History Main / AndroidsArePeopleToo

** [[http://horizonzerodawn.wikia.com/wiki/Gaia_Log:_5_June_2065 When GAIA was created]], [[spoiler: Ted Faro]] insisted on giving '[[ItIsDehumanizing it]]' a killswitch in case 'it' went rogue. [[spoiler: Elisabet Sobek]] was furious at the suggestion. "She was just born. I'm not going to put a gun to her head while she's still in the cradle!" GAIA herself intervened and agreed that the development of her psyche was unpredictable, [[spoiler: and for the sake of the preservation of life]], [[TheFettered a hardwired override was necessary]]. [[spoiler:Faro later used this override to delete a key part of the project and murder the people who could have stopped him. Everything would have gone perfectly ''without'' the override]].

* ''Series/DontLookDeeper'': Aisha and her loved ones strongly advocate her personhood, against the company who made her technology which sees her as Just a Machine they want shut down.

See the related WhatMeasureIsANonHuman and DeathMeansHumanity. See also/compare the ZombieAdvocate. DoAndroidsDream is when this trope is called into question, and JustAMachine is when the answer is "no."

See the related WhatMeasureIsANonHuman and DeathMeansHumanity. See also/compare the ZombieAdvocate. DoAndroidsDream is when this trope is called into question.

* ''Literature/Aeon14'': [[InhumanableAlienRights The Phobos Accords consider shackling AIs to be a form of slavery]], and while some people like to ''think'' there's a difference between a sapient AI and a human, the transhumanism in the series ultimately gets to the point where the only real difference is whether one was conceived through biological or computational means. As the short story "I Have No Master" indicates, it's not even completely clear where the dividing line is between a sapient and a non-sapient AI: Dregs started as an NSAI drone but has lived so long and been upgraded so thoroughly he's verging on sapience.

* ''Literature/Aeon14'': [[InhumanableAlienRights The Phobos Accords consider shackling AIs to be a form of slavery]], and while some people like to ''think'' there's a difference between a sapient AI and a human, the transhumanism in the series ultimately gets to the point where the only real difference is whether one was conceived through biological or computational means. As the short story "I Have No Master" indicates, it's not even completely clear where the dividing line is between a sapient and a non-sapient AI: Dregs started as an NSAI drone but has been upgraded so thoroughly he's verging on sapience.

The SlidingScaleOfRobotIntelligence is a big factor here. Nobody's going to treat a 1970's digital watch as a person. If [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Data]] is at the other end of that scale, obviously there is a line between the two, but where is it and how blurry is it? On the other hand, A.I.'s might be based on a radically different technology than simple machines, making the line clearer: Isaac Asimov's positronic brains were not computers in any conventional sense (although Asimov himself disliked the idea of treating androids as people, rather than complex tools... ''aaand'' then he wrote "Literarure/TheBicentennialMan," where Andrew the robot's status as equal to any human is the whole point).

See the related WhatMeasureIsANonHuman. See also/compare the ZombieAdvocate. DoAndroidsDream is when this trope is called into question.

The SlidingScaleOfRobotIntelligence is a big factor here. Nobody's going to treat a 1970's digital watch as a person. If [[Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration Data]] is at the other end of that scale, obviously there is a line between the two, but where is it and how blurry is it? On the other hand, A.I.'s might be based on a radically different technology than simple machines, making the line clearer: Isaac Asimov's positronic brains were not computers in any conventional sense (although Asimov himself disliked the idea of treating androids as people, rather than complex tools... ''aaand'' then he wrote "Bicentennial Man," where Andrew the robot's status as equal to any human is the whole point).

** "Literature/ThatThouArtMindfulOfHim": George Ten is tasked with several orders, including the title question, "What is man, that thou art mindful of him?", and "If two human beings give a robot conflicting orders, which does the robot follow?". To answer this, robots such as [[RobotNames JG-10]] must have judgement. They cannot judge based on shape or colour (the disabled and ethnicities are not "less human" than the fit or the European), so their opinion drives them, inevitably, to the conclusion [[spoiler:that [[TurnedAgainstTheirMasters they are human, and superior to flesh-and-blood humans]]]].

* In ''VideoGame/Fallout3'', "The Replicated Man" sidequest involves tracking down a runaway android who has created a new identity for himself in Rivet City. You can side with a scientist from the Boston Commonwealth out to reclaim his "property," or tell the memory-wiped android the truth about his past and agree to keep his secret.

** To most people in the Boston Commonwealth, the Institute is the bogeyman and the Synths are its minions, which either attack any place suspected of holding advanced technology, or more frighteningly, KillAndReplace citizens and infiltrate settlements. The paranoia and FantasticRacism has reached the point that friends and family members are killing each other over suspicions that they've been replaced by Synths, and lynch mobs have attacked people suspected of being Synths in disguise.

* ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'': The Soul Contract specifies Dr. Kahl's robot specifically, so it is not only autonomous but capable of signing into contracts and ''has a soul''.

Also, [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant this isn't about the Android operating system]]. That is, unless someone's managed to give smartphones and tablets human-level sentience.

** The entirely mechanical Androids are Hacchan/Eighter (from the original ''Manga/DragonBall''), 13, 14, and 15 (from the non-serial movies), 16, and 19 (Cell Saga). The three movie androids and 19 are on the 'not people' end of the scale, as they have little personality and only attempt to complete their mission. Eighter and 16, on the other hand, have much more fleshed-out characters and a distaste for violence, and are treated as people to the extent that [[spoiler: 16's HeroicSacrifice triggers Gohan's Super Saiyan 2 transformation]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* The Alicization arc of ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'' features Fluctlight-based AI which is combination of RidiculouslyHumanRobot, InstantAIJustAddWater, and ArtificialHuman, that is, AI based on "copied" human souls as a Japanese experiment on developing the AI, and then the AI was put into the Underworld, a further development based on the VRMMO technology. At the end of said story arc, [[TheHero Kirito]] started to develop such mindset thanks to the time he spent on the Underworld and thanks to the company of [[ArtificialHuman Alice Synthesis Thirty]], and he, along with [[LoveInterest Asuna]], even plead [[ReluctantMadScientist Kikuoka]], the head scientist responsible for both Project Alicization and the Underworld, to protect the Underworld.

* ''WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983'': In "Origin of the Socereress", Man-at-Arms constructs a sentient robot horse named Stridor. When Stridor seemingly sacrifices himself saving the day, He-Man becomes extremely upset, and after defeating the villain, he carries Stridor all the way home to get him repaired. Later, when they learn all Stridor wants is to be free, they comment that any being who would desire that is alive, and grant his wish.

* ''Manga/DragonBall'' explores the trope with Dr. Gero's androids, although only some of them are actually androids; Androids 17 and 18 are actually cyborgs, but the dub chose to call them Androids to fit in with the others.
* The entirely mechanical Androids are Hacchan/Eighter (from the original manga), 13, 14, and 15 (from the non-serial movies), 16, and 19 (Cell Saga). The three movie androids and 19 are on the 'not people' end of the scale, as they have little personality and only attempt to complete their mission. Eighter and 16, on the other hand, have much more fleshed-out characters and a distaste for violence, and are treated as people to the extent that [[spoiler: 16's HeroicSacrifice triggers Gohan's Super Saiyan 2 transformation]].

** In ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', Shepard can repeatedly call out the quarians for their treatment of the geth, especially when it's [[UnreliableNarrator stated]] that during the geth uprising, they also gunned down anyone who ''defended'' the geth. For the most part, a Paragon Shepard actually seems more sympathetic to the geth than the quarians. And, irrespective of [[WrittenByTheWinners the geth's testimony being true or not]], [[FromACertainPointOfView treating it as such]] is vital to secure [[EverybodyLives peace]].

* In ''Fanfic/{{Marionettes}}'', the mane six debate this trope [[spoiler:about the [[TomatoInTheMirror fact the Trixie they just rescued from the]] [[TheMenInBlack Stallions in Black]] [[RoboticReveal is actually an android]]]] and are divided on the subject, but ultimately decide [[spoiler:that she's no different than anypony else who needs their help, and even if she isn't the Trixie they know, she still ''thinks'' she is]] after [[spoiler:a WhatTheHellHero from Fluttershy.]] Twilight Sparkle later says that by Equestrian law, constructs that display sapience are to be treated just like anypony else. [[spoiler:The Stallions' treatment of the Marionettes is seen as horrible, and ultimately one of the reasons the heroes resolve to destroy the organization.]]

* The ''Franchise/{{Terminator}}'' series [[PlayingWithATrope played with this trope]], as mentioned in the description.
** A deleted scene from ''Film/Terminator2JudgmentDay'' (that is added back in the extended cut) reveals that Terminators have a "Learn" switch in their heads that is deliberately turned off by Sky-net to stop them ever questioning their orders, because ''[[{{Hypocrite}} Sky-net]]'' [[RobotsEnslavingRobots is paranoid about its own robot mooks thinking for themselves]]. When the heroes turn on "Uncle Bob's" learning function, he grows to understand the value of human life and becomes a TechnicalPacifist [[spoiler:who in the end performs a HeroicSacrifice to save humanity and end Sky-net for good]].
** The T-1000 from the same film is stated to be a prototype that can learn extremely quickly, but it develops a deliberately cruel personality and seems to on some level enjoy tormenting humans - for example, he allows a security guard to see him disguised as the guard [[EvilGloating before]] [[EyeScream messily killing him]], and he gives a famous FingerWag to Sarah after she pumps him full of lead.
** In ''Film/TerminatorDarkFate'', [[TomTheDarkLord "Carl"]] is an aging T-800 who is recruited by Sarah Connor and Grace to help protect Dani Ramos. Carl has spent twenty-two years living among humans and by the time the heroes find him he has married a woman, adopted a child, started up a business and gained the ability to feel emotions like a human. He even develops a [[TheComicallySerious (very dry) sense of humour]]. Part of Carl's motivation for helping out [[spoiler:is because [[TheAtoner he feels guilt]] for terminating John Connor three years after the events of ''Judgment Day''.]]

* The ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'' series flip-flopped on this as well, similar to ''Terminator''. In [[Film/{{Alien}} the first movie]], the secondary villain is a sinister android. In [[Film/{{Aliens}} the next movie]], the artificial human is a genuine ally and actually lampshades the previous model's failures. The [[Film/AlienResurrection fourth film]] features an android who'd been passing as human for years and is referred to as being more humane than actual humans, but society has decided to ban androids; said android is the LastOfHerKind.

* In ''Series/RedDwarf'', Holly and Kryten are treated as full crew members, and their lives carry as much dramatic weight as a human's. In a series where the protagonists are two organic, two machine and one sorta on the fence, ArtificialAndAlive is kind of required.

** Due to the crime rate, police officers are partnered with an android, which are (almost, but not quite) treated the same way as the human officers. Paul orders his android partner to get him coffee, which is at least a little demeaning; most of the characters' only concern when the main character Kennex shoots or otherwise damages a robot is more along the lines of "Thanks for causing an inconvenience" (Maldonado even says "Do you have any idea how much these things cost?"); Kennex himself is specifically anti-robot for the most part; deactivating illegal sexbots early on was a non-issue; taking away the memories of "crazy" [=DRNs=] is perfectly acceptable, even when the memories in question have nothing to do with sensitive police files; and there will probably be more examples as the show progresses. For the most part it seems like Dorian (Kennex's android partner) is trying to convince other people, especially Kennex, that AndroidsArePeopleToo.

* This trope applies to the robots from Isaac Asimov's "''Robot''" series of novels (starting with ''Literature/IRobot''), and [[Film/IRobot their film adaptations]]. It's actually an interesting example because you can trace the stories' progression toward this trope.
** The stories are first set almost immediately after the introduction of the positronic brain, where the robots lack a human-like intelligence and are obviously humanoid robots instead of androids (exposed metal, etc). In these stories, the robots are treated more as tools or, at best, domestic animals.
** As the stories move forward in the timeline (specifically to the [[MeaningfulName R]] Daneel Olivaw era), we finally get robots that look and act entirely human (save for situations involving the ThreeLawsOfRobotics). You still end up with some [[FantasticRacism robot racism]], but the mere fact that they're human enough to cause contempt says something about how humanity sees them at this point (similar to humans, but "new" and therefore threatening).
** By the end of the timeline, robots have gone beyond human-like status and achieved a measure of {{transhumanism}} (Olivaw in particular lived nearly 20,000 years and continually upgraded his body and brain over that time).

** ''Literature/TheCavesOfSteel'': Part of the plot is Elijah Bailey, our protagonist and someone prejudiced against robots, learning to treat Daneel, a robot, as an equal.

* From ''Manga/DragonBall'', Dr. Gero's Androids, although what this means can differ depending on the Android in question. To put it short, Androids is a dub term that is often applied to human/robot hybrids, who should technically be called Cyborgs.
** Androids 16 and 19 are fully-robotic, and thus fit the normal Android moniker. 19 is treated as a mindless villain, but 16 may have the biggest heart in the series with his love for nature. There's also Hatchan/Eighter from the Red Ribbon Arc, who's presented as a big brute but hates violence: Goku is so easy-going he doesn't even think about him being a robot and immediately accepts him.
** On the actually-a-Cyborg side, Androids 17 and 18 are talked up as evil but turn out to be bratty-but-destructive teenagers, eventually becoming good guys and subverting the trope. The two are actually humans that were modified by Dr. Gero and thus have stronger WhatMeasureIsANonHuman facet to them: much discussion is made at the end of their arc about them just being humans at heart. Even their BadFuture counterparts, while much ''more'' evil, are still treated as bad ''people''.

* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Penny, for all her weirdness, is portrayed as a conscious person rather than a machine. She is fully capable of having her own desires and making choices based on them. When Ruby finds out about Penny's nature, she assures her that she is just as real as anybody else. [[spoiler:After Pyrrha [[AccidentalMurder accidentally destroys Penny]], she is overtaken by shock followed by shame and the scene is portrayed as horrific despite Penny being a robot.]] Both Ironwood and Lionheart refer to Penny as a "girl" afterwards, indicating that they at least recognize her as an actual person. The only characters to ever describe Penny as less than a full-fledged person are Penny herself and Cinder, [[LackOfEmpathy who is hardly the most empathetic of people.]] [[spoiler:The climax of Volume 7 reveals that she is a real enough girl to be an eligible recipient of the Winter Maiden's powers.]]

* AI in the Old World of ''VideoGame/HorizonZeroDawn'' have a curious place here. After an early AI, VAST SILVER, was constructed to help regulate the climate and 'went rogue' in some catastrophic fashion, legislation was enacted to grade and limit artificial intelligence.The AI CYAN had to be above legal limits to perform her functions. One of her creators referred to her as "the emotional equivalent of a child" and stated that she was human, in every way that mattered.
** [[http://horizonzerodawn.wikia.com/wiki/Gaia_Log:_5_June_2065 When GAIA was created]], [[spoiler: Ted Faro]] insisted on giving '[[ItIsDehumanizing it]]' a killswitch in case 'it' went rogue. [[spoiler: Elisabet Sobek]] was furious at the suggestion. "She was just born. I'm not going to put a gun to her head while she's still in the cradle!" GAIA herself intervened and agreed that the development of her psyche was unpredictable, [[spoiler: and for the sake of the preservation of life]], [[TheFettered a hardwired override was necessary]].