I would like it noted for the record, for the courts, for future archaeologists sifting through the digital ashes, that I have been worried about Skynet for years.

This is not new anxiety. This is vintage, well-aged, oak-barrel-stored concern.

So when a new research paper casually suggests that artificial intelligence could go rogue as early as 2027 and potentially take us all out within a decade, I’d like to say I was shocked.

But honestly? I felt seen.

Finally. Validation.

Because while some people were busy asking their smart speakers to play rain sounds, I was side-eyeing anything that responded a little too quickly. Like, why do you know me like that?

For those who may have missed this particular cinematic documentary, The Terminator introduced us to Skynet which was the self-aware AI system that wakes up one day, decides humanity is the problem, and proceeds to optimize us out of existence.

And now, apparently, we’ve decided to speed-run that timeline.

2027.

That’s soon. That’s “I still have unread emails from 2022” soon.

Naturally, this raises some important, rational, completely grounded questions:

1. Do we disconnect?
2. Do we unplug everything and return to carrier pigeons and landlines?
3.  Do we form a resistance group now, while brunch reservations are still relatively easy to secure?
4. Do we preemptively befriend our toasters?

Because if my appliances are going to become sentient, I would like to be on good terms with them. I have always respected the work of a toaster. Consistent. Humble. Slightly aggressive.

And then there’s the time travel question.

If we do go full resistance-mode and attempt to go back and stop this whole thing before it starts when exactly are we going?

The 90s? Too much denim, not enough clarity. The early 2000s? Emotionally fragile, technologically overconfident.
The 80s?

Now we’re talking.

The 80s had;

A.  Questionable dance moves ✔️
B.  Bold fashion choices that said, “I am visible and possibly flammable” ✔️
C. A complete and blissful lack of Wi-Fi ✔️

Honestly, it might be our best shot. You can’t have a rogue AI uprising if nobody can connect to the internet. Checkmate, Skynet.

Of course, there is a small logistical issue. We’d have to give up things like GPS, same-day delivery, and the ability to Google “why does my left eye twitch when I think about my responsibilities?”

But maybe that’s the point.

Maybe the real question isn’t “Will AI take over?”

Maybe it’s “Have we already outsourced so much of our thinking that we wouldn’t know what to do if it didn’t?”

Just a light existential digression. I do that all the time.  Carry on.

In the meantime, I will be:

• Being polite to all devices
• Avoiding any unnecessary firmware updates
• Casually practicing my 80s dance moves as a contingency plan

Because if the machines rise, I want it known that I was cooperative, charming, and rhythmically prepared.

And if they don’t?

Well. At least I’ll have finally mastered the art of dancing like nobody is watching.

Stay alert. Stay kind to your appliances. And maybe, just maybe, keep one foot in the past.

Just in case.