By Elliott Logan
Publication Date: 2025-11-17 19:09:00
Viewers of Apple TV’s new sci-fi series Plur1bus have been quick to point out eerie similarities to modern concerns about artificial intelligence (AI) – even if that’s not the manufacturer’s intention.
Writer and producer Vince Gilligan – who also created “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” – told Polygon that he wasn’t thinking about AI when he came up with the idea for the series:
Because that was about eight or ten years ago. Of course, the term “artificial intelligence” existed before ChatGPT, but it wasn’t in the news like it is today. (…) I’m not saying you’re wrong (…) Many people make this connection. I don’t want to tell people what this show is about.
In Plur1bus, an alien-created “virus” comes to Earth and begins infecting everyone. While the infected remain physically untouched, they are deprived of emotions and individual consciousness. They become part of a single collective “hive mind.”
This plot may sound familiar to you…
