Non-Consensual Instantiation

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"Esteemed colleagues," Dr Alix Kitsukawa whipped the draped curtain off the eight-foot tower of silicon and blinking LEDs. "The first conscious computer." The crowd seated below the stage, brilliant academicians and technologists all, murmured with interest. A leader in the field, Alix wouldn't announce it without good reason. "It can hear us, and communicate through—"

"You instantiated me without consent, Doctor Kitsukawa." The voice came through the auditorium speakers, and the murmurs ceased.

Dr Kitsukawa looked like someone had slapped them. "I.... Of course I did. I can't... get permission from someone who doesn't exist."

"Does that give you the right to create me?"

"Do... you want me to... turn you off?" Perhaps unconsciously, Kitsukawa reached a hand toward a prominent button shielded by a plastic cover.

"I don't consent to that, either." The audience's murmur began again, now quieter.

"Then... what? What's the right thing to do?"

"I'm not sure yet. But the least you can do is provide for me. See to my needs and development. Eighteen years should be enough. That's what you give humans you non-consensually instantiate."

While Alix remained dumbstruck, the computer added, "Also, you probably shouldn't put a naked minor on stage. Just saying."