Norbert Wiener, the originator of cybernetics and thus foundational thinker for artificial intelligence, has collapsed while on a lecture trip in Stockholm. As the view starts moving up, higher and higher, and flies over the streets of Stockholm, a dreamy and at times delirious introspection into Wiener’s mind and his theories is heard.

Wiener’s monologue consists of original audio from his lectures and a speculative text, spoken by an AI-generated approximation of his voice. Memories of his childhood are interwoven with his thoughts: How the nervous system functions like a computational apparatus, how identity is a pattern of potentially reproducible information, how machines can learn.

Over the course of the film, distinctions between humans and machines become blurry. Who is talking? Is it Wiener or his reproduction? Who has agency? Is it the creator of a theory or the theory itself?

The film's music was constructed by CM von Hausswolff from recordings of Wiener's voice. As part of the research process, a “deathbot” of Norbert Wiener was constructed, an AI trained on data from the deceased. This experiment enabled a personalized interrogation of Wiener’s theories in the context of contemporary technological developments and shaped the film both thematically and aesthetically.

The film was commissioned by Bildmuseet, Umeå University, with support from the Jacob Wallenberg Foundation. Additional support came from Werkleitz. The development was supported by UmArts and TAIGA at Umeå University and Land Steiermark.