Now that many of William Gibson’s ardent fans will have read his latest novel "Agency", here are
few thoughts about it (spoilers ahead). [1/81]
few thoughts about it (spoilers ahead). [1/81]
Having been involved in the "new form of literary criticism" Node Magazine
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Node_Maga… review of "Spook Country" in 2007, it seems appropriate to publish these initial thoughts about "Agency" as a Twitter thread which can then branch or be added to by others [2/81]
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Node_Maga… review of "Spook Country" in 2007, it seems appropriate to publish these initial thoughts about "Agency" as a Twitter thread which can then branch or be added to by others [2/81]
and (later) as a Tor .onion hidden service en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.onion [3/81]
Influence of ideas from William Gibson’s earlier novels.
You might need to have read the previous novel "The Peripheral" before "Agency" or else you may
get lost [4/81]
You might need to have read the previous novel "The Peripheral" before "Agency" or else you may
get lost [4/81]
amongst the information based time travel / alternative history mechanism, telepresence robots, nano assembler swarms and the ex Russian mafia klept lurking in a future London and USA, in which these were introduced. [5/81]
In the beloved William Gibson style, the reader is left to flesh out these sparse terms themselves, so you can just do this when these unfamiliar words appear in "Agency" or do
what everyone else, including the author does: google them. [6/81]
what everyone else, including the author does: google them. [6/81]
William Gibson explored all powerful Artificial Intelligences (which were supposed to be regulated by the "Turing Institute" (which does now exist but is not a regulatory police organisation) [8/81]
and fleetingly used killer drones directed by such AIs in his classic CyberPunk trilogy of novels set in the
the near future Sprawl: Neuromancer, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive published in the 1980s. [9/81]
the near future Sprawl: Neuromancer, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive published in the 1980s. [9/81]
The later 1990s Bridge trilogy & the Blue Ant trilogy of the 2000s used contemporary street names & real shops, clubs, corporate offices & restaurants etc. with a bit of artistic licence, to give the reader the flavour & atmosphere of San Francisco, Toyko & London, [10/81]
allowing his ardent fans / stans (stalker fans) to map out their own literary walking tour, either physically or
via Google Maps etc.
"The Peripheral" and "Agency" also use this technique, but only really now for San Francisco and London [11/81]
via Google Maps etc.
"The Peripheral" and "Agency" also use this technique, but only really now for San Francisco and London [11/81]
#Surveillance #Tradecraft #OPSEC
This William Gibson novel actually has more details of surveillance / surveillance detection/ counter-
surveillance / and espionage / criminal underground tradecraft techniques than most supposed spy
thrillers. [12/81]
This William Gibson novel actually has more details of surveillance / surveillance detection/ counter-
surveillance / and espionage / criminal underground tradecraft techniques than most supposed spy
thrillers. [12/81]
More of this tradecraft is deployed by the AI Eunice in "Agency" than even appeared in "Spook Country"
which had ex KGB and CIA / NSA characters. Espionage jargon terms #OPSEC (Operational Security) and
Situational Awareness are explicitly mentioned in "Agency". [13/81]
which had ex KGB and CIA / NSA characters. Espionage jargon terms #OPSEC (Operational Security) and
Situational Awareness are explicitly mentioned in "Agency". [13/81]
#FaceRecognition of all nearby people, to spot if someone new / out of place turns up as a possible threat.
Identifying #drones on the horizon - c.f. Ahmed the Syrian made self driving Rolls Royce doing the same to police helicopters in "Count Zero". [14/81]
Identifying #drones on the horizon - c.f. Ahmed the Syrian made self driving Rolls Royce doing the same to police helicopters in "Count Zero". [14/81]
"Because," Lucas said, pausing for another sip of cold white wine, "that's how long it's taking us. Ahmed has all the factory options, including a first-rate #CounterSurveillance system. On the road, rolling, Ahmed provides a remarkable degree of privacy, [15/81]
more than I'm ordinarily willing to pay for in New York. Ahmed, you get the feeling anybody's
trying to get to us, listen in or anything?"
"No, sir," the voice said. "Eight minutes ago our identification panel was infra-scanned by a Tactical helicopter. [16/81]
trying to get to us, listen in or anything?"
"No, sir," the voice said. "Eight minutes ago our identification panel was infra-scanned by a Tactical helicopter. [16/81]
The helicopter's number was MH-dash-3-dash-848, piloted by Corporal Roberto---"
"Okay, okay," Lucas said. "Fine. Never mind You see? Ahmed got more on those Tacs than they got on us." [17/81]
"Okay, okay," Lucas said. "Fine. Never mind You see? Ahmed got more on those Tacs than they got on us." [17/81]
Followrs
Corporate ex government Mercenaries - Pryor - not as well developed or scary as Neuromancer's Armitage / Corto or even Spook Country's Brown [18/81]
Corporate ex government Mercenaries - Pryor - not as well developed or scary as Neuromancer's Armitage / Corto or even Spook Country's Brown [18/81]
Keys to the apartment fabricated from scanned images of the original keys.
Custom bleeding edge autonomous drones checking on #CounterSurveillance & #SurveillanceDetectionRoutes
#BurnerPhones
Effortlessly #Hacking into bank accounts, exploiting #DarkMarkets [19/81]
Custom bleeding edge autonomous drones checking on #CounterSurveillance & #SurveillanceDetectionRoutes
#BurnerPhones
Effortlessly #Hacking into bank accounts, exploiting #DarkMarkets [19/81]
Followrs - Uber style gig economy street surveillance operatives for hire
pg 48
"From something like Uber," Eunice said, "but for following people"
[20/81]
pg 48
"From something like Uber," Eunice said, "but for following people"
[20/81]
pg 49
"The girl in 3.7 seemed engrossed in her phone. "What’s she doing ?"
"Candy Crush Saga. Nondigital surveillance is weaponized boredom"
[21/81]
"The girl in 3.7 seemed engrossed in her phone. "What’s she doing ?"
"Candy Crush Saga. Nondigital surveillance is weaponized boredom"
[21/81]
pg 173
"Followrs," said Eunice, Verity guessing she was showing him something.
He stood, reading empty air. "Been hoping that whole story was The Onion," he said.
[22/81]
"Followrs," said Eunice, Verity guessing she was showing him something.
He stood, reading empty air. "Been hoping that whole story was The Onion," he said.
[22/81]
c.f. "Count Zero" - Josef Virek’s Corporate Money buying the services of even supposedly deadly rival street
gangs to provide local surveillance / muscle.
[23/81]
gangs to provide local surveillance / muscle.
[23/81]
"Seems Raymond has been approached by this guy, and this guy has lots of money, and he wants to hire the Gothicks outright, the whole apparat, to go into the Sprawl and do a
number, a real crowd scene This guy wants it so big, he's gonna hire the Kasuals too.
[24/81]
number, a real crowd scene This guy wants it so big, he's gonna hire the Kasuals too.
[24/81]
Well, the shit hit the fan then, because Alix, he's kind of conservative. Only good Kasual's a dead one, and then only after x number of hours of torture, etc, `Fuck that,' Raymond says, ever the diplomat. `We're talking big money here, we're talking corporate.'
Ubiquitous unbreakable #encrypted communications by both the AI Eunice and her minions, but also by the klept.
[26/81]
[26/81]
(minor) Plot criticisms
Is there no inoculation against #FakeNews ?
Why does Verity trust the AI Eunice almost immediately and obey every command ?
Not much Agency for Verity.
[27/81]
Is there no inoculation against #FakeNews ?
Why does Verity trust the AI Eunice almost immediately and obey every command ?
Not much Agency for Verity.
[27/81]
She has a few suspicions e.g. "Is this somebodies YouTube channel ?" but she believes everything Eunice tells her, even if there is no 3rd party corroboration about the villainy of her employer Tulpagenics and their parent company Cursion
[28/81]
[28/81]
or the alleged Uber style street surveillance rentamob Followrs and the mercenary Pryor.
Lots of counter surveillance by undetectable / indestructible drones by the goodies, almost none by drones or self driving cars used by the baddies.
[29/81]
Lots of counter surveillance by undetectable / indestructible drones by the goodies, almost none by drones or self driving cars used by the baddies.
[29/81]
Main surveillance threat to Verity was the crowd sourced / paparazzi celebrity gossip media helicopters and crowd sourced tipsters
The supposed villains Cursion , Pryor and the "other klept" seem to be not very well defined threats.
[30/81]
The supposed villains Cursion , Pryor and the "other klept" seem to be not very well defined threats.
[30/81]
As with most William Gibson novels, peripheral characters are almost ciphers, e.g. Grim Tim the barista / motorcycle chauffeur or Sevrin the Moldovan money launderer,
[31/81]
[31/81]
What if Eunice / UNISS had been influenced by, according to Lowbeer, the evil Vespasian (named after not the worst Roman emperor en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vespasian) who manipulated this "stub" world into one where Trump & Brexit both lost, but was heading for nuclear war.
[32/81]
[32/81]
What if Eunice and her autonomous "branches" were not entirely trustworthy or had their own agenda at odds to that of the future Lowbeer etc. ? Is Lowbeer really trying to restore Trump & Brexit ??
[33/81]
[33/81]
Gibson does have a character posit that this future meddling in alternate timelines is effectively,
colonisatiion
pg 238
"So what you do," Virgil said, his eyes narrowed, "is colonize alternative pasts."
[35/81]
colonisatiion
pg 238
"So what you do," Virgil said, his eyes narrowed, "is colonize alternative pasts."
[35/81]
Telepresence al la "The Peripheral" works easily & reliably - this really is science fiction compared with today’s efforts, if you have ever watched Edward #Snowden at a conference remoting in via Google Hangouts to either a big screen or to an iPad strapped to a robot.
[36/81]
[36/81]
The same applies to the lower tech Augmented Reality e.g. displaying text messages from a phone as if "talking to the air" Google Glasshole / Snapchat glasses as per "Virtual Light"
[37/81]
[37/81]
All this pervasive technology, even the time travelling telepresence seems to work flawlessly, exactly as designed.
[38/81]
[38/81]
William Gibson novels usually have a bit of esoteric weapon porn, in this case there is a "complicated" long, black, sniper rifle / assault rifle / AR-15,
[39/81]
[39/81]
which despite being in the USA, where these are literaly worshipped, is treated with as much fear of legal problems for the billionaire party goers, as if it were in the UK.
[40/81]
[40/81]
The nano assembler assassination of a Russian klept financier might as well be Harry Potter style magic curse and failed to grip.
[41/81]
[41/81]
Nano assembler swarms were introduced in "The Peripheral", but seem to have no link with the mysterious quantum information time travel mechanism that allows Lowbeer’s stub to manipulate alternative history timelines through information dominance & financial speculation
[42/81]
[42/81]
However, both of these concepts are probably more scientifically likely than the usual warp drive,
faster than light travel, transporter beams, food replicators, time travel etc. of Star Wars, Star Trek
or Dr Who. (some of which do have nano plot devices)
[43/81]
faster than light travel, transporter beams, food replicators, time travel etc. of Star Wars, Star Trek
or Dr Who. (some of which do have nano plot devices)
[43/81]
It would have been welcome to have seen some *modified* or repurposed tech along the lines of the
Sprawl’s "the street find its own uses for things" but it is all brand new, as designed.
[44/81]
Sprawl’s "the street find its own uses for things" but it is all brand new, as designed.
[44/81]
However the very assumption of total surveillance dystopia, with AI and drones and facial recognition, which can be hacked by sufficiently rich corporate interests (in the present or from the future) is actually abhorrent, and should be a warning
[45/81]
[45/81]
not a "product development manual", something Gibson mentions, but seems to accept it as inevitable.
[46/81]
[46/81]
There is no "Neuromancer" style Turing Institute to impose any regulations on Artificial Intelligence in "Agency" or in "The Peripheral". Lowbeer the "police" authority figure uses AI herself against humans abusing the technology, but does not regulate sentient AI itself [47/81]
Pg 381
"People, it seems to me," Virgil said, dryly, "have tended to be fairly dubious about the idea of fully autonomous artificial intelligence."
"Ever the sceptic," said Stets, smiling. "We’ve thought that ourselves, but circumstaces have variously forced our hand"
[48/81]
"People, it seems to me," Virgil said, dryly, "have tended to be fairly dubious about the idea of fully autonomous artificial intelligence."
"Ever the sceptic," said Stets, smiling. "We’ve thought that ourselves, but circumstaces have variously forced our hand"
[48/81]
There is a character from Finland referred to as "the Finn", "my Finn" or "Finn" which recalls the dangerous / seedy middleman "the Finn" in "Neuromancer" & "Count Zero",
but it is a bit of a let down when you realise that he has not been revived in this "stub" world [49/81]
but it is a bit of a let down when you realise that he has not been revived in this "stub" world [49/81]
Short Chapters
William Gibson’s famously terse writing style and his seemingly increasing use of very short Chapters
(are these some of the shortest Chapters in literature ?) 110 chapters in 402 pages
Chapter 42 Wifely Advice is only 13 lines long [50/81]
William Gibson’s famously terse writing style and his seemingly increasing use of very short Chapters
(are these some of the shortest Chapters in literature ?) 110 chapters in 402 pages
Chapter 42 Wifely Advice is only 13 lines long [50/81]
Together with the San Francisco / Bay area / London / stub alternating viewpoints, just like Alexander Dumas or Charles Dickens or Arthur Conan Doyle novels - originally published weekly in magazines or newspapers, this kept the page turning going nicely.
[51/81]
[51/81]
As usual, William Gibson’s Chapter titles are probably more random and esoteric than most people’s
computer pass phrases.
[52/81]
computer pass phrases.
[52/81]
Bon mots
William Gibson writes interesting phrases e.g.
pg 105
"The Tulpagenics glasses were charging on the nearby seat of a wooden cafe chair he'd spotted in a dumpster on Fourteenth. One of the only known examples, he said, to have escaped being painted purple."
[53/81]
William Gibson writes interesting phrases e.g.
pg 105
"The Tulpagenics glasses were charging on the nearby seat of a wooden cafe chair he'd spotted in a dumpster on Fourteenth. One of the only known examples, he said, to have escaped being painted purple."
[53/81]
pg 49
"The girl in 3.7 seemed engrossed in her phone. "What’s she doing ?"
"Candy Crush Saga. Nondigital surveillance is weaponized boredom"
[54/81]
"The girl in 3.7 seemed engrossed in her phone. "What’s she doing ?"
"Candy Crush Saga. Nondigital surveillance is weaponized boredom"
[54/81]
He seems to have skimmed the works of William
Gibson’s Blue Ant trilogy of novels "Pattern Recognition" and "Spook Country". Cummings posted a bizarre and probably illegal job advert including:
[56/81]
Gibson’s Blue Ant trilogy of novels "Pattern Recognition" and "Spook Country". Cummings posted a bizarre and probably illegal job advert including:
[56/81]
"We need some true wild cards, artists, people who never went to university and fought their way out of an appalling hell hole, weirdos from William Gibson novels like that girl hired by Bigend as a brand ‘diviner’ who feels sick at the sight of Tommy Hilfiger
[57/81]
[57/81]
or that Chinese-Cuban free runner from a crime
family hired by the KGB."
theguardian.com/politics/2020/…
[58/81]
family hired by the KGB."
theguardian.com/politics/2020/…
[58/81]
Privacy spaces
pg 153 containerised pods - like the holiday module or the biomedical trailer in "Count Zero" ?
[59/81]
pg 153 containerised pods - like the holiday module or the biomedical trailer in "Count Zero" ?
[59/81]
Does Lowbeer's constantly cloaking and decloaking yet mostly stationary car, really offer more privacy than Ahmed, the self driving Syrian made Rolls Royce with counter-surveillance capabilities which appeared in "Count Zero" ?
[60/81]
[60/81]
pg 19
Situational Awareness
pg 31
1 thousand x 100 dollar bills - Franklins
cash = Agency = freedom to act
[61/81]
Situational Awareness
pg 31
1 thousand x 100 dollar bills - Franklins
cash = Agency = freedom to act
[61/81]
pg 48
Undercovr - Uber style on demand street surveillance watchers for hire
[62/81]
Undercovr - Uber style on demand street surveillance watchers for hire
[62/81]
pg 105
"The Tulpagenics glasses were charging on the nearby seat of a wooden cafe chair he'd spotted in a dumpster on Fourteenth. One of the only known examples, he said, to have escaped being painted purple."
[63/81]
"The Tulpagenics glasses were charging on the nearby seat of a wooden cafe chair he'd spotted in a dumpster on Fourteenth. One of the only known examples, he said, to have escaped being painted purple."
[63/81]
pg 153
privacy pod containers for open plan offices to reduce Open Plan Anxiety - c.f taz
taz0.org/bitstream/0x03…
&
pg 35
"competitive control areas, CCAs, where criminal organisations or extremists exterted greater
control over the territory than any government"
[64/81]
privacy pod containers for open plan offices to reduce Open Plan Anxiety - c.f taz
taz0.org/bitstream/0x03…
&
pg 35
"competitive control areas, CCAs, where criminal organisations or extremists exterted greater
control over the territory than any government"
[64/81]
Hanway Place - Hanway Street - Tottenham Court Road - Alfred Mews by Heals
- all within a few blocks of each other in London
goo.gl/maps/PYobPk58K…
[65/81]
- all within a few blocks of each other in London
goo.gl/maps/PYobPk58K…
[65/81]
pg 220
Denisovian Embassy
Lev klept
6 robot girls magically forming a snoop proof "Cone of Silence"
c.f. Get Smart
[66/81]
Denisovian Embassy
Lev klept
6 robot girls magically forming a snoop proof "Cone of Silence"
c.f. Get Smart
[66/81]
pg 236
"Not ok to phone your mother on, or anyone else Cursion might know you know, but you’ve got the web, and it’s programmed to dial fresh burners of ours"
[67/81]
"Not ok to phone your mother on, or anyone else Cursion might know you know, but you’ve got the web, and it’s programmed to dial fresh burners of ours"
[67/81]
pg 273
"His father's old klept." said Fearing. "his father's uncle's older klept still. They assume their opsec is
gold standard, which in practice tends to mean it's not. They mainly spy on each other"
[68/81]
"His father's old klept." said Fearing. "his father's uncle's older klept still. They assume their opsec is
gold standard, which in practice tends to mean it's not. They mainly spy on each other"
[68/81]
pg 292
"This one was dressed, it struck him, as though it might be a publicist, but in fact was exactly the opposite: a counter-publicist. "
[69/81]
"This one was dressed, it struck him, as though it might be a publicist, but in fact was exactly the opposite: a counter-publicist. "
[69/81]
pg 318
"They're not strategists," said Ash, "though they assume they are, and rather good ones at that"
[70/81]
"They're not strategists," said Ash, "though they assume they are, and rather good ones at that"
[70/81]
Pg 332
"...Disinformation ?"
"It would be wise not to consider the possibility of disinformation,"
[71/81]
"...Disinformation ?"
"It would be wise not to consider the possibility of disinformation,"
[71/81]
pg 358
Finn
the Finn
Is this a reference to "Neuromancer" / "Count Zero" ? Will a stub turn into The Sprawl in the next book ??
No ! c.f page 92
"Finnish gentleman on one of my boards, Russian militaria."
"My Finn’s not seeing anything after 2023"
[72/81]
Finn
the Finn
Is this a reference to "Neuromancer" / "Count Zero" ? Will a stub turn into The Sprawl in the next book ??
No ! c.f page 92
"Finnish gentleman on one of my boards, Russian militaria."
"My Finn’s not seeing anything after 2023"
[72/81]
William Gibson puts in some self criticism of his ideas:
pg 173
"Followrs," said Eunice, Verity guessing she was showing him something.
He stood, reading empty air. "Been hoping that whole story was The Onion," he said.
[73/81]
pg 173
"Followrs," said Eunice, Verity guessing she was showing him something.
He stood, reading empty air. "Been hoping that whole story was The Onion," he said.
[73/81]
pg 238
"So what you do," Virgil said, his eyes narrowed, "is colonize alternative pasts."
"Someone's put up an image of you on something called Instagram"
[74/81]
"So what you do," Virgil said, his eyes narrowed, "is colonize alternative pasts."
"Someone's put up an image of you on something called Instagram"
[74/81]
pg 273
"his father's old klept," Fearing said "his father's uncle's older klept still. They assume their #opsec is gold standard, which in practice tends to mean it's not. They mainly spy on each other"
[75/81]
"his father's old klept," Fearing said "his father's uncle's older klept still. They assume their #opsec is gold standard, which in practice tends to mean it's not. They mainly spy on each other"
[75/81]
pg 293
"This one was dressed, it struck him, as though it might be a publicist, but in fact was exactly the opposite:
a counter-publicist."
[76/81]
"This one was dressed, it struck him, as though it might be a publicist, but in fact was exactly the opposite:
a counter-publicist."
[76/81]
pg 318
"They're not strategists," said Ash, "though they assume theyy are, and rather good ones at that. A fully functional, strategically sound opponent would be a greater threat, but without posing the sort of unpredictable danger they currently do."
[77/81]
"They're not strategists," said Ash, "though they assume theyy are, and rather good ones at that. A fully functional, strategically sound opponent would be a greater threat, but without posing the sort of unpredictable danger they currently do."
[77/81]
Pg 381
"People, it seems to me," Virgil said, dryly, "have tended to be fairly dubious about the idea of fully autonomous artificial intelligence."
"Ever the sceptic," said Stets, smiling. "We’ve thought that ourselves, but circumstaces have variously forced our hand"
[79/81]
"People, it seems to me," Virgil said, dryly, "have tended to be fairly dubious about the idea of fully autonomous artificial intelligence."
"Ever the sceptic," said Stets, smiling. "We’ve thought that ourselves, but circumstaces have variously forced our hand"
[79/81]
Overall "Agency" is a page turning good read, which seems set to be the middle of another trilogy by William Gibson, who promises the next book will be called
"Jackpot"
[81/81]
"Jackpot"
[81/81]
It is interesting that you can branch out from this #NodeMagazine style review, with extra, often very relevant references and information, without even a google search, by clicking on the Twitter #hashtags which highlight some keywords e.g. #ai #drones #surveillance #opsec etc.
@threadreaderapp unroll
