Soul Cloud

By Yosef Kutner

Three brilliant MIT graduate students develop a revolutionary plan to upload a brain into a supercomputer. Then they go even further, pushing the frontiers of AI and robotics to levels hitherto unknown. Their fledgling corporation soon gets major financing, and everything seems promising.
The addition of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Mafia, and the billionaire investor adds even more complexity to the story. These elements create a sense of urgency and danger, and they also raise ethical questions about the use of technology.
The wife's religious experience in Israel is a fascinating addition to the story. It provides a counterpoint to the technological advances, and it suggests that there is more to life than just science and reason.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Yosef Kutner
• Release date: Oct 4, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223357162

Yosef Kutner

Yosef Kutner is a retired businessman who is highly educated in secular and religious studies. With over 82 years of life experience, he is known for his wealth of knowledge and wisdom in a variety of fields.He is passionate and dedicated and is always available to help people in any situation. This has caused him to earn popularity in both his professional and social life. He has been a mentor to countless numbers. Throughout his career, Yosef remained committed to his spiritual and intellectual pursuits and continued to deepen his knowledge and understanding of both subjects. His broad perspective and deep insight into human nature and the human condition have allowed him to develop unique and proven opinions on a wide range of topics.Yosef is also a devoted family man with a loving wife, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. His family is an important source of joy and inspiration for him, and he takes great pride in their accomplishments and successes.In his retirement, Yosef has devoted his time and energy to sharing his insights and wisdom with others through his writing and public speaking. His writing covers a broad range of topics, from personal growth and spirituality to business and economics. It is characterized by his clear and engaging style and his ability to make complex concepts accessible to all readers. Overall, Yosef Kutner is a respected and beloved figure for his commitment to helping others achieve their full potential in all aspects of life.

Book preview

בה

Soul Cloud

by

Yosef Kutner

Dedicated with my undying love to my wife, Fortuna Kutner. She is

truly a righteous woman, and her concern for everyone knows no bounds.

I thank her for her patience in support of my writing and countless other things.

* * *

In Memory of Menashe Ariah-Leib Ben Yosef, OBM Kutner.

His love for his family will never be forgotten.

Chapter 1

Grad student wants to share apartment with same.

West End, Boston 3 bed - 2 bath - avail. now. MIT 15 minutes by bike. Patio/balcony, garage, air conditioning, in-unit laundry, pool, gym. Call Ryan 617.294.1826

A very thin man with flaming red hair wore large, square glasses, and his pale, freckled face seemed to contrast unexpectedly with the jet-black sweater he wore. He answered his iPhone 16. Hello, this is Ryan.

Hey, Ryan, my name is Steve Winig, and I saw your ad today. I am the guy I think you are looking for. I am an engineering grad student. I just arrived in town, and I would like to come take a look and see if there is a fit.

Great. I can see you anytime, replied Ryan.

Steve said, I am in the neighborhood and can be there in a flash.

Super. It’s The Reserve at Burlington, 20 Corporate Drive, and I will buzz you in.

* * *

Steve Winig pulled his two duffel bags to the front door. As it opened, he said, I guess it seems strange to see me with all my belongings. I had no choice, and you can see I am serious and optimistic about moving in.

Ryan smiled as they shook hands. He had the firm, honest grip of a man who knew who he was and where he was going.

Steve surveyed the layout of this clean, modern-day, and spacious apartment, and was pleasantly surprised. I have sheets and towels, so let’s see if we can make this work.

Ryan explained, Here are the basics. I signed a 12-month lease for $7,550 per month and a security deposit of $5,000. So, with three roommates, it comes to $2,517 per month plus utilities.

Steve shook hands and wrote a check to Ryan for $4,183.

Ryan said, I will email you the lease and other pertinent items after I receive your contact info. Are you up for a mini grand tour of the campus? We can also grab a bite. I have been exploring and tasting.

* * *

 Ryan gave him the grand tour, which amounted to a summary of the three restaurants from which he had already sampled in the few hours he’d been there and a long list of buildings and their names—54, 66, 50. As Steve had already been told, most MIT buildings had only numbers, which did not make it easy to find things on one’s first day.

You’re studying engineering? Steve asked.

Neurobiology, actually, Ryan answered with a shrug. But also, yeah…robotics and mechanical engineering.

What’s the connection? Steve wondered aloud. You looking to build the Terminator or something?

 Ryan laughed. Something like that, sure.

Steve gave him a mock-serious look. Just remember who your friends are when the revolution begins…

 Sharing a laugh, Steve thought to himself, That was a good start. As they exited through the lobby, they noticed signs everywhere for various beginning-of-the-year parties and events. Ryan led him to a place called Shawarma Shack, and they ordered an early dinner.

 Isn’t this your fourth meal already? Steve wondered. And you’re thin as a stick! Where do you put it all?

 Ryan pointed to his head knowingly. It takes a lot of calories to run this machine. I burn the midnight oil 24/7! Besides, he added with a grin, I only eat a little bit at each place. I’m finding out what’s good.

 Steve shook his head incredulously. Riiight… as he bit into his falafel pita sandwich, which was oozing tahini down his chin. After wiping his face, he asked, Isn’t that a strange combination, neurobiology and robotics?

 Ryan, uncomfortable with this question from someone he had only just met, replied guardedly, Well, I’m a science fiction buff. I worked at Google for the past two years. I was into the specialty of my team. However, I realized that I needed the discipline from MIT to advance my knowledge.

 Wow! Steve said. We’re into the same stuff. I worked for Tesla. I enjoyed the environment and the salary, but I also knew that I was lacking the discipline of education. I’m here to learn artificial intelligence. I am convinced that those in power have their own agenda—and it has nothing to do with serving the people who elected them. Some of the research I have done already leads me to believe that this field is the key to the power shift that will soon come about, and I plan to be part of it.

 We will! Ryan asserted with a grin.

Steve was feeling more at ease now. I am from Passaic, New Jersey. Where are you from, Ryan?

No kidding; a Jersey guy! I’m born and bred in Elizabeth—your typical Irish Catholic from the Peterson neighborhood. Are you Catholic? Protestant? Nothing?

 My family is Jewish but not religious. We’re liberals—and everyone’s into ending inequality, so you could call us progressive. My father is a professor at Rutgers. I have two sisters, and one might be your type, he added.

 Ryan responded, We do seem to have important things in common. Now, if we can just combine our efforts and undo some of the rot in the system…

 Amen, brother, but what about my sister?

Thanks, but I already have a girlfriend, Ryan answered with a huge smile on his face.

Chapter 2

As a child prodigy, Zack Joseph had his pick of universities to attend. His father was a real estate mogul with properties all over Mexico City and Miami. Zack would live with his Uncle Nissim in Deal, New Jersey. Zack liked the idea—especially after his father gifted him a Silver Flare Metallic Corvette Stingray Convertible for the one-hour-plus commute to Princeton University.

While Zack had clearly demonstrated his brilliance in the domains of neuroscience, computer science, and molecular biology, his true love was music. And now that he found himself in a community that was 80 percent Sephardic Jewish (mostly from Syria), a new musical style grabbed his attention—Mizrachi music, which was constantly piping throughout his Uncle Nissim’s oceanfront home. It reached Zack’s soul in an unexpected way. The sounds also seemed compatible with the salsa music of his earlier years.

 While they were having breakfast, a gentle breeze blew across the back porch. Zack loved the smell of the salty sea air. Uncle Nissim pulled up a chair, sipped his morning brew, and looked up. What are your plans for today, Zack?

 Zack was eager to share his latest find. "I just read about the Mensa Society in the latest issue of Scientific American. Have you heard about them?"

 Yes, it’s for eggheads like you.

 C’mon, Unc! You know I’m just your typical rich, spoiled brat. But seriously: it’s for people with high IQs. I am going to go to their dinner tonight in New Brunswick. Maybe they will accept me.

* * *

Zack arrived at the dinner when it was in full swing and was happy not only to find a seat at a table but one next to an intriguing personality. Sean Cassavetes was from Los Angeles. He had just finished musical gig where he had filled in for a sick band member. Sean always attended Mensa events for mental stimulation. His conversation with Zack flowed. It was not long before Sean realized that he was in the presence of an unusually bright mind. Anxious to continue their conversations, Sean accepted the invitation to stay at Zack’s uncle’s house for the week.

When they weren’t at the beach, Sean taught Zack how to write music. Sean was amazed at how quickly Zack absorbed everything. More than once in the middle of a session, it occurred to him that the combination of Zack’s sharpness and intemperate ambition could spell either wild success or its dangerous opposite.

And Sean would be correct; Zack’s quick mastery of music was just another reflection of his being possessed of an unquenchable desire not only to master subjects but to conquer domains.

* * *

Zack finished his last email for the night: Sean, please give this a listen. Zack had become consumed with creating music. His genre was an eclectic mixture of Mizrachi, Mexican salsa, and hip-hop. The composition, the style, and the lyrics were all his. He sent his computer-generated sheet music to Sean in Los Angeles. Sean had mentioned his friend, Linda Gilbert, who was Vice President of Artists and Repertoire at Vista Records. This would be Zack’s in to the industry. Linda was fascinated with Zack’s music and arranged for him to come out to L.A. to record some demos.

There were seven weeks until the fall semester began. Zack made up a story about summer plans out west and reassured his father that he would be back for his classes at Princeton when the fall semester began.

The speed with which his music took off surprised him and even those promoting him, and he soon found himself signing a contract with Vista. He also joined Sean’s band, The Mensa Wave, which was about to go on tour. They appreciated his versatility as a multi-instrumentalist, particularly the contribution his oud added to their style.

Somewhat startled by the newness of everything—traveling with older guys, the rock and roll culture, the lack of structure—Zack quickly became accustomed to ventures into fresh territory. Plunging headlong into a cool, new direction was his thing, as long as it did not demand too much from him on a personal level. As the weeks went by, he became accustomed to all the alcohol, weed, and girls. At the beginning of the summer, he was a spoiled, intellectual nerd; by mid-August, he had morphed into a mature, hip musician with a jaunty air. And his fan base grew. His music became one of the hottest downloads on Spotify and Apple Music.

With the fall semester approaching and Zack still not returned from the West Coast, Zack’s father’s phone calls became more frequent and his tone more insistent. Come back this week or fund your own studies, was his dad’s final ultimatum. The small salary from the band was barely enough to pay the rent for his studio apartment in West Hollywood, and after nearly two months on the road, Zack was beginning to feel fatigued. He enjoyed the musical world, but the physical rigors of the tour were taking their toll on him. When his funds dwindled to a precarious low, he arranged a meeting with Linda to seek clarification about the royalties from the online sales.

* * *

Yes, Zack, she said a little too breezily. Sales are beginning to pick up. As it said in our contract, we split proceeds 50-50, but that is after Vista is reimbursed for production costs. The startup outlay includes publishing, promotion, legal costs, our overhead, and more. This had been spelled out in the original contract, and Zack quickly realized how unsavvy he had been about all this. He was so wound up in the thrill of his music taking off and the good times that came with it that he had not scrutinized the agreement carefully enough.

Am I being screwed?

Linda sounded conciliatory, Zack, we love you. We love your music, and we want a future together. But we can’t split the royalties until we get our advance back. You can understand that this is the normal arrangement in this business, can’t you?

Yeah, right. You know that I won’t see a single penny for another two years.

Zack turned and left, banging the wall on his way out and thinking what a fool he had been. He realized that they had taken full advantage of his youthful inexperience. Even after all the years of listening to his father’s wheeling and dealing in business, he still was not prepared for the cut-throat transactions of the entertainment world.

He walked off his anger by maintaining a brisk pace. At the end of the third block, he stopped and thought, I am not ready to return to the world of academia. But at that moment, he made a firm resolve to be totally on top of his game come any future venture. The next deal he cut would be heavily weighted in his favor.

Zack stayed on the road and was also hired by Apple and worked remotely to supplement his income. He sold his Sting Ray for $65,000, and this took the financial pressure off. He also took online undergrad courses and attained his Bachelor of Science Degree.

* * *

Zack would later yearn to get back to the world of academia. After three years he knew it was the time to relieve the stress and pressure of his musical career and his job with Apple. He anticipated a fresh start. He didn’t need his father’s money any longer. The combination of the sale of the Corvette, his band, Vista, and his salary from Apple was more than enough. He was accepted to MIT as a grad student within days of applying.

Chapter 3

Classes did not begin for another few days. Steve and Ryan both slept past noon.

Good morning, Steve. How yuh doing?

Steve yawned, Great, except I forgot to bring something major.

Let me guess—a toothbrush?

How’d you know that? Are you creeping into my head with your neurobiology ESP?

Let’s go to the Stratton Student Center, Ryan offered, You can buy a toothbrush there. Then we can have a coffee, and I will tell you how I do it.

Over light banter and cheese Danishes at Duncan’s popular coffee shop, Steve began to feel that he had found a comfortable buddy.

My dentist said I don’t clean my teeth correctly, Steve explained. Holding up a Colgate toothbrush, he added, How can I clean my teeth with this ancient relic? Maybe it’s time for me to invent a better mouse trap.

Ryan laughed and then turned serious. I know you aren’t interested in a better mouse trap or electric toothbrush technology, so what are you interested in?

Steve paused before answering. If you are serious about hearing what I hope to accomplish, then…

Ryan interrupted and said, Go for it. I’ve got all day.

Steve considered how not to sound grandiose, but then again, his ambitions were lofty. I know that the future of our world is dependent on artificial intelligence, he began. Pardon my lack of modesty, but despite my age, I’m probably one of the most knowledgeable people on the planet in this field.

His voice took on a determined tone. Most of the so-called experts see AI as an activity devoted to making machines operate with some degree of intelligence. The so-called experts are exploring ways to enable an entity to function appropriately along with intuition in its environment. They may have a broad understanding of the skills that fit the mechanical object within the intelligence spectrum, even though these simple devices bear little resemblance to today’s tech. The frontier of AI has moved far ahead, and the functions of the calculator are only one among the millions that today’s smartphones can perform. AI developers now improve, generalizing and scaling up the intelligence currently found on smartphones.

I am convinced that if we could advance this field, it would finally free man from the tyranny of capitalism. With AI, certain flaws of the socialist system could be rectified and perfected. A new order could emerge. Imagine a socialist society run by machines programmed with the masses in mind. Gone would be all those myopic leaders who end up caving in to capitalist ideas and abusing the system for their own self-aggrandizement. These advances can help pure socialism have its chance to remake society and effect the change it was meant to originally—to break the addiction plaguing much of the world: religion. This opportunity is nothing less than a second chance to rid our society of this opiate of the masses at long last.

 Ryan was stunned. He sat frozen as he listened to the words and wanted to believe them, but they didn’t add up. After many minutes of silence, he said, I get it, but how can you expect this to work in the real world? The big companies will latch onto this technology and use it to line their own pockets.

 That’s where I have a problem, Steve conceded, and I haven’t found a solution—yet.

Chapter 4

The conversation between the roommates turned philosophical.

I’m on the same page but come from a different place, Ryan began. I discovered early that I had a natural ability in mathematics, and my parents demanded that I apply myself. They did not have money for a private school, but I had the good fortune to go to an incredibly good public school, the Frank J. Ciccarelli Academy. It had a very advanced computer coding and robotics department, and I loved learning more than anything else. Tentatively he added, My other main influence, the Catholic Church, had a much different effect. My parents drummed into my head that the church was sacred, and its teachings were the only truth in the world. The trouble started when I was an altar boy. I don’t want to say more. His voice trailed off, but then he added, Let’s just say that I hated those ‘holy’ men.

Steve asked, How did you deal with that? I’m sorry. I don’t mean to pry. It’s just—

Ryan relieved his roommate of obvious discomfort by returning to his smiling self. "Listen. I had to escape. I discovered science fiction. In that world, anything was possible. I turned into a cyberpunk lover. My mind was wrapped around dystopian cults, you know, living in a dreamland filled with great suffering and injustice. It helped turn down the volume of those things in my own life. I imagined futuristic settings featuring low lives and high tech. There was always advanced technological and scientific achievement, but what really grabbed me were artificial intelligence and cybernetics. In that arena, I would always have two great forces pitted against each other, and this usually involved degrees of breakdown or radical change in the social order. The book that really got me thinking was a novel by William Gibson called Necromancer."

Ryan leaned forward. So, my vision—what I imagine—is a way to free the mind. Currently, only death can free the body from the mind. But there is another way. Transference of human intelligence to non-biological substrates.

Steve tried to absorb the twists and turns his friend’s monologue was taking. What the hell are you talking about?

What if we can reproduce human intelligence in another physical medium besides our bodies? Ryan asked. By transferring human intelligence to another medium, we could provide the solution to the decay of both our natural minds and our bodies. What I am talking about is replicating human consciousness on computer hardware. In this way, it could be reliably repaired and exist in places uninhabitable to biological life. It can also be improved upon in a controlled, purposeful fashion.

Holy shit! Steve gasped. You are out there, but I follow you. What I think you’re proposing is to upload our brains into a computer. Then we will never die. Okay. Steve took a deep breath. But what about the ethical implications?

"I don’t give a damn. No, if we want to see real change—working with the limitless domains of minds and their effect on society—we have to get everyone’s brain into optimal form.