Hands Off the AI Wheel — But Not the Soul

China’s self-driving car revolution might seem like an engineering story — but to me, it’s something far more symbolic. It’s the first large-scale attempt to code a human being. The algorithms that now steer cars through the streets of Beijing are designed to make judgment calls, predict danger, and even “decide” moral outcomes in split seconds. What’s missing, of course, is the one thing that can’t be coded — a soul.

Having worked on platform in China, I saw that fascination with control and precision first-hand. The audiences were polite and deeply curious, but mediumship there is almost unknown. Outside Hong Kong — where fortune-telling remains in a legal grey area — genuine spiritual work is effectively absent. The idea that consciousness continues beyond death is not something people are encouraged to explore. Yet when they see mediumship done well, they instantly recognise it as something real.

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China’s Drive Toward the Mechanical Human

China is now leading the world in developing autonomous vehicles. Baidu’s Apollo Go taxis already run without drivers in major cities. Xiaomi’s SU7 electric car can manage entire motorway journeys on its own. Thousands of kilometres of new “smart roads” are being constructed to communicate directly with vehicles.

The country’s engineers are achieving what science fiction once only imagined — cars that can think. But the purpose is efficiency, not empathy. The driver is being replaced not because they’re bad, but because they’re unpredictable.

That’s the irony. The very thing that makes us human — our ability to act from feeling, to adapt, to care — is exactly what the system is trying to remove.

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When the Movies Tried It First

We’ve been imagining this for decades. Hollywood told us what it would look like when the car started thinking for itself.

In Knight Rider (1982–1986), KITT wasn’t just a machine — he was a companion. He joked, worried, and even sounded emotional when Michael Knight was hurt: “Michael, please respond.” We loved him because he felt human, even though we knew he wasn’t.

hen came Total Recall (1990) and the “Johnny Cab.” Programmed with fake friendliness, Johnny turned aggressive when things went wrong — shouting, “What’s wrong? Can’t find your fare card?” before exploding. It was a perfect example of what happens when you give machines emotion without consciousness.

And Blade Runner (1982) gave us the replicant Roy Batty, capable of deep reflection but denied the essence of being. “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe,” he says before dying — aware enough to mourn the lack of a soul.

Each story was a warning. Imitation can be perfect, but it will always be hollow.

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Technology and the Medium

In my own work, technology plays a major part. My demonstrations, classes, and circles all run through high-definition video and AI-enhanced systems. Students like John Sharp train with me from the USA, Australia, and beyond. We use technology to make connection possible — but never to replace it.

AI can transcribe and organise, but it cannot interpret. It can process the sound of a voice but not the meaning within it. It can mimic empathy, but never know compassion. In mediumship, the evidence we bring comes not from data, but from spirit — a living, conscious intelligence that cannot be coded or replicated.

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The Spiritual Divide

When I worked in China, people were amazed by what they saw. They’d never witnessed genuine evidence of survival before. It reminded me how Western Spiritualism, particularly here in Scotland, is rooted in proof, not performance. It’s an education, not a belief system.

Meanwhile, in China, the pursuit of perfection has become the pursuit of simulation. The machines are getting closer to copying thought — but not awareness.

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The Road Ahead

AI will soon produce cars that can hold conversations, adapt to your mood, and even appear to care. But that’s the key word — appear. The illusion of emotion will never replace consciousness.

Mediumship proves the opposite truth — that consciousness exists without the body. While engineers try to build synthetic life, mediums continue to demonstrate that life never truly ends.

Technology can take our hands off the wheel, but it can never take the spirit out of the journey.