Tag: Cyberpunk

Rise of Cyberpunk Corporate Power? A Possible Reality or Completely Fictional?

Lavell A.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

The cyberpunk genre presents to us a number of unsavory future societies ruled by corporate dominance such as the Tyrell Corporation in Blade Runner or the Tessier-Ashpool family in Neuromancer. These fictional megacorporations are as powerful as they come.  They are unchecked forces capable of making anything they want to happen, no matter how corrupt it may be.  When you compare these companies to the corporate giants in reality, you start to wonder how close, if possible, at all, are we to these stories?

Cyberpunk Stories of Unmanaged Power

In Blade Runner, the Tyrell Corporation truly defines a corporate entity with unregulated power.  The corporation designs, creates, and engineers replicants (genetically bioengineered humanoids) all for the money with no regard for the consequences or the ethics that come with it.  These replicants are sent off to perform dangerous jobs with no types of rights or protections.  On the other hand (or should I say the same hand), Neuromancer introduces the Tessier-Ashpools.  This group is a very powerful and wealthy family putting in near-immortal status due to their access to society’s technological advancements.  In the wake of wanting to reach true immortality the family does whatever they must regardless of the expense of others. As you can see, these examples are far from favorable for the rest of society, but as technology today is continuously improving with time, eventually will we be living in a world mimicking these fictional corporate-controlled societies?

Are Todays Corporations Becoming Megacorporations?

These days our examples of big corporate companies would be Amazon or Google as both basically are monopolies in their respective markets.  They are able to control the competition as they see fit and also capable of shaping consumer behavior.  This monopolistic power very closely resembles the dominance shown by the above-described fictional corporate entities.  Not to mention, these companies have countless information on its millions or billions of consumers.

I feel that even with the size of megacorporations and increasing levels of technology, we will never get to a point where they rule over society as described in the cyberpunk genre.  This is because of the way governments and countries work.  We have plenty of laws put in place to never allow a company to be the sole player in any market.  Even though they have monopolistic levels of power, it didn’t just start that way and if ever they get out of hand or say too big, I feel the government will be quick to put an end to that power.  All in all, this means that our futures are safe!

From Silicon Valley to Cyber Tyranny: Are Corporations the New Overlords?

Makeda M.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

By examining examples of cyberpunk media in tandem with modern realities, one might argue that such futures, while exaggerated, are not entirely implausible given the trajectory of late-stage capitalism and America’s ongoing disdain for paying proper wages. In Neuromancer, the Tessier-Ashpool family embodies a fusion of corporate and familial greed, using technology to perpetuate their power across generations. They operate from a space station, isolated from Earth and humanity, while controlling vast resources and exerting influence through their artificial intelligence constructs. This depiction eerily aligns with modern billionaires’ ventures into space, such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX or Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin. These endeavors showcase an appetite for detachment from the mundane struggles of Earth—be it climate change, labor inequality, or societal unrest—while simultaneously solidifying control over emerging industries.

Elon Musk photographed by the
SpaceX.

The labor dynamics depicted in cyberpunk fiction are also strikingly familiar. In Machinehood, pharmaceutical “pill funders” monetize human productivity and health, illustrating a chilling commodification of labor itself. Today, we see parallels in the gig economy, where workers are treated as disposable units of production rather than humans with needs. Companies like Uber, Amazon, and DoorDash epitomize this trend by leveraging technology to reduce labor costs while maximizing profits. Workers face low pay, minimal benefits, and algorithmic control, echoing cyberpunk’s warnings about technology amplifying exploitation.

But the situation could evolve even further. America’s systemic resistance to adequately compensating labor—rooted in capitalist greed—may push corporations into fully embracing cybernetic systems. Automation and AI are already replacing human labor in manufacturing, logistics, and even customer service. In a future cyberworld, corporations could prioritize the development of cybernetic augmentations, not to enhance humanity but to extract more value from workers. Imagine a scenario where workers are expected to implant productivity-enhancing chips or risk losing their jobs. This is not far removed from Amazon’s current use of surveillance technology to monitor workers’ efficiency. At the same time, these corporate evolutions could lead to deeper societal divisions. While cyberpunk often focuses on elite corporations versus disenfranchised masses, we might see a middle ground emerge: those who can afford limited augmentations to stay competitive in the labor market versus those who cannot. Such disparities would only exacerbate inequalities, reinforcing the capitalist cycle of profit-driven progress at the expense of human welfare.

Ultimately, the evolution of corporations into cyberworld overlords is not just a dystopian fantasy but a critique of our present. It underscores the dangers of unchecked capitalism and the devaluation of human labor. While the predictions of cyberpunk may seem hyperbolic, they serve as a warning: without systemic change, the future could see corporations not just operating in cyberworlds but controlling them, where labor is no longer human and humanity is merely another resource to exploit. By embracing more equitable labor practices and regulating corporate power, society might avert such a future. But until then, cyberpunk remains an uncomfortable mirror, reflecting the potential of capitalism unchecked.

The Cyberpunk Logic of Owning Everything

Khalil F.
Reading Time: 2 minutes
“Create a 4:5 portrait of a futuristic smoke superstore floating at the edge of a cyberpunk cityscape” by 紅色死神 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

When it comes to corporations in the real world, a lot of them feel like they are getting close to the level that the scary corporations in cyberpunk stories are. The main theme in cyberpunk, is that there is commodification of everything, and companies are willing to sell anything to make profit. In both cyberpunk worlds and in the real life world, there is advertisement everywhere, and tracking of what people do in order to sell to certain people. For example, in Neuromancer, there is a group called Tessier-Ashpool, who deal with pretty much everything. They are a group that control a lot of the wealth in technology, and deal with cloning an AI, which are things that many people sought for in this cyberpunk world. But what is very interesting about their greed, is that it is not to challenge the systems that they are in, only to keep it going forever. They just sit in their wealth and clone themselves so that they can keep it forever, which helps them but deteriorates everything else around them. 

In the real world, there are not exactly any companies that are at that point yet, but I feel like it is not too crazy to think it could end up that way. When it comes to the tech powerhouses like Google, Apple, and Meta, it seems that they are so focused on creating huge technological things that will make them a lot of money that they seem to lose sight of what the point of technology is. Apple refusing to evolve with other companies, making it so that their devices need to be upgraded in order to stay relevant, reminds me a lot of how greedy some companies are in cyberpunk stories. These companies want to alienate their own audience and market, so that they buy nothing else but their products.

I think that cyberpunk is not too wild for coming up with these greedy companies. It is very realistic to me to see certain corporations get so greedy that they end up owning everything and advertising themselves on everything that they can. It is an exaggeration of course, but as the years keep going they get closer and closer to reality.

Interfering Humans and Machine: What Direction is AI?

Jazmine F.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

The genre of cyberpunk is a genre that explores the influences and advances of technology. This is done through the lens of a dystopian view and narrative of human vs AI (machine). The works such as Blade Runner, Neuromancer, and Machinehood illustrate how technological advancements contribute to corporate power, the barrier between ethical boundaries, and the exploitation of humanity for control and profit. How does the power of cyberpunk resonate with contemporary issues?


In Blade Runner, the corporation is responsible for manufacturing replicants, so important to be able to decipher between humans and replicants. This leaves a debate on technology and artificial intelligence. This relates to today because tech industries such as Google and Meta use artificial intelligence to reshape society’s potential. The ethical implications of technology are often put behind the scenes due to economic growth and the influences of AI on the personal things of humans. 


In Neuromancer, there’s like an exemplification of corporate greed and the dehumanization of individuals. The families with the power and wealthiness in which they are given the power to construct their lives and live the substantial life they perceive it to be; which makes splits in society because of what people have. Technology corporations that are as big as Amazon and Apple influence global economic and political decisions in everyday life. The wealth of these big advances creates a hierarchy. 


In Machinehood, the commodification of human labor and experience is expressed. The pill funders control the economy of human enhancement which ultimately creates a model where humans have to adapt to demands to be able to survive. 

The million-dollar question: Are Corporations Moving Toward a Cyberpunk Reality? The corporate-driven dystopias presented in the cyberpunk narratives do appear to be chilling as it is viewed through the lens of today. corporate landscape. A company like Amazon impacts aspects of daily life because it provides shopping and entertainment, etc. While this is a fact it is important to recognize the intensity of this movement. For example, in the Blade Runner, there seems to be a more ruthless control and it stands on a level of a controversial real-world application of AI. 


While the cyberpunk view is hyperbolic; it’s not completely divergent from reality. Cyberpunk incorporates real issues in reality within the corporation to serve as a warning in a sense. There is much emphasis on corporate that diverges into the ethical technology and economic views of the real world. Even though cyberpunk may seem extreme in its characteristics in the dystopian view; it has real-world issues that are grounded as a reminder to consider the possible impacts on society. 

In conclusion, I feel as if cyberpunk narratives provide a speculative but cautionary portrayal of corporate power and greed, which can be beneficial to the real world. These cautionary narratives reflect many concerns present in contemporary society. The stories urge us to consider how far we are willing to allow technology and corporations to influence our lives and at what cost will we allow them. By embracing both the warnings and the exaggerations of cyberpunk, society has the potential to prevent these fictional dystopias from becoming reality; in which we would need to act on now to prevent this from happening. 

Hybrid or Byebrid

Josiah A.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

I think hybridization is interesting. The concept of hybridization is not relatively new but it’s intriguing on a number of levels. Without having to look it up hybridization is the process or end result of combining two different things together, those two different things particularly being two wildly different living things. Now what comes with hybridization you know? It’s something I don’t think many people really think about. For example, if you allow me to stretch your imagination a bit the act of having a child could be considered hybridization to a certain extent. genetic material fusing to create something entirely new. The genetic material being combined comes from two different people and thus whatever already existing mutation from either parent could pass onto the child or an entirely new mutation could form. It’s a very interesting thing to think about, no? I think we should keep that in mind as we continue.

If I could be hybridized with one animal, I would choose a black bear. I could choose a smart animal like a dolphin or common raven or crow but that’s a little boring to me. I don’t want super advanced intelligence by mere supplication of genes. it’s much more fun to learn. I like bears as animals and black bears are considered the nicest, in general they are mostly distrustful of humans but can get rather comfortable if there is a reliable source of food in a human community. They are also not naturally aggressive; they are very passive animals. This means that I would acquire any anger issues or territorial mindset indicative of more aggressive species. I think becoming a hybrid with a bear would be fun but having in increase in the food i would need to eat would suck, however, hibernating would be quite nice admittedly.

The hardest question is to what extent being hybridized with a black bear would extend. The more I become a hybrid the more bear-like I would become. This means that I would also be more susceptible to not only human diseases but bear diseases as well. This would include parasites, bacteria, viruses, mange, pantless bear syndrome, and many more. if I had to choose i would like a decent fifty-fifty. However, I don’t exactly know how this would manifest outwardly. The sort of idealistic reality to want is something closer to how anime or some cartoons portray hybrids, basically still human put with animal features and minor animal tendencies from time to time. Something perhaps akin to beast boy from teen titans but realistically most would think of anime like perhaps Raphtalia from Shield hero. I on the other hand do lean more towards typical anime. So, I imagine Raphtalia with a more “realistic” portrayal. So, I’d imagine I would have bear ears and human ears, longer claws, black bear fur that mixes into my normal hair texture not only within my hair itself but also patches of black bear fur on my forearms and legs…lower legs, near the foot but not on it. and a black bear tail.

I don’t think I’d be okay with trading a lot of my humanity. I think that’d be awful. I’m fine with animalistic tendencies, like other ticks or tendencies that humans have naturally it would be something that could be controlled with enough training. recognizing the signs of when they pop up, and we all know the rest. The reason I don’t want trade a lot of my humanity despite the concepts we’ve gone over is because, my humanity is what makes me, me. This year has taught me that humanity and “humanity” is different and while both are important once can easily be negotiated away very easily and that’s the scariest part about being human. Honestly if hybridization was a real thing we could do I imagine it would become quite controversial. This means more discrimination to deal with and possibly more dying due to people being scared of something and refusing to see the person in front of them. Scary thought to think about but humans are like that. People can be convinced of anything at the end of the day, I think hybridization would be like gene splicing or something similar too it. while animals would be in danger, most would simply capture a lot, take some blood from the healthy or at least healthier ones and then hopefully release them back to the wild. Thought process aside, I wouldn’t be willing to give up a ton of my humanity, maybe a little but the exchange is controllable animal tendencies.

Image from Blade runner of flying car next to a building with a digital board displaying woman's face

“Did It First” The Parallels Between Blade Runner and Neuromancer

Zakiyah M.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

One defining feature that is seen throughout the cyberpunk genre is the dystopian city filled with skyscrapers and neon lights. This is juxtaposed with societal collapse, which can only be assumed to be a result of the technological advancements of the time. The movie Blade Runner (1982) directed by Ridley Scott was one of the first recognized cyberpunk films and paved the way for media of the same genre that came after it. One piece of media that followed this film was Neuromancer which was published by William Gibson two years after the release of Blade Runner. Neuromancer is a notable book because it also served as a heavy influence for the cyberpunk genre. The creativity of technological inventions seen within the book caused a shift in science fiction, paving the way for what cyberpunk is today. In both of these pieces of media, we also see a theme common within the cyberpunk genre, “high tech, low life”. In Blade Runner, technological advancements of the city are displayed throughout the skyline (bright building lights and electronic billboards) as well as in the presence of replicants which were human like androids that were originally created to be slaves to the human population. Within the film we see characters like Deckard eating in crowded food stations surrounded by televisions that barely work and the replicants living in rundown abandoned buildings. These same key aspects of the “high tech, low life” theme in the cyberpunk genre are presented within Neuromancer as well. In the book, characters within the story have been technologically enhanced, some having artificial limbs and even vision. Gibson also describes areas like Chiba city which have the bright lights and holograms on buildings throughout the city, which are primary element of cities in the cyberpunk genre. Additionally, within the book there are places like Night City which is more like the “slums” on the outskirts of Chiba City. Crime is prevalent in this area as people try to sell and distribute what they can to survive. It is clear that Blade Runner had some influence on the writing of Neuromancer due to similarities content in which the cities with bright lights and many technological advancements led to the downfall of society. However, these notable elements in those two pieces of work paved the way and continued a movement for the establishment of the cyberpunk genre and the many pieces of media that came after.

Neon Lights and Gritty Realities: A Cyberpunk Aesthetic

Makeda M.
Reading Time: 2 minutes

In the realm of cyberpunk, few pairings are as iconic as Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner (1982) and William Gibson’s Neuromancer(1984). Both works are seminal in their portrayal of sprawling, dystopian cities where neon lights and towering skyscrapers coexist with a gritty, low-life underbelly. They offer a vision of urban futures that are as visually striking as they are thematically complex. Let’s delve into how these works use their cityscapes to explore themes of technology, societal decay, and human experience.

Drones flying through a dystopian Los Angeles in Blade Runner(1982).

Blade Runner and Neuromancer share a distinctive visual and thematic aesthetic that underscores their portrayal of dystopian futures. The cities in both works are characterized by an overwhelming sense of artificiality and decay, creating an atmosphere of both wonder and despair.

Both Blade Runner and Neuromancer utilize their cityscapes to explore the dichotomy between high technology and social decay. In Blade Runner, the advanced technology of the replicants and the omnipresent advertisements represent the pinnacle of human achievement, yet they exist in a world marked by environmental degradation and societal fragmentation. The elite live in luxurious, isolated high-rises, while the majority of the population struggles in the polluted, crime-ridden streets below. This disparity is vividly illustrated in the contrast between the opulent Tyrell Corporation building and the grimy, neon-soaked streets of the city’s lower levels.

An interpretation of Chiba City based on the novel Nueromancer by William Gibson(1984).

In Neuromancer, the juxtaposition of high-tech advancements with urban decay is even more pronounced. Chiba City’s neon glow and technological marvels are set against a backdrop of poverty and crime. The city’s various districts, such as the corporate-controlled sectors and the more impoverished areas, reflect the socio-economic divides that are central to the narrative.

Material Songstress

Josiah A.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

More Human than Human

I see a lot of what Harraway discusses in her Manifesto in ArchAndroid. If you scroll through the playlist and simply look at the names of the songs, some seem very esoteric and some make sense. In the Cyborg Manifesto Harraway wants us to think about Cyborgs in an ironic political sense while also keeping it faithful to feminism and post humanist ideology. When listening to the lyrics of the songs in ArchAndroid they are very centered around the “self”. Yourself and Myself, these individual churnings of thought, how everything in the world is so crazy, how dreams of things getting better stay forever, so many expressions of love, to need someone, to not need someone, to walk the thin rope of expression and thought, to speak up and speak out and the insanity that can potentially come with it. If we were to truly think of these in the way that Harraway intended, we’d be here for hours. which leads me to my next few points, I want to touch upon a few songs from the album itself.

Dance and Die is an interesting song, in Harraway’s Cyborg Manifesto she wants us to look at Cyborgs as ourselves or rather a way to view ourselves in a personal way. within this song many people are described. Those who are suicidal, those who cry for help or more accurately crying for someone to listen to help, “zombies’ with no thought, children that kill each other, some that go to join the army, men who want to be free, men who want a stronger nation. this song is filled with so much strife and yet the title gives you two options die or dance. To dance as I see it is to keep moving forward even when you wish for it to end. To Dance to your own rhythm and like the song says, whether you are a cyborg, Android, decoy or human, these dreams will persist. How fluid the “human” is, how fluid the very consciousness that such simple and seemingly hopeless things persistent no matter what you are.

I will not lie, I feel a lot of my peers if they did something similar would probably point to “Oh, Maker” and I think it is infinitely smarter to do so when talking about these songs and how they relate to Harraway’s Cyborg Manifesto, but I simply must talk about Sir Greendown. It is such an esoteric and dreamy song. when looking at the lyrics it practically makes no sense a song potentially full of metaphors and questions. who is ‘Sir Greendown’, where exactly is this taking place, what tower is she speaking off? When I mentioned the word “dreamy” I was not joking, the melody is meant to give off the sense that it is a dream, but I believe the more interesting thing to observe is the Song itself. I believe this relates to Harraway’s Manifesto because Harraway uses the Cyborg to breakdown the distinctions between physical and nonphysical and what is more nonphyscial than a dream? Here is a dreamlike expression of love an ask of the person to wake them up at night, to come to their tower and whosk them away. Instead of a land of Milk and Honey we have a town of Walking dolphins and Cyborgs who know exactly what to do. but what happens when we awake? will Sir Greendown be here at the tower to take us away to allow our love to be reciprocated? who knows, it is a nonphysical expression something outside of the normal something that anything could dream of.

Sprawling City of Lights and the Hell they Harbor Underneath Them

Josiah A.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Within The Decay of the Postmodern World

Within the first few minutes of BladeRunner 1982 We are met with an interesting and phenomenal sight. A dreary nighttime atmosphere a towering skyscraper building and many surrounding it, the air is filled with steam, the light pollution so dense that the stars in the sky are no longer visible. The way the buildings are laid out is congested and constrained, cramped and suffocating and we see a flying car passing an image of a woman projected onto the side of a building. Then a few minutes later we are met with its underbelly, a man walking through an overly crowded street steam billowing from the shops crammed together on the ground level. The space is minimal and yet people are able to get where they need to go. At night a few hours later, we see how empty and decrepit the cities underbelly is, Empty, dirty, unkempt and unwanted.

The city presented to us brings out the aesthetically dystopian majesty of Cyberpunk well. many Visually when we are above the cities ground level and on other colonies, we see how advanced technology is in Bladerunner, but the amazing contrast is that no matter the time of day you can clearly tell how suffocating the city and atmosphere is how much the world itself may be in slow decay due to the rise of technology and a sole focus on corporate interest. As an artist I absolutely adore the colors used here and without the movie. To focus specifically on the image that precedes this text while the shot is at night the light that we see while “bright” is actually quite dim, grey, and muddy. We usually use “ugly” and muddy colors in conjunction with brighter and “pretty” colors to bring out the beauty of the world, when both ugly and pretty colors work in tandem, they bring out the beauty in each other and make things pop with vivacity and life through their working together. but here in Bladerunner the colors while visually stunning and work together are purposefully muted, they are invoking a sense of dread and decay that compound with the clustered nature of the buildings which are seeming placed tightly compacted with each other due to lack of space and ecological restrictions. Bladerunner city is full of visual scenery like this due to dystopian theme and the neon aesthetic that comes along with it, the innate hubris that comes along with unfiltered technological advancement with no moral or ethical leash.

Cybernetic underground amidst a Regional Travesty

Chiba City is the first city we are introduced too, its alias is adequately called “Night Town” by the locals and any visitors. Chiba City is a hub for both legal and illegal cybernetic augmentations within Neuromancer, it is favored by the sprawl’s techno criminal’s, case included. Case is there in hopes to cure his neurological damage but back to the point, Chiba City is described as a “complex” or a group of similar buildings or facilities within the same area or site, the darker areas are even visible from the sea which is littered with white styrofoam, and waste.

The interesting thing about Chiba city is the nickname “Night City”, since it houses illegal augmentations as well it has become a go to place for the sprawls criminal underground and what better time of day to commit crime then in the cover of Night. The many Complexes are everywhere which add onto the dystopian aspect technology cramped in a sea of similarity where all of their problems can be solved or exacerbated by corporations. the contrast to such a high-tech area is the port near it which is Tokyo Bay and how filthy it has become; nothing screams environmental decay that waste farther than the eye can see.