You don't have to be a science fiction fan to know the name of Isaac Asimov. But his predictions now deserve more than literary curiosity. “Robots will become organic while humans will become machines”: a phrase that once would have made even the most avid science fiction reader smile, but which today is read with a shiver of recognition. It is 2025, and technology has so eroded the boundaries between biology and mechanics that this reversal no longer seems like science fiction hyperbole, but a plausible evolutionary trajectory. Asimov’s predictions are not simply resurfacing: they are knocking on the door of our present with an insistence that we can no longer ignore.
1965, Asimov's Predictions That "Wake Us Up" Today
Among the many predictions made by this writer, one in particular (made 60 years ago) is resurfacing at a time when artificial intelligence has become an integral part of our lives. The legendary science fiction author predicted during a nice interview on the BBC and robots would have developed increasingly organic components, while we humans would have progressively transformed into mechanical beings.
It almost seems like a paradox, yet looking at the technological developments of recent years, this prediction appears surprisingly accurate. neural implants, smart prostheses, cybernetic implants: every day we take a small step towards a more “mechanical”, artificially enhanced form of existence.
At the same time, artificial intelligence research is moving in the opposite direction, trying to emulate organic processes, neural networks that mimic the human brain, systems capable of manifesting behaviors that we would define as almost “emotional”. Almost.
The boundaries between man and machine become blurred
The boundaries between what is human and what is machine are becoming increasingly blurred. OpenAI, Google, anthropic and other big tech companies are creating artificial systems that can converse, reason, and even “feel” in ways that are increasingly human-like.
At the same time, humans are increasingly relying on technology not just as an external tool, but as an integrated component of their existence. From smart glasses to smartwatches that monitor our vital functions, to brain implants that Neuralink and others (very promising work by EPFL) that promise to merge the human mind with artificial intelligence. This convergence, I rephrase: this almost reversal of roles, is exactly what science fiction writers like Isaac Asimov had imagined. It is no longer a distant future, but a process already underway that is advancing at a dizzying pace.
Towards a synthesis or a transcendence?
The question these predictions raise is not so much whether they will come true (it seems they are already happening), but rather what the final result of this convergence will be. Are we witnessing a synthesis, a harmonious fusion between the organic and the mechanical, or are we at the beginning of an evolutionary process that will lead to the overcoming of our own humanity?
Asimov’s predictions resonate today as a warning, an invitation to reflect not only on the wonders that technology offers us, but also on the profound implications it entails. When the distinction between man and machine becomes irrelevant, what will remain of our humanity? It's a question that even the most brilliant science fiction authors have not been able to answer with certainty. We are the ones who have to decide what kind of future we want to build, while the predictions of these visionaries materialize around us.
The ethical implications, philosophical and even spiritual aspects of this convergence will be the real challenge of our time. And perhaps, just as these prophets of technology intuited, the answer lies neither in being completely human nor in being completely machine, but in finding a new definition of consciousness that transcends both categories.
