Cybernetics as a school of thought is haunting our current time. Originally conceived as a unifying theory to account for both human and machine behavior, it also laid the philosophical groundwork for artificial intelligence. While its creator, Norbert Wiener, was himself critical of automation and its effects on humans and society, his work nonetheless enabled technologies such as large language models, systems that are now set to replace humans in both work and emotional life.

The film reconstructs a speculative account of Wiener’s final moments during his death in Stockholm in 1964 to examine his philosophy and its contemporary implications. The text is adapted from Wiener’s own writings. The film provides commentary on his thoughts through its visual layer, filming Stockholm from high above. This non-human perspective gives an illusion of overview and control. From here everything seems connected, everything makes sense. Until the drone falls to the ground at the moment of his death and that sense of tranquility and superiority is immediately lost.