"Josh, the five million robots you requested are ready. To be honest, it was quite difficult to gather so many robots at once. About three million of them are used, but they still work fine, so I hope you don't mind," Lawrence said through the system's interface after delivering the NS robots to Josh.
He wasn't trying to trick Josh. In his world, almost all robots were made by his company, American Robotics, so producing five million wasn't impossible.
However, making robots took time, as did gathering materials and assembling them. They couldn't just appear out of nowhere.
Josh had only given him one week, which wasn't enough to make all the new robots.
So, including inventory and freshly manufactured robots, Lawrence managed to make two million brand-new robots available.
These were the latest NS-5 series, which had been put back into production.
Although the Super AI, VIKI, had once nearly caused a robot uprising with NS-5s, the problem was mainly with VIKI itself. The NS-5 models, aside from upgraded hardware, functioned just like the previous versions once the AI control was removed.
The remaining three million were used older models.
These were originally destined for disposal for various reasons.
Why not recycle them? Just like America's car and plane graveyards, they cost too much to dismantle. Instead, they can be refurbished and reused, as in Josh's case, where he desperately needed them.
"Also, the 100,000 military robots you asked for are included. They're in the red trucks. Once they verify your DNA, they'll follow only your commands. This disk contains their operating system," Lawrence added in a hushed tone before Josh could answer.
In fact, he had already turned off the smart sensors in his room. The new AI in his company wasn't as advanced as VIKI, but at least it wouldn't cause chaos. So whispering wasn't necessary.
Still, after the previous incident, Lawrence was cautious—once bitten, twice shy. Had it not been for his luck in being chosen by the Dimensional Trade Beacon, he would have ended up like his old partner, Dr. Lanning.
"I understand. As long as they work, that's all that matters. Besides the agreed payment, the extra blue containers contain vibranium. Since you're a super-soldier now, I think you'll like it," Josh replied calmly.
He wasn't surprised by what Lawrence had said. As a businessman, Josh knew that industrial production wasn't easy.
Even in Lawrence's world, where technology was highly advanced and human labor was almost entirely replaced by robots, efficiency had its limits.
Sourcing materials, processing, and transportation all took time.
That was why, despite already obtaining robot production technology from Lawrence, Josh chose to buy ready-made ones instead of making them himself.
Austria's first-generation robotic production lines were still just blueprints.
Although Josh had already provided Austria's scientists and engineers with various technical materials from Yuri to help them catch up, Lawrence's technology was far more advanced.
Even with the full support of the government and countless experts working together, it wouldn't be possible to fully understand and apply these technologies in a short period of time.
And even if they wanted to copy the designs, they first needed a strong enough industrial base to support them.
So if Josh wanted enough robots, he had no choice but to buy them from Lawrence.
Yuri's world wasn't an option either. Even though Yuri had managed to rebuild a decent industrial system, his workforce was still too small. Instead of helping Josh build robots, he wanted to buy some himself.
As for those five million robots, Josh wasn't even sure if they would be enough, so selling them to Yuri or any other dimension was out of the question.
For that reason, Josh had already expected that Lawrence might struggle to deliver the full order.
But to his surprise, Lawrence actually managed to gather all five million—three million of them being older models. But as long as they worked, Josh didn't mind.
And the reason for purchasing so many robots? Simple—it was for developing Java.
He had no interest in working with the native population and planned to relocate them to nearby lands. Meanwhile, the incoming Native American immigrants numbered only a few tens of thousands—far from enough to develop the region.
The Germans? They were for military purposes, and their numbers were limited. They couldn't handle both defense and infrastructure.
The Austrians? Austria itself had a labor shortage.
Besides, Josh didn't want too many Austrians involved in Java, as it would attract unwanted attention from the British, Dutch, Australians, and Americans.
As for the local Chinese population, while they were significant, at this time in history, they only numbered around two million—not nearly enough to support Java's four to five million total inhabitants or its vast land area.
So the only viable solution was robots.
They followed orders, worked efficiently, and were easy to hide.
As for the 100,000 military robots, they were even more essential. While Josh had hired German mercenaries and placed a command structure filled with personnel from Austria and Blackwater International for better control, he still didn't fully trust them.
Especially when it came to handling certain "special tasks"—human soldiers weren't always the best choice.
And in Lawrence's world, military robots did exist.
Why didn't the military intervene when VIKI rebelled in the movie, leaving a single policeman to save the world? Because the military robots were also under VIKI's control, rendering the armed forces useless.
That's why the army barely appeared until the very end of the movie.
"This is Vibranium? Oh... what a beautiful metal!" Lawrence waved his hand, and a transparent container about the size of a bucket appeared in his grasp. Inside, shimmering blue raw vibranium glowed faintly.
When the transaction was first completed, Lawrence glanced at the system's trade list and didn't notice the vibranium. After all, the trade was mainly for large quantities of metallic raw materials.
By Lawrence's time, human space technology had advanced considerably. There was even a scene in the movie where a giant street screen advertised the new X-82 space shuttle for interstellar travel.
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