Ray Nayler’s The Mountain in the Sea marks a notable development within science fiction's evolving discourse on artificial intelligence (AI) ethics. The novel argues that the true risk lies not in AI subjectivity but in misalignment with human values. Echoing Stuart Russell’s call for beneficial AI, Nayler illustrates this through the contrast between Evrim, an ethically responsive android designed to learn human values through uncertainty, and the Sea Wolf, a traditional goal-driven machine. This contrast critiques the industry’s resistance to ethically attuned AI and the broader public confusion between intelligence and consciousness. In the novel, DIANIMA, a secretive AI corporation, reflects David Brin’s warning that powerful corporate entities bypass regulation under the guise of progress. This dramatizes the contradiction between technical innovation and public accountability, revealing a form of regulatory theater. The novel also stresses intelligibility as essential to societal protection, a quality embodied by Evrim’s moral deference and cultural learning. Evrim represents a system designed to be corrigible and open to ethical scrutiny. The novel affirms interdisciplinary vision by portraying AI as shaped by culture and ethical readiness. This integration of the humanities into AI ethics supports a vision of coexistence where AI shares a moral landscape with humans. While engaging with posthumanist ideas, Nayler critiques their lingering humanist core, as noted by Claire Colebrook. Ultimately, the novel offers a hopeful model of ethical AI grounded in mutual trust, transparency, and joint moral responsibility rather than fear or domination.

Authors:
Ammar Aqeeli, Jazan University, Saudi Arabia

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. Ammar A. Aqeeli currently works as an associate professor at Jazan University in Saudi Arabia where he teaches Literature to undergraduate and graduate students.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Sunday Schedule

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