Google is Skynet, and other Internet conspiracies
Google is going to take over the world. Not really, but it's fun to imagine. As the Internet behemoth lays claim to more and more territory – books, smart phones, voice mail, magazines, maps, electricity meters, we could go on – Google has long passed the critical mass needed to become the butt of many, many conspiracy theories.
The US government is investigating Google's book deal. But are they looking into what many Internet users fear – that Google is Skynet from Terminator series?
Fast Company compiled a fun list of similarities:
Is Google SkyNet? In a word: Yes. In fact, in some ways, it's even smarter. SkyNet didn't assume worldwide domination until 2029, while Google has already effectively monopolized search and it's only 2009.
SkyNet September 4, 1998 August 4, 1997 Cybergeek PhD students Cyberdyne Systems Eliminate 404 error Eliminate human military error Menlo Park, CA Sunnyvale, CA $1.1 million initial investment ~3 billion human lives
But the Sarah Connor-like resistance came long before the magazine's side-by-side comparison. The blog googleisskynet.com existed back in September 2006, producing such warning calls as this YouTube clip:
