With AI on everyone's mind these days, it's as good a time as any to talk about the Singularity (the kind where the S is capitalized). Tech CEOs throw around buzzwords, diluting the traditional meanings of sci-fi concepts, so let's start with defining the Singularity.

The Singularity is the point where an intelligent AI becomes capable of unbounded self-improvement.

The Singularity isn't AI matching or exceeding human capability. If it takes a quarter of the Earth's electricity to have an AI replicate (actual) human cognition, it's no threat to anyone. This is about an AI that stops needing human intervention in its own advancement. It can interface with and control worldwide networks, take over manufacturing of parts it needs, and it can research the next steps to improve itself. It will rapidly expand its own capabilities to the point where it will have to decide what it wants to do with humanity...

...because it won't need us anymore.

So, with the prospect of the Singularity up for debate, who would you want in charge of the superintelligence that could decide humanity's fate?

Tony Stark (MCU) and Alfred Lanning (I, Robot) essentially got there in their universes.

Lex Luthor (Superman) and Adrian Veidt (Watchmen) are the sort of pragmatic supervillains who might not only create the Singularity but be ruthless enough to control it.

Elden Tyrell (Blade Runner) and Noonian Soong (Star Trek) both developed the humanoid android underpinnings that could lead to the development of the Singularity from the bottom up.

If you had to pick one of them to usher in this era, who would you want it to be? A ruthless overlord who'd conquer humanity but keep the AI in check? A dreamy idealist who'd trust the AI to make the right decision? Or maybe someone who was thwarted once already and learned his lesson?

The choice is yours, but someone from this group is going to create the Singularity. So pick your favorite...or lesser evil, if that's all you can manage.

Oh yeah, and if you find the very premise of the question terrifying, take comfort that at least these hypothetical options are impossible.