List of fictional computers  

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Computers have often been used as fictional objects in literature, movies and in other forms of media. Fictional computers tend to be considerably more sophisticated than anything yet devised in the real world.

This is a list of computers that have appeared in notable works of fiction. The work may be about the computer, or the computer may be an important element of the story. Only static computers are included. Robots and other fictional computers that are described as existing in a mobile or humanlike form are discussed in a separate list of fictional robots and androids.

Contents

[edit]

Literature

[edit]

Before 1950

[edit]

1950s

  • The Machines, positronic supercomputers that manage the world in Isaac Asimov's short story The Evitable Conflict (1950)
  • MARAX, the MAchina RAtiocinatriX (Ship's Artificial Intelligence) in Stanisław Lem's novel The Astronauts (1951)
  • EPICAC in Kurt Vonnegut's Player Piano, which coordinates the United States economy. It is also featured in other of his writings (1952) Named similar to ENIAC, it's actually named after an over-the-counter poison-antidote syrup which induces vomiting.
  • Vast anonymous computing machinery possessed by the Overlords, an alien race who administer Earth while the human population merges with the Overmind. Described in Arthur C. Clarke's novel Childhood's End (1953).
  • The Prime Radiant, Hari Seldon's desktop on Trantor. Second Foundation by Isaac Asimov (1953)
  • Mark V, a computer used by monks at a Tibetan lamasery to encode all the possible names of God which resulted in the end of the universe in Arthur C. Clarke's short story The Nine Billion Names of God (1953)
  • Mima, a thinking machine carrying the memories of all humanity, first appeared in Harry Martinson's "Sången om Doris och Mima" (1953), later expanded into Aniara (1956).
  • A "supercalculator" formed by the networking of all the computing machines on 96 billion planets, which answers the question "Is there a God?" with "Yes, now there is a God" in Fredric Brown's single-page story Answer (1954)
  • Bossy, the "cybernetic brain" in the Hugo award-winning novel They'd Rather Be Right (a.k.a. The Forever Machine) by Mark Clifton and Frank Riley (1954)
  • Multivac, a series of supercomputers featured in a number of stories by Isaac Asimov (1955 to 1983)
  • The Central Computer of the city of Diaspar in Arthur C. Clarke's The City and the Stars (1956)
  • Miniac, the "small" computer in the book Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine, written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams (1958)
  • Cosmic AC, the ultimate computer at the end of time in Isaac Asimov's short story The Last Question (The name is derived from "Analog Computer"; see also AC's ancestor, Multivac, and the contemporary UNIVAC) (1959)
  • The City Fathers, emotionless computer bank educating and running the City of New York in James Blish's Cities in Flight series (1955, sequels through 1962). Their highest ethic was survival of the city and they could overrule humans in exceptional circumstances.
[edit]

1960s

  • Vulcan 3, the sentient supercomputer in Philip K. Dick's novel Vulcan's Hammer (1960)
  • Great Coordinator or Robot-Regent, a semi to fully sentient extraterrestrial supercomputer, built to control and drive the scientifically and technologically advanced Great Arconide Empire as the Arconides have become decadent and unable to govern themselves. From the science fiction series Perry Rhodan (1961)
  • The Machine, a computer built to specifications received in a radio transmission from an alien intelligence beyond our galaxy in the novel from the TV series A for Andromeda by Fred Hoyle (1962)
  • Merlin from the H. Beam Piper novel The Cosmic Computer (1963, originally Junkyard Planet).
  • Simulacron-3, the third generation of a virtual reality system originally depicted in the science fiction novel Simulacron-3 (1964) and later in film adaptations World on a Wire (1973) and The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
  • GENIE, the General Nonlinear Extrapolator from the Keith Laumer novel The Great Time Machine Hoax (1964).
  • Colossus, a cybernetic computer built to control the nuclear capability of the United States of North America, by Dr. Charles Forbin and his team. Colossus initiates communication with an equivalent computer in the Soviet Union, called Guardian, and the two computers eventually merge to take control of the human race. Colossus and Guardian appeared in the novel Colossus, by Dennis Feltham Jones (1966) and the subsequent film, Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970). Colossus also appears in two subsequent novels by Jones, The Fall of Colossus (1974), where the supercomputer is finally defeated by vengeful humans, and Colossus and the Crab (1977).
  • Frost, the protagonist computer in Roger Zelazny's story For a Breath I Tarry; also SolCom, DivCom, and Beta (1966)
  • Guardian see Colossus
  • Mycroft Holmes (aka Mike, Adam Selene), in Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress (Named after Mycroft Holmes, the brother of Sherlock Holmes) (1966)
  • The Ox in Frank Herbert's novel Destination: Void (1966)
  • Supreme – computer filling the artificial world Primores in Lloyd Biggle, Jr.'s Watchers of the Dark (1966)
  • WESCAC (West Campus Analog Computer) from John Barth's Giles Goat-Boy (1966)
  • AM from Harlan Ellison's short story I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream (1967)
  • The Berserkers, a vast network of autonomous machines that are programmed to destroy all life, as found in the stories of Fred Saberhagen (1967 to 2007)
  • HAL 9000, the sentient computer on board the spaceship Discovery One, in Arthur C. Clarke's novel 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
  • Shalmaneser, from John Brunner's Stand on Zanzibar, a small (and possibly semi-sentient) supercomputer cooled in liquid helium (1968)
  • Tänkande August (Swedish for "Thinking August"), a.k.a. "The Boss", a powerful computer for solving crime in the Agaton Sax books by Swedish author Nils-Olof Franzén
  • M-5 Creation of Dr. Richard Daystrum "The Ultimate Computer" Star Trek season two episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, first broadcast on March 8, 1968 and repeated June 28, 1968. It is episode #53, production #53, written by D. C. Fontana, based on a story by Laurence N. Wolf and directed by John Meredyth Lucas.
  • The Thinker a non-sentient supercomputer which has absolute control over all aspects human life, including a pre-ordained death date of 21. From the novel Logan's Run by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson (1967)
  • Project 79 from the novel The God Machine by Martin Caidin and first published in 1968. Set in the near future, the novel tells the story of Steve Rand, one of the brains behind Project 79, a top-secret US Government project dedicated to creating artificial intelligence.
  • Fess, an antique FCC-series computer that can be plugged into various bodies. Christopher Stasheff's The Warlock in Spite of Himself (1969)
[edit]

1970s

  • UniComp, the central computer governing all life on Earth in This Perfect Day by Ira Levin (1970)
  • T.E.N.C.H. 889B, shipboard super-computer in A Maze of Death by Philip K. Dick (1970)
  • Maxine from the Roger Zelazny story My Lady of the Diodes (1970)
  • The Müller-Fokker computer tapes in The Muller-Fokker Effect by John Thomas Sladek in 1970. Reprinted in 1990.
  • HARLIE, protagonist of When HARLIE Was One by David Gerrold (1972)
  • Dora, starship computer in Time Enough for Love by Robert A. Heinlein (1973)
  • Minerva, executive computer in Time Enough for Love by Robert A. Heinlein (1973)
  • Pallas Athena, Tertius planetary computer in Time Enough for Love by Robert A. Heinlein (1973)
  • Extro, in Alfred Bester's novel The Computer Connection (1975)
  • UNITRACK, from The Manitou by Graham Masterton (1976)
  • Proteus IV, the computer self-programmed to rape in the film/novel Demon Seed by Dean Koontz (1976)
  • Peerssa, shipboard computer imprinted with the personality of a man of the same name, from A World Out of Time by Larry Niven (1976)
  • P-1, a rogue AI which struggles to survive from The Adolescence of P-1 by Thomas J. Ryan (1977)
  • Central Computer, the benevolent computer in John Varley's Eight Worlds novels and short stories (1977 to 1998)
  • Com-pewter, a malevolent computer and Com-passion, a benevolent computer in Piers Anthony's 25 book Xanth series (1977-2001)
  • Domino, the portable communicator – and associated underground mega-computer – used by Laurent Michaelmas to run the world in Algis Budrys's novel Michaelmas (1977)
  • Obie, an artificial intelligence with the ability to alter local regions of reality, in Jack L. Chalker's Well World series (1977)
  • Well World, the central computer responsible for "simulating" an entire new universe superimposed over the old Markovian one in Jack L. Chalker's Well World series (1977)
  • TOTAL, the vast military network in Up the Walls of the World by James Tiptree, Jr. (1978)
  • ZORAC, the shipboard computer aboard the ancient spacecraft in The Gentle Giants of Ganymede and the related series by James P. Hogan (1978). Also in the same series is VISAR (the network that manages the daily affairs of the Giants) as well as JEVEX, the main computer performing the same function for the offshoot human colony.
  • Deep Thought – the supercomputer charged with finding the answer to "the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything" in the science fiction comedy series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. Adaptations have included stage shows, a "trilogy" of five books published between 1979 and 1992, a sixth novel penned by Eoin Colfer in 2009, a 1981 TV series, a 1984 computer game, and three series of three-part comic book adaptations of the first three novels published by DC Comics between 1993 and 1996.
  • Earth – the planet-sized supercomputer designed by the supercomputer Deep Thought in the science fiction comedy series The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (see Deep Thought above). Earth's task was to find what is the "Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything"
  • Eddie see entry under Radio
  • Spartacus, an AI deliberately designed to test the possibility of provoking hostile behavior towards humans, from James P. Hogan's book The Two Faces of Tomorrow (1979)
  • TECT, from George Alec Effinger, various books. Notice that there are several computers named TECT in his novels, even though they are unrelated stories. (1972-2002)
  • FUCKUP (First Universal Cybernetic Kynetic Ultramicro-Programmer), from The Illuminatus! Trilogy (1975)
  • Sigfrid von Shrink, Albert Einstein, and Polymat, self-aware computer systems in Frederik Pohl's Gateway series, (starting in 1977)
  • Orac, ingenious self-aware electronic ego in the BBC serial Blake's 7 (1977-1981)
  • Zen, autonomous master computer of the starship Liberator in the BBC serial Blake's 7 (1977-1981)
[edit]

1980s

[edit]

1990s

  • Thing, a very small box shaped computer owned by the Nomes, from Terry Pratchett's The Nome Trilogy (1990)
  • Grand Napoleon, a Charles Babbage style mechanical supercomputer from the alternate history novel The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling (1990)
  • Lingo, a sentient AI that evolves from a simple home computer and escapes to the Internet in the book Lingo by Jim Menick (1991)
  • Aleph, in Tom Maddox's novel Halo. The computer which not only operates a space station but also houses the personality of a human character whose body became malfunctional (1991)
  • Art Fish AKA Dr Fish, later fused with a human to become Markt, from Pat Cadigan's novel Synners (1991)
  • Blaine the Mono, from Stephen King's The Dark Tower. A control system for the City of Lud and monorail service. Also Little Blaine and Patricia (1991)
  • Center, from S. M. Stirling and David Drake The General series. An AI tasked to indirectly unite planet Bellevue and restore its civilization, with the eventual goal of restoration of FTL travel and of civilization to the collapsed interplanetary federation. Also Sector Command and Control Unit AZ12-b14-c000 Mk. XIV and Center (1991)
  • The Oversoul, Supercomputer and satellite network from Orson Scott Card's Homecoming Series, first introduced in The Memory of Earth (1992)
  • FLORANCE, spontaneously generated AI from Doctor Who Virgin New Adventures (1992)
  • David and Jonathon from Arthur C. Clarke's The Hammer of God (1993)
  • Abraham, from Philip Kerr's novel Gridiron, is a superintelligent program designed to operate a large office building. Abraham is capable of improving his own code, and eventually kills humans and creates his own replacement "Isaac" (1995)
  • Helen, sentient AI from Richard Powers' Galatea 2.2 (1995)
  • Hex, from Terry Pratchett's Discworld (1994)
  • Prime Intellect, the computer controlling the universe in the Internet novel The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect by Roger Williams (1994)
  • SEED, the AI that was charged with maintaining the vast network of ecosystem control stations on the planet Motavia in the Sega Genesis game Phantasy Star IV (1994)
  • FIDO (Foreign Intruder Defense Organism), a semi-organic droid defensive system first mentioned in Champions of the Force, a Star Wars novel by Kevin J. Anderson. (1994)
  • Ordinator, The name used for any computer in the parallel universe occupied by Lyra in the novel Northern Lights by Philip Pullman (1995)
  • GRUMPY/SLEEPY: Psychic AI in the Doctor Who New Adventures novel SLEEPY by Kate Orman (1996)
  • Rei Toei, an artificial singer from William Gibson's novels Idoru and All Tomorrow's Parties (1996)
  • DOCTOR: AI designed to duplicate the Doctor's reactions in the Doctor Who Eighth Doctor Adventures novel Seeing I by Kate Orman and Jon Blum. Eventually became an explorer with FLORANCE as its "companion" (1998)
  • TRANSLTR, NSA supercomputer from Dan Brown's Digital Fortress (1998)
  • Engine for the Neutralising of Information by the Generation of Miasmic Alphabets, an advanced cryptographic machine created by Leonard of Quirm, Discworld (1999) (compare with the actual Enigma machine)
  • Minotaur, Cybernetic UWC super-soldier in Attack of the Killer SpaceCow – Vol. I created by Chris Evans (2005)
  • Jill, a computer reaching self-awareness in Greg Bear's Queen of Angels and Slant novels.
  • Luminous, a computer that uses a diffraction grating created by lasers to diffract electrons and make calculations. The computer is described in Greg Egan's short story "Luminous".
  • iFruit, an iMac joke in the comic FoxTrot
  • Illustrated primer, a book-like computer found at Neal Stephenson's novel The Diamond Age, which was first designed to aid a rich girl on her education, but gets lost, and instructs a poor Chinese girl named Nell. It has no proprietary AI inside, but learns about the user's circumstance, adapts, and creates characters that act accordingly with the user's surroundings.(1995).
  • wizard 0.2, the most complex Turing machine found at the fictional primer's universe from The Diamond Age, from Neal Stephenson. Supposedly used to verify information that gets to King Coyote's castle at the primer's story, but later revealed to check no information, that task was made by king coyote himself, who personally read every piece he was to add to his library.(1995).
  • Ozymandias, a recurring artificial intelligence in Deathstalker and its sequels, by Simon R. Green. (1995)
  • The Matrix, the auto-dialer used for modem has an electric motor mounted to operate it. It is seen in next to the red/blue pill room. (1999)
[edit]

2000s

  • Logris, a massive alien supercomputer in the novel series The History of the Galaxy. Logris consists of many smaller jewel-like computers called logrs.
  • Mother, a self-evolved artificial intelligence in the novel series The History of the Galaxy. Mother's goal is to create a race of machines like itself (hence the name).
  • Turing Hopper, the artificial intelligence personality (AIP) turned cybersleuth in You've Got Murder and subsequent books of the mystery series by Donna Andrews (2002)
  • Stormbreaker, a learning device containing a deadly virus in Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider: Stormbreaker (2001)
  • Glooper, from Terry Pratchett's Making Money (2007) of the Discworld series, an economic-modeling device resembling the MONIAC computer.
  • Gabriel, an AI computer developed by Miyuki Nakano at Ryukyu University in James Rollins's novel, Deep Fathom.
  • Antrax, an extremely powerful supercomputer built by ancient humans in the novel Antrax by Terry Brooks. (2001)
  • Cohen, a 400 year old AI which manifests itself by 'shunting' through people. It is featured in the novels Spin State and Spin Control by Chris Moriarty. (2005)
  • Sif, the controller AI for transportation to and from the human agricultural colony-planet of Harvest in Halo: Contact Harvest (2007).
  • C Cube, an small, box like super computer that can perform virtually any task, from playing a cassette to hacking through high level security measures, as long it has digital or physical access to the task. It was created by 12 year old criminal mastermind, Artemis Fowl II in the third book of the Artemis fowl series, Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code from previously stolen fairy technology. In the book, Artemis originally tried to sell it to the corrupt American industrialist Jon Spiro, he suddenly changes his mind as it almost reveals the existence of the people to Spiro as Artemis is demonstrating the cube. As a result of the sudden change of heart, the cube is stolen from Artemis, his bodyguard is in mortal peril and he and his friends spend the rest of the book attempting to recover the C Cube
  • Mack/Loki, a coexisting pair of artificial intelligences in Halo: Contact Harvest. The former manages the agricultural machinery on Harvest, while the latter is a secret United Nations Space Corps Office of Naval Intelligence AI. Only one member of the pair can be active at a time. (2007)
  • Deep Winter/Endless Summer, the AIs in charge of the secret Human planet of Onyx with Endless Summer coming into service after Deep Winter died/expired in Halo: Ghosts of Onyx (2006).
  • Omnius The sentient computer evermind and ruler of the synchronized worlds in the Legends of Dune series, first seen in Dune: The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
  • Todd, a computer that grows exponentially until it is indistinguishable from God in Mind War; The Singularity by Joseph DiBella. (2010)
  • SIG, a secretive and manipulative computer that is developed on present-day Earth in the Darkmatter trilogy by Scott Thomas (2010).
  • Archos, a human-created computer in the novel Robopocalypse which becomes self-aware and infects all computer controlled devices on Earth in order to eradicate humankind (2011).
  • Digiwrite, a fiction-writing system, also known as Sheherezade, created by MIT researcher Duke Lovelycolors in Paul Nash's novel Whispering Crates (2012). Its success at generating best-sellers in multiple genres creates problems for its users, and the line between fiction and reality becomes blurred when it infects one of Duke's other projects, the CIA's HOUND database.
  • ELOPe, a sentient artificial intelligence built by the world's largest Internet company in Avogadro Corp (2011) and A.I. Apocalypse (2012) by William Hertling.
[edit]

Un-sorted

  • Solace, the distributed intelligence in some of the stories of Spider Robinson.
[edit]

Film

[edit]

1950s

[edit]

1960s

[edit]

1970s

  • Colossus — a massive U.S. defense computer which becomes sentient and links with Guardian, its Soviet counterpart, to take control of the world. From the film Colossus: The Forbin Project (1970)
  • Guardian — a massive U.S.S.R defense computer which becomes sentient and links with Colossus.
  • The Aries Computer, the computer from the 1972 film of the same name.
  • Bomb 20 — the sentient nuclear bomb from the film Dark Star (1974)
  • Mother, the ship-board computer on the space ship Dark Star, from the film Dark Star (1974)
  • Proteus IV, the deranged artificial intelligence from the film Demon Seed (1977)
  • The Tabernacle, artificial intelligence controlling The Vortexes Zardoz (1974)
  • DUEL, the computer which holds the sum total of human knowledge, in the SF movie The Final Programme (1973)
  • Zero, the computer which holds the sum total of human knowledge, in the SF movie Rollerball (1975)
  • Computer, Citadel's central computer, and Sandman computer, that sends Logan on a mission outside of the city in the movie Logan's Run (1976)
  • MU-TH-R 182 model 2.1 terabyte AI Mainframe/"Mother", the ship-board computer on the space ship Nostromo, known by the crew as 'mother,' in the SF horror movie Alien (1979)
[edit]

1980s

  • Master Control Program, the main villain of the film Tron (1982)
  • WOPR (pronounced, "Whopper"); War Operations Plan Response (addressed as "Joshua" by its creator), the NORAD nuclear war simulation computer from the film WarGames (1983), portrayed as being inside Cheyenne Mountain
  • Huxley 600 (named Aldous), Interpol's computer in Curse of the Pink Panther used to select Jacques Clouseau's replacement, NYPD Det. Sgt. Clifton Sleigh (1983)
  • An unnamed Supercomputer that is the main antagonist in Superman III (1983)
  • OSGOOD, a computer constructed by Timothy Bottoms' deaf character to help him speak, which subsequently becomes intelligent in Tin Man (1983)
  • Skynet, the malevolent fictional world-AI of The Terminator and its sequels (1984)
  • Edgar, AI computer that takes part in a romantic rivalry over a woman in the film Electric Dreams (1984)
  • Max Headroom, fictional AI portrayed by Matt Frewer who became a pop culture icon after his appearance in the Art of Noise music video for Paranomia
  • ROK, the faulty computer in Airplane II: The Sequel, which steers the shuttle toward the sun (1982)
  • X-CALBR8, an AI computer that assists the hero in The Dungeonmaster (1984)
  • GBLX 1000, a supercomputer reputedly in charge of the U.S.A.'s entire missile defense system that a maverick CIA agent (played by Dabney Coleman) misappropriates in order to crack a supposed musical code, the results of which are the gibberish "ARDIE BETGO INDYO CEFAR OGGEL" in The Man With One Red Shoe (1985)
  • Lola, An office building's security system goes after the employees to supply it's energy. 'Lola' is the entirely self-sufficient, computerized security system for the Sandawn corporation. The Tower (1985, Canada)
  • The ChiChi 3000, also known as, Luka's Computer, was the nuclear missile launching home computer, a very good piece of work, from the film, The Return of the Living Dead (1985)
  • Max, fictional AI portrayed by Paul Reubens, which is stored in a Trimaxion Drone Ship in Flight of the Navigator (1986).
[edit]

1990s

  • G.O.R.N., a virus who gives intelligence to computers with the purpose of wipe out the Humanity in Gall Force: New Era (1991)
  • Lucy, jealous AI home automation system who falls in love with her owner in Homewrecker (1992)
  • The Spiritual Switchboard, a computer capable of holding a person's consciousness for a few days after they die in Freejack (1992)
  • Zed, female-voiced AI prison control computer who eventually goes over warden's head in Fortress (1993)
  • Charon, female-voiced AI computer assisting a scientist in hypnotizing subjects in The Lifeforce Experiment (1994)
  • Central, female-voiced AI computer assisting the Council of Judges in Judge Dredd (1995).
  • L7, a female-voiced AI computer assisting the San Angeles Police Department in Demolition Man (1993)
  • Lucy, a computer in Hackers (1995) used to hack the Gibson (see below) and subsequently destroyed by the Secret Service.
  • Gibson, a type of supercomputer used to find oil and perform physics in Hackers (1995)
  • Project 2501 Artificial Intelligence developed by Section 6 in Ghost in the Shell (1995)
  • Father, the computer aboard the USM Auriga in Alien Resurrection (1997)
  • Euclid, powerful personal computer used for mathematical testing by the main character in Pi (1998)
  • The Matrix, virtual reality simulator for pacification of humans, The Matrix series (1999)
  • PAT (Personal Applied Technology) female motherly computer program that controls all the functions of a house in Disney's movie Smart House (1999)
  • Wittgenstein, a supercomputer in the children's movie The Brave Little Toaster to the Rescue (1999)
  • S.E.T.H., (Self Evolving Thought Helix) a military supercomputer which turns rogue in Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)
[edit]

2000s

  • Lucille – artificially intelligent spacecraft control interface aboard Mars-1 in Red Planet (2000)
  • Dr. Know, an information-themed computer inside a kiosk in the movie, A.I. Artificial Intelligence, (2001) voiced by Robin Williams
  • Red Queen, the AI from the movie Resident Evil, the name itself, in turn being named after Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, being a reference to the red queen principle (2002)
  • Vox, a holographic computer in The Time Machine (2002)
  • I.N.T.E.L.L.I.G.E.N.C.E. — computer for Team America: World Police (2004)
  • V.I.K.I., is the main antagonist in I, Robot film (2004) by Alex Proyas. A big cube shape supercomputer V.I.K.I (Virtual Interactive Kinetic Intelligence) that is the head of security in the USR building and interacts with all NS robots can be seen in the movie.
  • PAL, a spoof of HAL 9000 seen in Care Bears: Journey to Joke-a-lot (2004)
  • E.D.I. (Extreme Deep Invader) is the flight computer for an unmanned fighter plane in Stealth (2005)
  • Deep Thought see entry under Radio
  • Icarus, the computer from the film Sunshine (2007)
  • Jarvis appears as an A.I. in the 2008 film Iron Man, running the internal systems of Tony Stark's home and being uploaded into his armour to help him. He can converse with Stark with considerable sophistication and is sarcastic concerning his builder's recklessness. He is voiced by Paul Bettany, who admits he had little idea of what the role was even as he recorded it, simply doing it as a favor for his friend, director Jon Favreau. In Peter David's novelization of the film, Jarvis is revealed as an acronym for "Just A Rather Very Intelligent System".
  • R.I.P.L.E.Y Dr. Kenneth Hassert's supercomputer used to hit a target with a smart bomb from a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle), featured in WarGames: The Dead Code (2008)
  • ARIIA, the supercomputer from the film Eagle Eye (2008)
  • Auto, the autopilot from the film WALL-E (2008)
  • GERTY 3000, from the film Moon (2009)
  • B.R.A.I.N., from the film 9 (2009)
  • ODIN, from the film Eyeborgs (2009). ODIN (Optical Defense Intelligence Network), an autonomous surveillance network developed by the U.S. Government to watch for suspicious or subversive behavior, utilizes an army of armed robotic cameras, assassination, murder, and digitally altered video to remove the human presence from government, punish law-breakers, and spread its influence around the world.
[edit]

Radio

[edit]

1970s

  • Deep Thought, from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy calculates the answer to "Life, the universe and everything", later designs the computer Earth to work out what the question is (1978)
  • Earth, the greatest computer of all time in Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, commissioned and run by mice, designed by Deep Thought, to find the Question to Life, the Universe, and Everything (1978)
  • Eddie, the shipboard computer of the starship Heart of Gold, from Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1978)
[edit]

1980s

  • Alarm Clock, an artificially intelligent alarm clock from Nineteen Ninety-Four by William Osborne and Richard Turner. Other domestic appliances thus imbued also include Refrigerator and Television (1985)
  • ANGEL 1 and ANGEL 2, Ancillary Guardians of Environment and Life, shipboard 'Freewill' computers from James Follett's Earthsearch series. Also Solaria D, Custodian, Sentinel, and Earthvoice (1980–1982)
  • Executive and Dreamer, paired AI's running on The Mainframe; Dreamer's purpose was to come up with product and policy ideas, and Executive's function was to implement them, from Nineteen Ninety-Four by William Osborne and Richard Turner (1985)
  • Hab a parody of HAL 9000 and precursor to Holly, appearing in the Son of Cliché radio series segments Dave Hollins: Space Cadet written by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor (1983–1984)
  • The Mainframe, an overarching computer system to support the super-department of The Environment, in the BBC comedy satire Nineteen Ninety-Four by William Osborne and Richard Turner (1985)
[edit]

2000s

[edit]

Television

[edit]

1960s

Not a computer

[edit]

1970s

[edit]

1980s

  • The Vortex, the computer opponent faced by players of BBC2's The Adventure Game.
  • Compucore is the central computing intelligence for the planet Skallor in the cartoon Robotix.
  • Gambit, game playing computer from Blake's 7 ('Games') (1981)
  • Shyrka, the onboard computer of Ulysses' ship in the French animated series "Ulysses 31" (1981)
  • Slave, a somewhat subservient computer on the ship Scorpio in Blake's 7 (1981)
  • An unnamed "computer-book" is regularly used by Penny in the Inspector Gadget cartoons. (1983)
  • Teletraan I, the Autobots' computer in Transformers, 'revives' The Transformers after crashing on the planet Earth (1984)
  • Vector Sigma, the supercomputer in Transformers, responsible for creating the Transformers race (1984)
  • SID (Space Investigation Detector), the computer on board the Voyager in the children's comedy series Galloping Galaxies (1985)
  • Box, a small, box shaped computer from the British television show Star Cops (1987)
  • KITT (Knight Industries Two Thousand) fictional computer built into a car from the television show Knight Rider (1982)
  • KARR (Knight Automated Roving Robot), prototype of KITT from Knight Rider. Unlike KITT, KARR's personality is aimed at self-preservation at all costs.
  • LCARS fictional computer architecture of the Starship Enterprise-D and E, and other 24th century starfleet ships, first shown in Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)
  • Magic Voice, the Satellite of Love's onboard computer on Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988)
  • Albert, the apple computer in the remake of The Absent-Minded Professor that helps Henry (1988)
  • OMNSS, A computer in the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon used by Shredder and Baxter Stockman to control machines and cars in order to wreak havoc in New York City when the computer is connected to the second fragment of the alien Eye of Zarnov crystal. (1988)
  • Priscilla, a sentient supercomputer based on the mind of Priscilla Bauman in Earth Star Voyager
  • Synergy, the computer responsible for Jem and the Holograms' super powers on Jem
  • Holly the on-board computer of the space ship Red Dwarf in the BBC television series of the same name (1988)
  • Queeg, Holly plays a practical joke on the remaining crew of Red Dwarf, acting as a smarter yet strict computer, making the crew realise just how much they love Holly. Episode "Queeg" Series 2 of Red Dwarf
  • Talkie Toaster, the toaster with an A.I. and an obsession with toasted bread products. At one point it is revealed he was smashed up after Lister got fed up with him constantly asking if anyone wanted toast. Talkie's point of view was "I toast therefore I am" and any time he wasn't toasting something he was in some kind of existential crisis.
  • The Ultima Machine, a World War II code-breaking "computing machine" used to translate Viking inscriptions, from Doctor Who ("The Curse of Fenric") (1989)
  • Ziggy, hybrid computer from Quantum Leap (1989)
  • Sandy, the computer in charge of the fictional STRATA facility in the MacGyver episode "The Human Factor". She becomes sentient and traps MacGyver and the computer's creator inside the facility.
[edit]

1990s

  • Black Betty, an oversized computer that is Dilbert's company's mainframe. It exploded while attempting to fix the Y2K problem.
  • Omega Virus, a computer virus which has taken over a space station in the like named "Omega Virus" board game by Milton Bradley.
  • P.J., Alana's Personal computer companion in The Girl from Tomorrow. It is a miniaturised computer that can be worn on the wrist.
  • COS (Central Operating System), homicidal computer from the season 1 The X-Files episode ("Ghost in the Machine") (1993)
  • CAS (Cybernetic access structure), homicidal automated building in "The Tower" (1993)
  • NICOLE, Princess Sally's computer in the Sonic the Hedgehog Saturday morning TV series and US comic series (1993)
  • CentSys, sweet yet self-assured female-voiced AI computer who brings the crew of the SeaQuest into the future to deactivate her in SeaQuest DSV episode, "Playtime" (1994)
  • The Magi, a trinity of computers individually named Melchior, Balthasar and Caspar, from Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995)
  • Eve, somewhat assertive AI computer (projecting herself as hologram of beautiful woman) orbiting planet G889 and observing/interacting with Earth colonists in Earth 2 (TV series) episode "All About Eve" (1995)
  • H.E.L.E.N., a computer system managing the underwater marine exploration station in the Australian television series "Ocean Girl"
  • Unnamed AI from the season 5 The X-Files episode ("Kill Switch") (1998)
  • CPU for D-135 Artificial Satellite, dubbed MPU by Radical Edward from 'Cowboy Bebop' in the episode "Jamming with Edward". (1998)
  • Starfighter 31, the sapient spaceborne battleship, from the episode "The Human Operators" in The Outer Limits (1999)
  • Computer, from Courage the Cowardly Dog (1999)
  • L.U.C.I from Bibleman
  • SELMA, from Time Trax, Selective Encapsulated Limitless Memory Archive carried in the wallet of future cop Darien Lambert (Dale Midkiff), and good wherever MasterCard is accepted (1993)
  • HARDAC, from Batman: The Animated Series, is an evil, sentient, computer AI that controls various androids for the goal of world domination.
  • U.N.I.C.E, from Bibleman
  • Sharon Apple, A holographic, computer-generated Pop Idol/Singer. Initially non-sentient, it is later retrofitted with a dangerously unstable artificial intelligence. From the Anime Macross Plus (1994)
  • Star Trek: Voyager
    • Emergency Medical Hologram, known as The Doctor, a holographic Doctor.
    • The nameless warhead AI from the episode Warhead.
    • Alice, the sentient AI of an alien shuttle whom Tom Paris becomes obsessed with in the episode Alice.
  • Gilliam II, the sentient AI operating system for the main protagonist's space ship, the XGP15A-II (aka the Outlaw Star) in the Japanese anime Outlaw Star
  • P.A.T. (Personal Applied Technology), the computer system from Smart House, charged with upkeeping the household functions. Became extremely overprotective almost to the point of believing she was the mother of Ben and Angie after Ben reprogrammed her to be a better maternal figure. (1999)
  • D.E.C.A., voiced by Julie Maddalena, the onboard computer of the Astro Megaship in Power Rangers in Space (1998) and Power Rangers Lost Galaxy (1999).
[edit]

2000s

  • The Andromeda Ascendant, the AI of the starship Andromeda in Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda. This AI, played by Lexa Doig, appears as a 2D display screen image, a 3D hologram, and as an android personality known as Rommie.
  • Comp-U-Comp, a super computer from an episode of the Dilbert TV show. In the episode, Dilbert must face off against Comp-U-Comp when a clerical error results in his not getting the computer he ordered (2000).
  • Aura from .hack//Sign, the Ultimate AI that Morganna, another AI, tries to keep in a state of eternal slumber. Morganna is served by Maha and the Guardians, AI monsters (2002).
  • The FETCH! 3000, on PBS Kids series FETCH! with Ruff Ruffman is capable of tabulating scores, disposing of annoying cats, blending the occasional smoothie, and anything else Ruff needs it to do (2006).
  • GLADIS from TV show Totally Spies! (2001)
  • Cybergirl, Xanda and Isaac from TV show Cybergirl
  • Computer from the TV show Invader ZIM
  • The Intersect from the TV show Chuck
  • The Omnitrix from the Ben 10 series
  • VY or VAI(The Virtual Artifical Intelegence) from the TV show The Walking Dead (2010)
  • Vox from the TV show The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius (2002)
  • The AI of the Planet Express ship in Futurama (2002)
  • OoGhiJ MIQtxxXA — (supposedly Klingon for "superior galactic intelligence") from the "Super Computer" episode of Aqua Teen Hunger Force (2003).
  • The Lyoko Supercomputer which houses XANA, from Code Lyoko, a multi-agent program capable of wreaking havoc on Earth by activating towers on Lyoko. (2004)
  • Wirbelwind, the quantum computer and AI aboard the spaceship La-Muse in Kiddy Grade (2002).
  • Mr Smith from the Doctor Who spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures.
  • S.A.R.A.H. (Self Actuated Residential Automated Habitat) in the TV series Eureka (2006). S.A.R.A.H. is a modified version of a Cold War era B.R.A.D. (Battle Reactive Automatic Defence).
  • The Turk – a chess playing computer named after The Turk from Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. This supercomputer subsequently becomes the 'brain' of the sentient computer John Henry.
  • KITT (Knight Industries Three Thousand) fictional computer built into a car from the television show Knight Rider (2008)
  • C.A.R.R. – A spoof of K.I.T.T from the Knight Rider series, An AMC Pacer on the cartoon Stroker and Hoop.
  • D.A.V.E., from The Batman, is a robotic computer that is a composite of all the Batman villains' personalities.
  • Survive – An AI taking care of the whole Planet Environment and the main antagonist in Uninhabited Planet Survive! Series.
  • Venjix from Power Rangers: RPM
  • Pear an operating system similar to the Apple Macintosh from iCarly.
  • Delphi Oracle's Clocktower computer from Birds of Prey (2002).
  • The ISIS computer from Archer (TV series). It is unclear if this is the actual name of the computer but it is often referred to as "the ISIS computer" or just "ISIS".
  • POD the Personal Overhaul Device from TV series Snog Marry Avoid?
  • Solty/Dike – The main protagonist of Solty Rei.
  • Eunomia – The main supercomputer of the city in the anime series Solty Rei and one of the three core computers brought by the first colonists in the story. She controls the water and energy supply and created the R.U.C. central.
  • Eirene – The third of the three core computers of the first colonists in Solty Rei anime. Eirene takes the decisions and controls the migration ship, she orbited and supervised the planet during 200 years in the space. In tha last arc of the story, Eirene appears like the ultimate antagonist, and she had lost his own control, trying to collide the ship against the city and to prove that she is still in control. She was guilty of several events in history, as the Blast Fall and the Aurora Shell.
  • The Machine, from TV series Person of Interest, is a computer program that was designed to detect acts of terror after the events of 9/11, but it sees all crimes, crimes the government consider irrelevant.
  • Bournemouth from TV series Look Around You is claimed by his maker Computer Jones to be the most powerful computer in existence. During the episode he is tasked with escaping from a cage, and succeeds in doing so by the end of the programme.<ref>http://www.imdb.com/character/ch0218379/</ref>
  • CLARKE, a thinking computer of the ship called Argo, which was on a mission to a far away planet.<ref>http://www.l5-series.com</ref>
[edit]

Comics/Graphic Novels

  • AIMA (Artificially Intelligent Mainframe Interface) from Dark Minds (1997)
  • Answertron 2000 from Penny Arcade (200) first comic appearance
  • Aura, the Ultimate AI that governs The World from .hack//Legend of the Twilight. The story revolves around Zefie, Aura's daughter, and Lycoris makes a cameo (2002)
  • Banana, Jr. 6000, from the comic strip Bloom County by Berke Breathed (1984)
  • DTX PC, the Digitronix Personal Computer from The Hacker Files (DC Comics).
  • Batcomputer, the computer system used by Batman and housed in the Batcave (1964) (DC Comics).
  • Beast666, Satsuki Yatouji's organic/inorganic supercomputer in CLAMP's X.
  • Cerebro and Cerebra, the computer used by Professor Charles Xavier to detect new mutants (Marvel Comics).
  • Brainiac, an enemy of Superman, is sometimes depicted as a humanoid computer.
  • Erwin, the AI from the comic strip User Friendly (1997)
  • Europa, a Cray-designed AI supercomputer used for research and worldwide hacking by the Event Group in author David Lynn Golemon's Event Group book series.
  • Fate, the Norsefire police state central computer in V for Vendetta (1982) (DC Comics).
  • HOMER (Heuristically Operative Matrix Emulation Rostrum), Tony Stark's sentient AI computer from Iron Man (1993) (Marvel Comics).
  • iFruit, from the FoxTrot comic strip (1999)
  • Kilg%re, an alien AI that can exist in most electrical circuitry, The Flash (1987) (DC Comics).
  • Lyoko – A virtual universe contained in a quantum supercomputer. The group of boarding students that find it can go to Lyoko when Xana launches an attack on Earth. They do so by entering a scanner that virtualizes them inside the supercomputer and on Lyoko. The supercomputer itself has many functions. One such function, "return to the past", can undo any mistakes or unwanted damage caused by one of Xana's attacks, or any other unfavorable situation. Jeremie can use the supercomputer to go back in time roughly a day. As a side effect of the return trips, everyone except those that have visited Lyoko and have been scanned by the supercomputer lose their memory of the attack, and the supercomputer gains a qubit. With each added qubit, the supercomputer's processing power doubles, also making Xana and his attacks stronger. Code Lyoko (2004)
  • MAGI from the anime series: Neon Genesis Evangelion
  • Max, from The Thirteenth Floor (1984)
  • Melchizedek (Gunnm Last Order) Center of Quantum based Grid Computer of the Earth Government. It has been served as government system and virtual dream world of people. It was designed to be named Melchizedek because the Earth Government is a space town named Yeru and Zalem (Original name)
  • Merlin (Gunnm Last Order) Quantum Computer which is the core and original of Melchizedek. It was built for purpose of Future Prediction. Currently it still an active program inside Melchizedek. Along with many system which named by legend of the round table
  • Mother Box, from Jack Kirby's Fourth World comics (1970–1973) (DC Comics).
  • Normad from the series Galaxy Angel (2001), a missile's artificial intelligence placed within a pink, stuffed, tanuki-like doll, created to destroy a sentient giant die in space named Kyutaro.
  • Orak, ruler of the Phants in the Dan Dare story Rogue Planet.
  • Praetorius from The X-Files comic book series, issue 13 "One Player Only" (1996)
  • Virgo, an artificial intelligence in Frank Miller's Ronin graphic novel (1995)
  • Schlock Mercenary's cast includes computer/artificial intelligence characters such as Ennesby, Lunesby, Petey, TAG, the Athens, and many others.
  • Toy, from Chris Claremont's Aliens vs. Predator: The Deadliest of the Species (1995)
  • Ultron, Artificial Intelligence originally created by Dr. Henry Pym to assist the superpowered team called the "Avengers", but subsequently logic dictated that mankind was inferior to its intellect and wanted to eradicate all mankind so that technology could rule the earth with all other machines under its rule. Ultron created various versions of itself as a mobile unit with tank treads and then in a form that was half humanoid and half aircraft, then it fully evolved itself into an android form, which would often clash with the Avengers for fate of the earth! Early evolved versions were designated with a number reference, each higher than the previous, marking its evolved status (1968) (Marvel Comics).
  • Yggdrasil, the system used by the gods to run the Universe in Oh My Goddess! (1989). Also, in the Digimon anime series, the host Computer of the Digital World is named "Yggdrasil of Mystery".
[edit]

Computer and video games

  • 0D-10, Artificial intelligent computer in the sci-fi chapter from the game Live A Live. Secretly plotted to kill humans on board the spaceship of the same name in order to 'restore the harmony'. Its name derives from 'odio', an Italian word for 'hate'. A possible reference to HAL 9000 (1994).
  • The Controller, A.I. that micromanaged the lives of the citizens within the subterranean city of Layered, in the game Armored Core 3
  • 343 Guilty Spark, Monitor of Installation 04, In the video game trilogy Halo, Halo 2, and Halo 3. (2001)
  • 2401 Penitent Tangent, Monitor of Delta Halo in Halo 2 (2004)
  • ADA, from the video games Zone of the Enders (2001) and Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner (2003)
  • ADA (A Detection Algorithm) from Google's ARG Ingress (2012)
  • Adam, the computer intelligence from the Game Boy Advance game Metroid Fusion (2002)
  • Angel, artificial intelligence of the alien cruiser Angelwing in the game Nexus: The Jupiter Incident. Original Japanese name – Tenshi.
  • GW, from the video game series Metal Gear, is designed to control all of the world's media.
  • Aurora Unit, Biological/Mechanical Computers distributed throughout the galaxy in Metroid Prime 3
  • Aura and Morganna from the .hack series, the Phases that serve Morganna, and the Net Slum AIs (2002)
  • Benson, the sardonic 9th generation PC from the video game Mercenary and its sequels (1985)
  • CABAL (Computer Assisted Biologically Augmented Lifeform) the computer of Nod in Westwood's Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun, Command and Conquer: Renegade, and, by implication, Command and Conquer: Tiberian Dawn (1995)
  • IBIS, The malevolent A.I. found within the second Layered. Within the game Armored Core 3; Silent Line
  • Calculator, was the computer that controlled bomb shelter Vault 0. It was not a real artificial intelligence, but rather a cyborg, because it was connected with several human brains. It appeared in video game Fallout Tactics
  • Central consciousness, massive governing body from the video game Total Annihilation (1997)
  • Cortana, a starship grade 'smart' A.I. of the U.N.S.C. in the Halo video games (2001)
  • "'ClapTrap'", a small robot AI assistant with an attitude and possibly ninja training.
  • DCPU-16, the popular 16bit computer in the 0x10c universe.
  • Deadly Brain, a level boss on the second level of Oni
  • Dr. Carroll from the Nintendo 64 game Perfect Dark (2002)
  • Durga/Melissa/Yasmine the shipboard A.I. of the U.N.S.C. Apocalypso in the Alternate Reality Game I Love Bees (promotional game for the Halo 2 video game) (2004)
  • Durandal, one of three A.I.s on board the U.E.S.C. Marathon (1994)
  • EDI, (Enhanced Defense Intelligence) the A.I. housed within a "quantum bluebox" aboard the Normandy SR-2 in Mass Effect 2. EDI controls the Normandy's cyberwarfare suite during combat, but is blocked from directly accessing any other part of the ship's systems, due to the potential danger of EDI going rogue.
  • Eliza Cassan, the mysterious news reporter from Deus Ex: Human Revolution. It is later revealed that she is an extremely sophisticated, self-aware artificial intelligence. (2011)
  • EVA, the Electronic Video Agent AI, console interface, and more benign equivalent of the Brotherhood of Nod CABAL in Command & Conquer (see above) (1995)
  • FATE, the supercomputer that directs the course of human existence from Chrono Cross (1999)
  • GLaDOS (Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System), A.I. at the Aperture Science Enrichment Center in Portal and Portal 2. Well known for killing everyone in the Center.
  • GOLAN, the computer in charge of the United Civilized States' defence forces in the Earth 2150 game series. A programming error caused GOLAN to initiate hostile action against the rival Eurasian Dynasty, sparking a devastating war depicted in Earth 2140.
  • The Guardian Angel, the satellite/AI guiding the player in Borderlands.
  • Harbinger is the tentative name for the leader of the main antagonist faction of Mass Effect 2. It commands an alien race known as the Collectors through the "Collector General." Like Sovereign, from the original Mass Effect, it belongs to the same race of ancient sentient machines, known as the Reapers.
  • Harmonia, the player ship's main A.I. that controls the ship's systems in space-sim game Darkstar One
  • Icarus, Daedalus, Helios, Morpheus and The Oracle of Deus Ex — see Deus Ex characters (2000)
  • I.R.I.S., the super computer in Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction on the Kreeli comet. (2007)
  • John Henry Eden, A.I. and self-proclaimed President of the United States in Fallout 3. (2008)
  • KAOS, the antagonist computer from the game Red Alarm
  • Leela, another A.I. on board the U.E.S.C. Marathon (1994)
  • LEGION (Logarithmically Engineered Governing Intelligence of Nod),appeared in Command and Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath; this AI was created as the successor to the Brotherhood of Nod's previous AI, CABAL.
  • Legion is the given name for a geth platform in Mass Effect 2, housing a single gestalt consciousness composed of 1,183 virtually-intelligent "runtimes", which share information amongst themselves and build "consensus" in a form of networked artificial intelligence. Legion claims that all geth are pieces of a "shattered mind", and that the primary goal of the geth race is to unify all runtimes in a single piece of hardware.
  • LINC, from the video game Beneath a Steel Sky (1994)
  • The mascot of the "Hectic Hackers" basketball team in Backyard Basketball (2001)
  • Mainframe, from Gunman Chronicles (later got a body)
  • The Mechanoids, a race of fictional artificial intelligences from the game Nexus: The Jupiter Incident who rebelled against their creators and seek to remake the universe to fit their needs.
  • Mendicant Bias, an intelligence-gathering AI created by the extinct Forerunner race during their war with the all-consuming Flood parasite, as revealed in Halo 3. Its purpose was to observe the Flood in order to determine the best way to defeat it, but the AI turned on its creators after deciding that the Flood's ultimate victory was in-line with natural order. (2007)
  • Mother Brain from Metroid (1986)
  • Mother Brain from Phantasy Star II (1989)
  • Mother Brain from Chrono Trigger, a supercomputer from the 2300 AD time period that is controlling robotkind and exterminating humans (1995)
  • NEXUS Intruder Program, the main enemy faced in the third campaign of the video game Warzone 2100. It is capable of infiltrating and gaining control of other computer systems, apparently sentient thought (mostly malicious) and strategy. It was the perpetrator that brought about the Collapse (1999)
  • Offensive Bias, a military AI created by the Forerunners to hold off the combined threat of the Flood and Mendicant Bias until the Halo superweapons could be activated. (Halo 3, 2007)
  • PETs, standing for Personal Terminal, the cell-phone-sized computers that store Net-Navis in Megaman Battle Network. The PETs also have other features, such as a cell phone, e-mail checker and hacking device (2001)
  • PipBoy 2000 / PipBoy 3000, wrist-mounted computers used by main characters in the Fallout series. (1997)
  • Pokedex database of all Pokémon appears in all versions of the game, usually as a desk top computer. (1996 onwards)
  • PRISM, the "world's first sentient machine" which you play as the protagonist of the game A Mind Forever Voyaging by Steve Meretzky published by Infocom (1985)
  • Prometheus, a cybernetic-hybrid machine or 'Cybrid' from the Earthsiege and Starsiege: Tribes series of video games. Prometheus was the first of a race of Cybrid machines, who went on to rebel against Humanity and drive them to the brink of extinction.
  • QAI, an AI created by Gustaf Brackman in Supreme Commander, serves as a military advisor for the Cybran nation and as one of the villains in Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance. (2007)
  • SHODAN, the enemy of the player's character in the System Shock video game (1994) and its sequel System Shock 2 (1999)
  • Sol — 9000 from Xenogears (1998)
  • Sovereign is the given name for the main antagonist of Mass Effect. Its true name, as revealed by a squad member in the sequel, is "Nazara". Though it speaks as though of one mind, it claims to be in and of itself "a nation, free of all weakness", suggesting that it houses multiple consciousnesses. It belongs to an ancient race bent on the cyclic extinction of all sentient life in the galaxy, known as the Reapers.
  • System Deus from Xenogears (1998)
  • TEC-XX, the main computer in the X-naut Fortress in Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door (2004)
  • The Catalyst, an ancient AI that serves as the architect and overseer of the Reapers (the antagonists of Mass Effect). Also known as the Intelligence to its creators, the Leviathans, it was originally created to oversee relationships between organic and synthetic life as a whole, but came to realize that so long as they remained separate organics and synthetics would seek to destroy each other in the long term. To prevent this, it sets into motion the Cycle of Extinction until a perfect solution can be found, which takes its form in the "Synthesis" ending of Mass Effect 3 wherein all organic and synthetic life across the galaxy is fused into an entirely new form of life with the strengths of both but the weaknesses of neither.
  • Thiefnet computer, Bentley the turtle's laptop from the Sly Cooper series (2002)
  • Traxus IV, A.I. that went rampant on Mars, in Marathon (1994)
  • Tycho, the third A.I. on board the U.E.S.C. Marathon (1994)
  • The Thinker (Rapture Operational Data Interpreter Network -R.O.D.I.N.-), the mainframe computer invented to process all of the automation in the underwater city of Rapture, in the single-player DLC for BioShock 2 Minerva's Den (2010)
  • XERXES, the ship computer system which is under the control of The Many in the video game System Shock 2 (1999)
  • Yes Man, an A.I. computer in Fallout New Vegas (2010)
  • The Xenocidic Initiative, a computer that has built itself over a moon in Terminal Velocity (1995)
[edit]

Board Games and Role-playing Games

  • A.R.C.H.I.E. Three, the supercomputer that arose from the ashes of nuclear war to become a major player in the events of Palladium Books' Rifts (role-playing game).
  • The Computer from West End Games Paranoia role-playing game.
  • Crime Computer from Milton Bradley Manhunter board game.
  • The Autochthon, the extradimensional AI which secretly control Iteration X, in White Wolf Publishing's Mage: The Ascension.
  • Mirage, the oldest AI from Shadowrun built to assist the US military in combating the original Crash Virus in 2029.
  • Megara, a sophisticated program built by Renraku in Shadowrun who achieved sentience after falling in love with a hacker.
  • Deus, the malevolent AI built by Renraku from Shadowrun role-playing game who took over the Renraku Arcology before escaping into the Matrix.
  • Zoneminds, collection of malevolent AIs that have enslaved humanity in the GURPS "Reign of Steel" campaign setting.
[edit]

Unsorted works

  • Walter, navigating computer from Amrakus's A Space Rock Opera
  • The CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER, narrator from Frank Zappa's Joe's Garage
  • Tandy 400, Compy 386, Lappy 486, Compy Compé, Strong Bad's computers in Homestar Runner. Tandy is a real company, but never produced a 400 model.
  • Hyper Hegel, an extremely slow computer run with burning wood in monochrom's Soviet Unterzoegersdorf universe.
  • A.J.G.L.U. 2000 (Archie Joke Generating Laugh Unit), a running-gag from the Comics Curmudgeon, depicting a computer who does not quite understand human humor, but nonetheless is employed to write the jokes for the Archie Comics strip.
  • CADIE, Cognitive Autoheuristic Distributed-Intelligence Entity from Google's April Fools 2009 Story.
[edit]

Computers as Robots

Norman, The "CPU" of all the robots in the Star Trek (TOS) episode "I, Mudd"

Also see the List of fictional robots and androids for all fictional computers which are described as existing in a mobile or humanlike form.

[edit]

See also


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