AI made a movie—and the result is ... weird

PLUS: LA’s radical water-saving strategies, a real world grading system for autopilot tech, and the physics of a puzzling perpetual motion machine. [View this email in your browser]( [logo]( [[WIRED Magazine]6.12.18]( Benjamin is a movie director. Benjamin is [also an AI](. He made his third film, Zone Out, which stars Silicon Valley star Thomas Middleditch and Elisabeth Gray, in just 48 hours—piecing together old movie clips, robo-voiceovers, and green screen recordings of Middleditch and Gray reading dialogue he wrote for them. If you’re wondering what AI-generated dialogue sounds like, here’s how the director responds to simple interview questions like “What’s next for you?”: “The staff is divided by the train of the burning machine building with sweat. No one will see your face. The children reach into the furnace, but the light is still slipping to the floor. The world is still embarrassed. The party is with your staff. My name is Benjamin.” Most of the film is nonsensical—Middleditch talks about having sex with salsa and Benjamin’s faceswap-happy direction leaves Gray sporting someone's mustache—so no, Zone Out isn’t going to win any Oscars. But frankly, it’s incredible that Benjamin was able to make a movie at all, and, as senior gear writer [Lauren Goode]( reports, that's a bit disconcerting for Zone Out’s stars—who had to confront the fact that they might someday find themselves entirely replaced by AI-generated characters. “If this fails, I’ll be employable for the rest of time,” Gray says. “And if it in fact works, then I may not be employable as an actor, but at least I will have been there at the moment when we realized we were going to be replaced by computers.” Also: LA’s radical [water-saving strategies]( a [real-world grading system]( for autopilot technology, and the physics of a [puzzling perpetual motion machine](. Engineering LA Is Doing Water Better Than Your City. Yes, That LA By Matt Simon With climate change on the horizon, Los Angeles is rushing to pull water from surprising sources. The goal: aqueous independence. Robocars Finally, a Real World Grading System for Autopilot Tech By Jack Stewart The UK's Thatcham Research will soon start evaluating systems like Tesla's Autopilot not just on how they drive, but on how easy they are to understand. Bogus The Physics of a Puzzling Perpetual Motion Machine By Rhett Allain Nope, this YouTube video hasn’t just changed everything we know about energy. I, Truffaut AI Made a Movie—and the Results Are Horrifyingly Encouraging By Lauren Goode Benjamin, as the AI is known, assembled Zone Out from thousands of hours of old films and green-screen footage of professional actors—in 48 hours. [WIRED Magazine Subscription] Get Wired Get unlimited access to an ad-free WIRED.com + a free YubiKey. Subscribe now. Realm of Coins The Hustlers Fueling Cryptocurrency’s Marketing Machine By Erin Griffith As Google and Facebook ban ads for cryptocurrency projects and the SEC cracks down on hype, backers are employing unconventional strategies to find investors. Product Review This Treat-Filled Camera Is Your Pet’s New 9-to-5 Companion By Adrienne So This treat tosser and security camera is your pet’s new companion. Nocturnal Mission Shooting Western Landscapes Like They've Never Been Seen—at Night By Michael Hardy Photographer Adam Katseff makes us see iconic vistas in a new way. Road Diet Uber Strips Down Its App to Ramp up in Developing Countries By Aarian Marshall Uber Lite should make the ride-hailing service easier to use in markets where service is spotty and data is limited, starting with India. Ideas How Pharma Hides Data About Farm Antibiotic Use By Maryn McKenna Other nations report and track exactly how and where antibiotics are given to livestock, but in the US, that data is tied up in political football. [WIRED Magazine]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Pinterest]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( This e-mail was sent to you by WIRED. To ensure delivery to your inbox (not bulk or junk folders), please add our e-mail address, [wired@newsletters.wired.com]( to your address book. View our [Privacy Policy]( [Unsubscribe]( Copyright © Condé Nast 2018. One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. All rights reserved.