretty unforgettable so far. Who da funk watch over would win this first challenge? And by such a huge margin? The mood here in the DevLock Auditorium isn't great, I'll be honest. Trey Lowell called this unscheduled all-hands meeting right after the results were announced.
Usually, these assemblies are all about Trey congratulating himself in front of a crowd. They go pretty much as you'd expect. Raw, raw stuff about how his brilliant leadership benefits everyone working for him. And the unspoken subtext is always that these people are lucky to have a job here. But now that WatchOver has taken an early lead, and everyone knows a lot of their best coders came from DevLock when the companies split,
Like I said, the mood is a little different. Oop, there's Trey's trademark entrance music. And here comes the man himself. And the speech. Wow. Oh man, it is a crying shame I can't livestream this. Stupid NDAs. But it's deep background, right? I'm going to see if I can get better audio. Upstarts. They weren't even in the running a few months ago, and now they've beaten everyone? Including us? This is unacceptable. End transmission.
Denise Cho split her attention between Trey ranting on stage and the 30-second timer she'd set to let him blow off some steam. She had tried to talk him out of fronting this all hands, but the five minutes he'd spent in hair and makeup hadn't been enough time for her to talk him down. On the other hand, she knew how much being in front of an audience fueled his ego, and maybe that would make him a little happier in the short term. I want each and every one of you to take a minute.
Trey pointed out into the crowd, and Denise had to admit that he was an effective speaker. Think about how hard you've worked to get to this point, and then think about how you can do better. Not just for me. For each other. For everyone on the DevLock team who's dedicated years of their life to building the best AI system on this planet or any other. Scattered applause sounded around the auditorium, but Trey interrupted it.
And I promise you, we will find out how watch over his cheating, and we will put a stop to it. Shit, Denise muttered. Ten seconds remained on the timer, but that was ten seconds too long given where Trey was headed. She turned to the stage manager behind her. Cut his mic. The young woman looking back at Denise with dinner plate eyes looked barely old enough to drink. I'm sorry, Miss Cho? Cut Mr. Lowell's microphone, Denise said. Now, I'll take responsibility.
She turned and strode onto the stage without waiting for a response. Trey was starting to veer into conspiracy theory territory, and Denise wasn't going to let him go all the way off the rails in front of the entire company. Thank you, Trey, she said, just as his microphone went dead. I'm Denise Cho, head of compliance here at DevLock, and I promise you, we will get to the bottom of this. Now, Trey has some important business to attend to.
She gave him a stern look. But I'll stay and answer any questions you might have about the current situation. Thank you, Trey. Let's all give him a hand. Denise started the applause, won the staring contest with Trey, and took over the stage as another assistant ushered him off into the wings.
Wandering through the back rows of the standing room-only auditorium, Hiro Watanabe slowed to eavesdrop on a conversation between three programmers who were paying more attention to their tablets than the presentation on stage. You see how the structure is oriented, Barath said, highlighting part of the aerial photos that IARPA had released to all the teams. Y-3 paid attention to the weather forecast.
It faced the corner into the wind, so it would be more aerodynamic. Yeah, Emilio agreed, and it reinforced that windward corner. Look at these measurements. But this is supposed to be a permanent structure. Noor said. The wind doesn't only blow in one direction all the time. Mars isn't Earth, Amelia said. No water, no geological activity. The winds actually tend to... Hey!
Baroth noticed the reporter looking over their shoulders and waved him away. This is a private conversation. Hero held up both his hands. I signed an NDA. Well, I didn't sign a release. Go away. Hero took a few discreet steps back and half turned away, watching the trio out of the corner of his eye. Emilio turned to Noor. Do you see anything else here, Noor? Noor? Sorry, what? Noor blinked at Emilio. Emilio squinted at her. What were you just thinking about? Noor shrugged.
Hiya, Sophia. Yeah, that was impressive. Emilio agreed. But you're on our team, remember? Let's work this problem. He tapped his tablet. We can do better. Of course. Noor joined the conversation, but Hero could tell that her head was still far away. Damn, she was cute. He wondered what, or who, she was thinking about. Cameron couldn't stop thinking about the kiss. The main cafeteria at Watchover, a two-story open area with balconies overlooking it, was the perfect place for a party.
And this was the biggest one that had happened here, despite it being such short notice. Nobody had expected WatchOver's bots to do as well as they did in the first challenge. Periodic chants of, we're number one, were interspersed with whooping and laughter as the gathered employees made short work of several crates of champagne.
Cameron paced around the space, threading their way between clusters of celebration, toasting and hugging when prompted, but otherwise lost in their own thoughts. First and foremost, there was Knorr. That kiss. Oh, that kiss. And also, how hot was it that she recognized the higher Sophia from just a few seconds of hazy drone footage? Super hot. But every time Cameron remembered that sight, it also triggered a much less pleasant memory.
of watching another robotic system do something completely wrong, devastating a section of the desert before anyone could do anything to stop it. Everyone at Bastion had spent so much time analyzing the incident, trying to figure out what went wrong, but they had never been able to diagnose what actually caused the malfunction.
The best they had been able to do was add in more safeguards to prevent that type of destruction in the future. And that's what worried Cameron now. Even though the swarm was performing much better than DevLock's AI system ever had, You couldn't argue with first place. They still had no idea why the bots had chosen to build a replica of the Hagia Sophia. That was a problem.
Even if you got good results, if you didn't know how those results were produced, you might not be able to reproduce them. How did they know this wasn't another fluke? That they hadn't just gotten lucky this time? And maybe they wouldn't be so lucky next time. Cameron! Cameron looked up to see Stephanie and Lakshmi standing in front of them. All three embraced, then toasted and drank.
Cameron felt a little lightheaded. I was just thinking, they said, when we debriefed the swarm. Hey, no! Stephanie waggled a finger in front of Cameron's face. This is a party! No talking shop at a party. But it's a work party. Don't argue, Lakshmi said, laughing. None of your adorable self-doubt tonight. Tonight, you are only allowed to think about how freaking awesome today was, Stephanie said, tapping her champagne flute against Cameron's plastic cup.
And tomorrow, you'd better come in super late and hungover. That's an order. Cameron smiled. Yes, ma'am. They sipped their champagne and imagined another set of lips against their own. Ready to launch your business? Get started with the commerce platform made for entrepreneurs. Shopify is specially designed to help you start, run, and grow your business with easy, customizable themes that let you build your brand. Marketing tools that get your products out there.
integrated shipping solutions that actually save you time from startups to scale-ups online in person and on the go shopify is made for entrepreneurs like you sign up for your one dollar a month trial at shopify.com slash promo No one likes nasty surprises. Like when your favorite artist brings out a concept album that on listening should probably have been kept as just an idea.
That's why with QuickCheck, you can check if you're eligible for a Capital One credit card without affecting your credit score. And you'll always know the API you'll get before applying. Credit with no nasty surprises. That's one good thing. Search Capital One. 34.9% APR representative variable. T's and C's apply.
Our first date. Technically, it was your opening move on Bumble that started it. Describe our first date in five words. Or your reply to that. Tomorrow, let me surprise you. I think it finished at that place across town, right? You know, the only one still open? That was a surprise. I just wasn't ready to go home yet, you know? Yeah, I definitely wasn't either. It was a lot for first dates, but really fun. It started with an opening move. Try a new way to start the chat on Bumble. Download now.
A shard of sunlight pierced the east-facing window of Emilio's office, and Nora blinked and sat up in her chair. What time is it? Emilio lifted his head and blinked. Whenever sunrise is in the desert. And when is our post-mortem due? Now he actually checked the clock in the corner of his computer screen. Fourteen whole minutes from now. Nora scooted her chair closer to Emilio's workstation.
Trey's decree had come shortly after the all-hands ended, requiring every department to submit a post-mortem report by sunrise on why DevLock had lost the first challenge. A second message had followed less than a minute later. clarifying the precise time those reports were due, and Noor was sure that Denise Cho was involved in that latter communication.
Everyone in Balrath's programming section had paired up to do their part of the analysis, and Emilio invited Noor to join him, since they'd already started looking over the construction methods their AI had chosen to employ. Another team would provide an analysis of the available construction materials found on site.
But assuming the AI had good information about the compounds it could use for building, Emilio and Noor were supposed to look at whether the specific shapes and fittings it chose were appropriate to the task. And if they weren't, to recommend improvements to the code base for future challenges. We actually didn't do that badly, Nora said, sending Emilio her part of the report. When you look at the numbers, I mean...
We came in second, and we beat number three on just about every metric. Trey won't be happy with anything less than being number one, Emilio said, combining their reports into a single document. Seems like there's a lot to unpack there. Not really. Bah-Roth appeared in the doorway and wrapped his knuckles on the glass. Are your debriefs almost ready? Sending now, Emilio said. Good.
And by the way, we are staying away from the moonshot for a while. Noor looked up. Excuse me? Our superiors are concerned about possible information leaks, Bharat said. I don't want anyone getting drunk and accidentally spilling company secrets. I don't think that's what our superiors meant, Nor said. They're already looking into the old codebase, Bharath said.
If Watch over took any proprietary data when they split from DevLock, compliance will figure it out, but we shouldn't take any chances from this point forward either. Where are we supposed to unwind then? Emilio asked. You know there isn't another decent bar for a hundred miles around. Bharath shrugged. You're all very creative. I'm sure you'll figure it out. He moved on to remind the next office to send their report.
Emilio shook his head, stood, and stretched. Well, I'm going to get some sleep. Good work, Nor. Yeah. She followed him out of the office. See you later. Nora turned the corner, made sure Baroth was nowhere in sight, and pulled out her phone to send a text message. Can't go to Moonshot tonight. Where else can we meet? Hiro Watanabe reluctantly stopped his live stream recording.
Even if he couldn't rebroadcast this particular bit, it would be invaluable background for the book he planned to write next year. But he had to walk the fine line between appeasing and antagonizing the subjects of his reportage. and being granted access to Trey Lowell's private office was an opportunity he didn't want to ruin. Okay, it's off. He made a show of sealing his headset in his bag. Thank you. Denise turned back to Trey.
Are you sure you don't just want Mr. Watanabe to leave? He doesn't need to be here for this. This embedded reporter thing was your idea, Trey shot back, and I want a neutral third party here as a witness. We're on the same side. Denise said. I'm following through on the non-compete investigation. It's just going to take some time. We don't have time to waste, Trey said. IARBA isn't going to push their schedule for the challenges.
I want watch over disqualified before they can make any more headlines. You're assuming they've cheated. We don't know. We do know. Trey roared, standing. How else could they possibly have beaten us? Do you actually believe they spun up an entire goddamn tech company in less than a year? Do you believe that their coders are that much better than ours? Denise hesitated. Some of their coders used to be ours.
Trey pounded his desk with a fist. Exactly. You think they didn't walk with some of our data? They used us to give themselves a head start. You're going to prove it before the next challenge is announced. Denise glanced at Hero before responding, and he was keenly aware of how carefully she spoke next. That's only a few days from now. I'm not going to tell you how to do your job, Trey said, sitting down.
I trust you to figure it out on your own, Denise. His tone of voice made it clear that the conversation was over. Denise gestured to Hiro, and they left the office together. So, can I ask... Hiro started as they walked down the hall. Now, Denise said, talk to me tomorrow. Nico Shaw had been on many investor calls, including several with less than sober participants. But he had to admit, this was a first. Both company founders severely hung over after a long night of partying.
and they weren't even former frat boys. Fortunately, most of the others on the call seemed to want to talk more than either Stephanie or Lakshmi. many of them to congratulate the pair on their success in the first Marsite Challenge, and more than a few to not-so-subtly pat themselves on the back for supporting WatchOver. But of course, in the end, everyone wanted to know about the bottom line. Winning these IARPA challenges was great for publicity.
But how was Watchover planning to leverage that into actual business opportunities here on Earth? We are going to eat Trey Lowell's lunch, Stephanie said before Nico could stop her. He muted the call. grateful that they weren't streaming video, and scowled at her. This is being recorded, Nico reminded her.
Stephanie pointed at the speakerphone in the center of the conference table, which was transmitting the sounds of laughter from at least four different investors. The crowd seems to like it. I got this. Lakshmi unmuted the call. We've shown that we've built a better mousetrap. It's only a matter of time before the world beats a path to our door. Interesting analogy, one investor drawled.
Niko scrolled through his tablet, trying to put a name to the voice. A mousetrap only does one thing, and your A.I.s only won one challenge. There's only been one challenge, Lakshmi said. We are confident that we'll continue to do well. Even though you don't know what's coming down the pike? Bring it on, Stephanie said. Nico muted the call again. Seriously?
he said, glaring at both women. We're supposed to be the grown-ups around here, a female voice asked. I'd like to talk about possible immediate applications for this technology. Construction seems like an obvious one. I'll take this, Nico said, raising a warning finger and unmuting the call with his other hand.
Yes, absolutely. We're already putting together a software product for AI-assisted architecture design, with a special focus on disaster recovery. Stephanie and Lakshmi exchanged a look, and Stephanie opened her mouth. I don't recall, Nico jabbed his finger toward her. That wasn't in Watchover's original development plans, but given the results of this first challenge and the increase in extreme weather events causing severe property damage around the globe, it is a clear opportunity.
We'd be fools to ignore it. He gave Stephanie a hard stare as he said the last sentence. She nodded at him. But, just to be clear, this is not a pivot for the company. We are still 100% focused on the primary goal of winning the Marsite Challenge and being the first private company to put commercial robots on Mars.
But that work will not prevent us from pursuing other opportunities to grow the business, Nico said. We are always operating with the long-term goal of building this company to last. But, Lakshmi added, Of course, colonizing Mars is the ultimate long-term goal, not just for us, but for all of humanity. Nico muted the call again. Just to remind both of you.
This is an investor call, not a TED talk. We want these people to give us money, and they only do that if they think we're going to make money for them. Mars is going to make money for all of us, Stephanie said. It's planet money. Nico waved sharply as another question came over the call, and he started to answer. Stephanie's phone buzzed, and she picked it up to look at the message before Nico could wave her off. Oh, shit.
Stephanie stood and turned to the door. I need to take this. She walked out without another word. Nico took a moment between sentences to mouth, What? at Lakshmi, who shrugged in response. Maybe we could put simplicity on the call, she stage whispered, indicating the HR robot that was standing guard outside the conference room. Nico suppressed a groan and went back to answering the question about finances. That, at least, he understood.
Stephanie surprised herself by remembering the way out to the missing Mesa site, especially since she was still massively hungover. The coffee she'd grabbed on her way out of the watch over offices was helping, but seeing the location, where the AI had literally disassembled a natural rock formation, sobered her up even faster. She parked a few feet away from Denise's SUV, not wanting to seem too eager for this meeting.
There were very few messages that could have gotten her attention in the middle of all this celebrating and planning, and even fewer that would get Stephanie to meet someone alone in the middle of the desert. But Denise Cho knew all the players in this game very well. And, as the old saying went, game recognize game. The wind picked up as Stephanie stepped out of her car.
Denise opened her own door and walked over until she stood halfway between the cars and maybe 20 feet from the edge of the still discolored area that the swarm had altered. Fancy meeting you here. Stephanie said as she walked over to Denise, hoping she wasn't stumbling too much. A real doozy of a headache was throbbing inside her skull. I wasn't sure you'd come, Denise said.
Stephanie chuckled. Yeah, you were. You knew that message would get my attention. But that only works once, so I'm guessing this is really important. I'll cut to the chase, Denise said. Am I going to find any of DevLock's code in Watchover's systems? Stephanie stared at her for a moment. Trey's still barking up that tree? It's not just him, Denise said. Come on, Steph.
You have to realize how this looks. That thing your robots built? Either you got lucky or… or what? Stephanie took a step forward. Or our AI was smart enough to find publicly available plans on the internet and use them as a model for designing a new structure? Sure, it was unexpected. That doesn't mean we did anything wrong.
Unexpected, Denise repeated. That's what I was afraid of. What the hell are you talking about? Something Trey said earlier today, Denise said. He put me on this non-compete investigation. Gave me a deadline, but didn't tell me exactly how to conduct the investigation. Told me to figure it out on my own. You won't find anything. Not my point, Denise snapped. He told me to figure it out on my own.
And that's what your AI did. It acted without your direct guidance and did something unexpected. Stephanie resisted the urge to massage her temples. What's your point, Denise? Denise gestured at the discolored patch of desert. That was unexpected, too. And if your engineers don't have a better handle on their code this time around, I don't have time for this. Stephanie turned to leave.
This isn't going to just go away, Denise called after her. Stephanie turned back. Trey wants answers. You know how tenacious he is. Yeah, I do. Stephanie shook her head. What I don't know is how you can work for him. I work for DevLock, Denise said. They needed my help after your pal Lakshmi did such a bang-up job on compliance. She was in the wrong position there.
And now? She's found her place, Stephanie said. It sounds like you're still figuring out where you fit into Trey's master plan. Can I give you some free advice? Can I stop you? Trey's going to believe whatever he wants to believe, Stephanie said. It doesn't matter what the evidence is or isn't. You can't prove a negative, and he's always going to think there's something out there he just hasn't found yet. Your real problem is him, not us. I suggest you focus your efforts accordingly.
She made it back to her car before the nausea became too overwhelming and watched Denise drive off first. Then Stephanie puked just a little into her coffee cup. Game night? Thomas shouted as he wandered into the coder's bullpen. Who's coming to game night? Is that still happening? A spiky-haired girl asked.
I heard that DevLok prohibited their people from visiting the Moonshot until the next challenge. They are welcome to forfeit the next round of our Dorga tournament, Tama said. Their bosses being uptight isn't our problem. That got some laughs and cheers in response. Cameron stopped their debugging and pulled out their phone. There were several texts from Noor, which Cameron had both been hoping for and dreading.
Hoping for because they wanted to know that Noor was as into them as they were into her. And dreading. Because they weren't sure what was going to happen now that the corporate rivalry was also heating up. Cameron scrolled through the messages and smiled, composing the perfect response. Would you like to play a game? Noor found Emilio at the coffee station. Hey, I have a question. About the code? Shoot, Emilio said, stirring honey into his drink. No, about the moonshot, Noor said.
I'm hearing a lot of people talking about going there tonight, but I thought the bar was off-limits. It's game night, Emilio said. We won't technically be at the bar. It doesn't count. Nora raised an eyebrow. Is that what Baroth thinks? Emilio leaned in conspiratorially. Baroth doesn't need to know what we do on our personal time. Agreed. Nor smiled.
You, sir, are a bad influence. Emilio shrugged. I've been called worse. Carpool later? Sure. Emilio wandered back to his office, and Nora put her back to the wall and pulled out her phone. So, what game do you want to play? After all that Christmas shopping, why not treat yourselves to the Big Tasty from McDonald's with or without bacon? Go on. You deserve it. Available until the 5th of Jan. Served from 11am. Participating restaurants only. Subject to availability.
This is an ad from BetterHelp. This holiday season, do something for a special person in your life. You. Give yourself the gift of better mental health. BetterHelp Online Therapy connects you with a qualified therapist via phone, video or live chat. It's convenient and affordable and can be done from the comfort of your own home. Having someone to talk to is truly a gift, especially during the holidays. Visit betterhelp.com to learn more and save 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com.
The door to the moonshot opened, and Sudo emitted two short, sharp barks. The robot dog was sitting just inside the entryway, and the bartender poked his head out from behind the bar to see who had just entered. Two more DevLock programmers, easily identified by their work wardrobe. Here for game night? The bartender asked. Uh, yeah, the taller of the two men said.
They both stood just inside the door, blocked by Sudo from moving farther into the bar. Not going to forfeit the Durga tournament, the other man said. We've invested too much time. The bartender nodded.
Thomas got you set up in the back corner. Sudo, let him through. The dog moved aside, wagging the segmented... tail that Smits had added to counterbalance its audio-slash-visual-enabled head, and the two men ordered drinks on their way to joining Tama and the others at the large table in the back corner.
They were still missing a couple of people on each team, and they passed the time by asking each other questions from the bar's stash of trivia cards and complaining about the inaccurate or misleading phrasing of the questions. So far, except for the lack of other patrons, it was a pretty normal game night. Cameron observed all this activity from a small round table against the back wall.
They had started setting up the board for the Moonshot's copy of Glampocene and were re-reading the rules for the third time, trying to figure out where all the game pieces were supposed to start out. They were starting to wonder whether these rules were really badly written, or if they were just really nervous about meeting Noor. Sudo barked again, and Cameron looked up again to see Emilio and Noor.
After clearing their entrance with the bartender, Emilio made a beeline for the corner table, where his teammates welcomed him loudly. Nor, meanwhile, crouched down and fed Pseudo another program before walking over to join Cameron. What trick are you teaching the dog tonight? Cameron asked as Nor sat down. Should they have stood up?
Offered her a hug? Were they going to be second-guessing themselves all night long? Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe Cameron wasn't ready for this. Also, how was this going to look to their respective co-workers? The Montagues and Capulets hadn't exactly been rooting for Romeo and Juliet to get together, and there was definitely bad blood between Devlock and Watchover. It's a surprise, Noor said, smiling.
Nice to see you again. She reached out and touched Cameron's hand, and all of Cameron's fears melted away. So, Noor said, what's this game? Glampocene? Yeah. Cameron said, suddenly at a loss for words. It's, uh, pretty highly rated on BGG. For a two-player only game. BGG? Board Game Geek. This has, like, a 7.5 rating. And that's good? I mean, it's rated by geeks. They mostly hate everything. Boggle only gets a 6 out of 10. Okay, so how do we play this game?
Nora leaned forward, and Cameron couldn't stop noticing how the reflections from the lights twinkled in her dark eyes. Well, I'm still arranging the board. Cameron pointed at the pile of painted wooden pieces in the box. Those have to go somewhere. Hmm. Nora picked up one of the pieces, an irregular shape painted red. This one looks like a unicycle? Cameron consulted the rulebook.
That's a wheelbarrow. Nor held up another piece. And this one's a duck? That's a rabbit. I don't know, Nor said with a crooked smile. This game might be too complicated for me. Cameron shrugged and indicated the shelf behind Nor. There's a whole library to choose from. Nor shook her head. You picked this one. I want to at least give it a try. She picked up a third piece and hopped it up Cameron's arm. I'm just warning you, be gentle with me.
Lakshmi stood in Stephanie's open doorway for a moment, waiting to see if she'd noticed the figure hovering at the entrance to her office. When there was no reaction, Lakshmi wrapped her knuckles on the door jamb. Stephanie jerked upright in her chair and turned around. Don't do that, Stephanie said, smoothing her blouse. You scared me half to death. Why are you so nervous?
Lakshmi walked in and sat down on the other side of Stephanie's desk. And why are you here so late? I thought we were taking it easy until the next challenge. Stephanie tapped a control on her desktop to close her office door, then render the glass door and windows opaque. Look at this. Lakshmi sat forward as Stephanie stood up her tablet, facing Lakshmi.
It showed a map of the Watchover facilities and the surrounding desert area, all the way out to DevLock. Two clusters of glowing dots showed around Watchover and the moonshot. Should we really be looking at this? It's fine. Doors locked. Shields are up. Stephanie pointed to the cluster of dots at the moonshot. You see where all those people are. Lakshmi sighed. It's Thursday. Game night. But...
Stephanie raised a finger. Word on the street is that DevLock ordered their coders not to go to the moonshot to prevent any possible information leaks. Yeah, I'm sure a bunch of engineers will follow orders. And what does that have to do with our people? Lakshmi asked. Wait. Please don't tell me you've also started tracking DevLock employees somehow. Of course not.
But why would Tama and his crew be there? Stephanie used two fingers to zoom in on the moonshot, causing numbered labels to appear next to some of the dots. If the Durga tournament wasn't happening... To play games? Like they do every week. Look at where they're sitting, all on one side of the table. Okay, stop. Lakshmi took away the tablet and closed its cover. This is not why we set up this system. You're obsessing. Stephanie frowned at her. I am watching over our people.
That's why we set this up. An individual may not see the bigger picture, but if we keep a bird's eye view, we can help to keep them out of trouble. What? You think there's going to be a rumble at game night? Lakshmi stood and waved toward the door. Come on, get up. Stephanie stood hesitantly. Where are we going? You're going home. I'm sure Marta could use your help with something. Kids?
Dishes? Sex? When's the last time you checked your phone? Stephanie's eyes widened, and she turned and fished around in her jacket until she found her phone. Oh, shit. I gotta go. Stay away until after sunrise, for God's sake. Lakshmi called after Stephanie as she hurried out the door.
Once Stephanie's footsteps had receded down the stairs, Lakshmi turned off the tracking app on the tablet and unopaked the office windows. If Trey didn't want his employees fraternizing with the competition, that was his problem. And if Watchover didn't do anything to help mitigate that... All's fair in love and war, Lakshmi said, locking Stephanie's computer and turning off her office lights.
A loud, long bark startled both Cameron and Noor, and they turned to look at the corner of Moonshot, where the Dorga tournament was happening. Several of the players were standing, apparently in the middle of an argument, when Sudo had put its front legs up on the table, very precisely, not upsetting anything on the game board, but very clearly interrupting. The bartender moseyed over with his arms folded.
If you can't work things out more quietly, you'll have to take it outside. Sorry, Emilio said, tugging at one of the debater's sleeves. The other man sat down. We'll settle our scores on the tabletop. Emilio looked around at all the other DevLock players. Agreed? A murmur of assent went around the table.
Everyone sat down again, and Sudo retreated, following the bartender back to the bar, hydraulic joints whirring softly. A few more small groups had started games of their own, and Cameron and Noor returned to theirs. I'm glad we're getting along, Nor said. Yes, Cameron said. Everyone should follow our fine example. Nor smiled. If only they would. Okay, seriously though.
Cameron pointed at the open box. Pick a color and take all the tokens of that color. Nor picked up the box and rattled it. What color do you want? You pick first. I'm just curious. Nora tilted the box toward Cameron. I want to know what you like. Cameron was sure someone had raised the temperature in here. There's like five different colors in there. I'll be fine. You pick first. If you insist. Nor put the box down. Hmm. I could pick green. Like the color of your eyes.
Cameron scoffed. They're not that green. True. Nor picked up a blue piece. Or blue? Like the drink you had the other night? What was it called again? Skylab. And... And of course, Noor said, picking up another piece, there's always red. Fiery, passionate, red like a rose. Cameron reminded themselves to speak to the bartender about fixing the thermostat.
Some roses are yellow. That's a thing. Hmm. Nor picked up a purple piece. This is a nice color for flowers, too. Orchids. Are you familiar with an artist named... Georgia O'Keeffe? Cameron was sure their face was now the color of those red tokens. Fortunately, they were saved from having to respond by the appearance of Sudo, carrying two mixed drinks.
The dog yipped and extended its serving tray toward Cameron and Noor's table. Why, thank you, Sudo. Noor took both drinks and looked at Cameron. Are we supposed to tip the dog? Cameron patted Sudo's head. and the dog barked and trotted off. Dogs don't care about money. Fair point. Noor handed Cameron one of the drinks and raised her own glass. To learning new games.
They clinked glasses, and Cameron took a sip of the orange liquid inside. There was a definite citrus tang, a kind of peppery bite, and more than a little sweetness. Your recipe? Yep! Cameron took another sip. I don't taste any alcohol. Is that a problem? Oh, no, Cameron said. I'm not a big drinker. This is nice. What's in it? Noor shrugged.
Sugar, spice, everything nice. Cameron took another gulp of their drink. So, the game. Before we get too far into that, Nor said, I need to ask you a personal question. Cameron put their drink down. Okay. How do you feel about cryptography? Cameron smiled. I'm a fan. Nora took out her phone and brought up an app. Not to seem paranoid or anything, but I thought... No, that's a great idea, Cameron said. Privacy is important. Very important. For very many reasons. I'll stop talking now.
They pulled out their own phone, brought up the same crypto app, and set it to share their public key. Nora bumped her phone against Cameron's, and they both sent a test message to each other to verify that the exchange had worked. Cameron's message was a simple, hello world. Nor's was a little racier. Um, Cameron said. I... Wow. Really? Nor nodded.
Really, really? She moved her leg under the table, touching Cameron with her shoe, and both of them locked eyes while thinking about almost exactly the same thing. Code Overload Magazine. Embedded Reporter Life Log 904. More barking. I know the bartender here at the Moonshot uses his trainable robot dog as a gimmick to get people in the door.
But Sudo isn't just a one-trick pony, so to speak. Must be nice to have a guard dog that never sleeps. Hmm, I don't recognize this car that's rolling up to the bar. And if Sudo's barking at it, that means he doesn't recognize it either. Another car now. This one's got a logo on the side. Some kind of courier service? Oh, and here comes the first driver. He's wearing a uniform. Also a career? Two at the same time? Wait, this might be…
Oh yeah, here we go, they're asking for Tama Fakete and Emilio Garcia Vega. Those two are pretty senior coders at WatchOver and DevLock, respectively. Now they're both getting sealed plastic folders. This is it, friends. The next Marsite challenge from IARPA. Exit the couriers, and everyone in the bar has paused whatever game they were playing and is gathering around the two leads.
I'm guessing digital versions of this info were distributed directly to the companies, and then these packets were couriered to Tama and Emilio's phone locations. We totally lucked out here, friends. We're going to find out what the next challenge is, way before the IARPA press release drops tomorrow morning. But wait, not yet.
Tom and Emilio are agreeing to finish their game of Dorga before opening the envelopes. Wow. That's an unexpected moment of cooperation between these rivals. Or a sign of just how hardcore these gamers are. I'm told this tournament has been going for months now, and Dorga is a notoriously difficult strategy game. Okay, they're really doing this. Guess I'd better look up the rules for Dorga so we can all follow along. and transmission. The final round of Dorga ended.
followed by another nail-biting few minutes while both teams calculated their final scores and checked each other's math. Then Emilio, after consulting with Tama, announced a victory for DevLock. A loud cheer rose from approximately half of the people in the bar, and a round of handshakes went around the table. Good game, Thomas said as he shook Emilio's hand. You too, Emilio said.
Bit of bad luck there at the end. Yeah, well, maybe we do better in real life, Tama shrugged. Emilio smiled underneath a frown. Just couldn't leave it alone, could you? Tama laughed. Let's see what's in these envelopes. The bar fell silent for a moment as both plastic folders were torn open and the papers inside distributed among the two teams. Then the talking began.
getting louder as more people finished reading through their pages and started discussing them. Total loss of signal, one person read out loud. Jesus, for how long? It's a proper test. Someone else said. They want full autonomy. Yeah, last time we had some comms throughout, said a third person. Not much, and we didn't have eyes on, but we still had control. Now, though. Hey.
This is what we are designing for, yeah? Emilio asked loudly, looking around the room. They want to know that our bots can function in the worst-case scenario, and we've got something to prove now. He stared straight at Tama. See you on the battlefield. Tama gave a salute. Game on. The crowd began dispersing.
Some people going back to finish their games, others settling up and heading home now that all the excitement was done. Cameron and Noor sat back down at their table to finish their drinks. I guess we're done with this game. Cameron said, nodding at the glampusine board and pieces scattered across the table. This game? Yeah. Nor leaned forward. But I like the other one we've started.
Cameron gulfed down the last of their drink. Maybe we should talk about going on a, you know, going out somewhere, not here. On a date, you mean? Nor smiled. You can say it. Yeah. Cameron reached out and touched Noor's hand. Do you want to go on a date? I thought you'd never ask. Never do this again. Trey's voice echoed down the corridor. Is that clear? Denise sighed, put down her mug of tea, and walked toward the commotion while checking the time.
It was not unusual for Trey to burn the candle at both ends, but she felt bad for whoever it was who had stayed late to finish something and wound up on the receiving end of Trey's bad mood. The unfortunate party turned out to be Baroth Doss. Denise didn't know him very well, but she knew that nobody deserved the beratement that Trey was currently unloading on the lead programmer.
We are losing the war, Trey was shouting when Denise walked into Baroth's office. And I cannot win if this continues. We, Denise corrected, loud enough to be sure that both men heard her. Their heads turned in surprise. You mean we can't win, don't you, Trey? Trey's gal softened just a little bit. Of course. He smacked Baroth on the arm and Baroth winced. We're all on the same team, of course. So, what exactly is the problem here? Denise asked. I reviewed my own code, Baroth said.
Denise blinked. Sorry, you did what? Every piece of code checked into the repo has to pass review, Trey said, and that commit has to be approved by someone not yourself. Which I knew. Baroth said, but I was in a hurry. I just wanted to do some quick integration testing before everyone got in tomorrow, so I approved my own changes. You should know better, Baroth, Trey said.
pointing a finger at the other man's face. It won't happen again. Barath was looking at Denise, not Trey. I think he's learned his lesson, Trey, Denise said. Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you about another issue. Trey turned to her. Compliance-related? Yes. Trey patted Baroth on the shoulder. I'm glad we had this talk. Remember, my door's always open.
He walked away before Baroth could respond. Denise with me. As Denise followed Trey back to his office, she wondered who would find her mug of tea in the morning and what they would do with it. So I've made some progress. She started to say. Not here, Trey said over his shoulder. In my office. Denise sighed as quietly as she could and continued walking. Once they were in Trey's office and he had closed the door,
He gestured for her to speak. I'm not going to tell you who I met with today, she said, because if you don't know, then you have plausible deniability. Trey nodded. What did you find out? Nothing solid yet. But I've got some good leads. I don't need to remind you that you are on a deadline. And you didn't need to say it, either. I know. Can I ask you one question, though? Trey sat down behind his desk. Go ahead.
Denise opted not to sit down, instead walking forward to stand in front of the desk. Several of Watchover's coders used to work for DevLock, before they split off to form their own company. Traitors, Trey spat. What's your question? Is it possible that, instead of stealing any of DevLock's code, they simply recreated it? Denise asked. Given how different their systems are from our own, it may not be considered a violation of the non-compete clause.
Dre leaned forward and folded his hands. Let me be very clear about this. I don't care what they did or didn't do. Your job is to find something that we can use to nail them to the wall, to stop them from further participation in these trials, to destroy their company. I'm sure you can discover something incriminating if you dig deep enough.
Understood? Denise studied his face for a moment and found no trace of humor there. Got it. And your instinct was right, Trey said, turning away to unlock his workstation. Don't tell me anything I don't need to know. I'm busy enough here as it is. He stopped typing long enough to look at her. I trust you to get the job done without my intervention. Denise nodded. I'll keep you updated. Good night.
Trey didn't acknowledge her as she left his office. His attention had been drawn to another message from the mysterious sender who had contacted him a few nights ago, offering to help DevLock improve its AI. Trey once again tried to trace the message, but once again hit a dead end. Whoever was sending these knew how to cover their tracks. That definitely indicated some technical prowess.
and being able to foil Trey twice was no mean feat. He read through the message again, and now noticed that there was also a file attachment. Are you sure you don't need our help? Here's a little sample of what we can do for you. Think I'm an idiot, Trey muttered to himself, downloading the file into a virtual sandbox and inspecting it in a hex editor. Going to run strange code on my machine? Think again. He hadn't needed to decompile code in a long time. Not since... When was the last time?
Was it on that dare, back in college, when he'd pulled an all-nighter, wasted a bunch of time before realizing that he was looking at a completely different instruction set than he originally thought? He wouldn't make that mistake again. Besides, If whoever sent this expected their code to interface with DevLock's systems, they had to run on the same chip architecture, and they had to be working with someone on the inside.
All Trey needed to find was some signature, some indication of who had touched this code, and he'd be all over them like a fly on horseshit. He pulled on his headphones and started pulling together a new victory soundtrack. Something to propel him through another all-nighter. Deep purple. Motorhead. Iron Maiden. That ought to do the trick. Now, let's see what your so-called code does, Trey said. No sleep till Hammersmith.
You're listening to Machina. Narrated by Natalie Nautis. Produced by Realm. Your portal to another world. Realm. Listen away. Listening to a podcast should be time well spent. And I promise it will be if you'll give this podcast a try. It's called Something You Should Know. I'm the host, Mike Carruthers, and in every episode, I talk with leading experts on topics I know you will find fascinating. From why people can't keep secrets, what your favorite music says about you,
why your pet acts in strange ways, and so much more. Something You Should Know is designed to give you information you can use in your life and give you great intel that you can share with others. I'm told it's a binge-worthy podcast. And with over a thousand episodes, there's a lot to binge on. Something You Should Know has been ranked in the top of the Apple podcast charts consistently for a long time.
I know you're going to like this. I just need to get you to try it. Something You Should Know. It's available wherever you listen to podcasts. You should listen to the GameStudy.biz microcast. More people are playing games than ever before. They've never been more popular and the business behind it is facing some real challenges and changes. There's been tens of thousands of layoffs, hundreds of studio closures as major companies face rising costs.
and falling sales there's uncertainty around the future of game consoles there's legal and government intervention into how games are even being paid for the role of AI is changing how games are being made there's the impact of games like Fortnite and Roblox dominating everyone's time and then there's the desperate wait
for Switch 2 and GTA 6, and that's just 2024. Two leading business journalists with a combined 35 years of experience offer you a weekly guide through all of this and more. I'm Christopher Dring, Head of GamesIndustry.biz. I'm James Batchelor, Editor-in-Chief of GamesIndustry.biz.
And you can join us every Monday for the gamesindustry.biz microcast. The most important stories. Expert guests. Exclusive market data. And all in less than 30 minutes. Usually. The gamesindustry.biz microcast every Monday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Machina is written by Fran Wild, Malka Older, and Curtis C. Chen. Produced by Marco Palmieri.
Executive produced by Julian Yap and Molly Barton. Audio production, sound design, editing, and theme music by Amanda Rose Smith.