The joi of holograms

As a form of hologrammatic artificial intelligence (AI), Joi is a new addition to the Blade Runner universe. We know, of course, that Joi is synthetic, in the sense of being a technological artefact, but as the movie progresses it becomes increasingly difficult to see her as anything other than a virtual person. This chapter addresses the following questions: Does Joi exhibit any sort of autonomy with regard to her behavioural and emotional responses? Is Joi’s love for K authentic? Does it (should it) count as “real” or genuine love? Given that Blade Runner 2049 is, at root, a work of art, it is perhaps not surprising that it should exhibit some degree of ambiguity. in the context of Blade Runner 2049 the distinction between traditionalists and expansionists is not particularly crucial. This is because Joi is a legitimate focus of interest for the proponents of both views.