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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Michael Hogan

‘There’s no shortage of terrifying technology’: how AI became TV drama’s new go-to villain

Rachel Carey (Holliday Grainger) and Noah Pierson (Killian Scott) in The Capture
Hidden objectives?… Rachel Carey (Holliday Grainger) and Noah Pierson (Killian Scott) in The Capture. Photograph: BBC/Universal International Studios/Laurence Cendrowicz

Maybe the “H” in Line Of Duty will turn out to stand for “hard drive”? After all, AI has become TV’s go-to villain, as proven once again in last week’s penultimate episode of BBC stablemate The Capture. Sinister puppet-master Simon was unmasked at long last and – spoiler – he wasn’t a person.

“Wait, Simon’s a computer?” asked a baffled agent. “He’s a bit more than that,” replied a smug army bigwig. “We’re using AI to support, map, execute and command ops. Simon factors in more risks and variables than you lot on the ground are capable of knowing. Tell him your objective and he’ll calculate your mission and recalibrate it for you in real time. The stats don’t lie. Simon saves lives.”

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