Mercer gave an affirmative answer: "A wandering AI is like a matrix, once we get it, we can use it to continuously produce high-intelligence sub-AIs to complete tasks. Do you know Delaman? It's that autonomous taxi company in Night City."
"Delaman? I know it." Hansen nodded.
"That's a typical example of relying on wandering AI and its sub-AIs to work. Essentially, all driverless operations are independently performed by Delaman's sub-AIs.
If we can obtain a wandering AI similar to Delaman and modify it for use, we can add AI assistance to each armored unit.
Afterwards, we won't need to consider the issue of neural load. I am confident I can write an operating system suitable for AI."
Mercer's words were full of confidence, while Hansen's eyes flashed with thought. He glanced at Mercer a few times unobtrusively but couldn't discern any clues.
Could it be he was just speaking off the cuff?
Hansen pondered internally without making an immediate decision—he knew about Military Science's Little Beidou plan because traces of Little Beidou Facility could be seen all over Dog Town's underground, the stadium, and Gem Cyan.
The thing practically occupied half of Dog Town underground, and how could Hansen possibly know nothing about it? He was quite aware of its danger and its importance to Military Science. Unless necessary, he didn't want Military Science to completely lose patience with him.
Until today, Hansen was still viewed as a 'deserter' by New America and Military Science. It was only due to interests that they had to cooperate with him, and he was very aware of his situation.
Mercer continued with some regret: "Unfortunately, capturing a wandering AI now requires very specialized equipment to safely pass through the Black Wall, find the wandering AI, and most critically, retrieve it through the Black Wall.
Just relying on my network technology is difficult; professional large-scale equipment and personnel cooperation are necessary. I estimate that starting such a large project from scratch with Dog Town's economy...
Overall, that's how it is: if you want to further reduce neural load, be prepared to invest significant funds and time. Anyway, my team can already make do, facing the war intensity of Night City, there are no higher demands in the short term."
Mercer was clearly indicating he was going to loaf around, yet Hansen was helpless, and because things were tense between them before, he somewhat had to placate Mercer now.
"Alright, I've approved the lab you requested, Gago, implement it quickly." After Hansen finished speaking, the polite Netherworld Dog official beside him nodded with a smile.
Mercer glanced thoughtfully at this Netherworld Dog named Gago—his joining time with the Netherworld Dogs was actually similar to Mercer's.
But in such a short time, he was already working beside Hansen, showing his temperament and capabilities were certainly not lacking.
And indeed, in the game, this Netherworld Dog named Gago became one of the only two candidates able to compete for the next leader of Dog Town after Hansen's death.
His sole competitor was Hansen's confidant Bennett—know that Bennett was a core member of the six-member group that founded Dog Town with Hansen, essentially one of the founding members of Netherworld Dog and wielding the strongest combat power under Hansen.
For a newcomer who joined Dog Town in seventy-two to be able to compete with Bennett in seventy-seven after Hansen's death, it shows that this guy named Gago is indeed noteworthy.
Gago noticed Mercer sizing him up and smiled kindly at him: "Director Mercer, don't get into conflicts with Colonel Hansen. You need to know that in all of Dog Town, Colonel Hansen offers the best terms to you.
He's just worried about his investment going down the drain—Dog Town is at a crucial development stage, every penny must be spent wisely. His pressure is also significant, I hope you can understand more.
I used to work at Peizhuo Petrochemical, a place with many geniuses. Precisely because of that, I'm even more aware of Director Mercer's level, it's absolutely top!"
Gago gave Mercer a thumbs-up and laughed gently: "Colonel Hansen comes from a military background and doesn't quite understand the difficulty and cost of research, which is normal. Director Mercer, please empathize with non-technical personnel."
After saying this, Gago even helped Mercer with some excuses, saying to Hansen: "Colonel Hansen, don't be mad at the Director either. You need to understand, like the Director, such a young genius, inherently talented and renowned from youth..."
Under Gago's smooth talk, Mercer and Hansen's awkwardness and tension somewhat alleviated.
Hansen felt his accusations and caution towards Mercer seemed overly worried for now, but he still felt uneasy inside, torn between appreciating talent and the reality of Dog Town's lack of talent.
On the other hand, he genuinely believed Mercer's youthful appearance concealed an extremely dangerous creature—this was Hansen's own intuition, and he never considered this intuition an illusion.
After the atmosphere eased, Mercer immediately presented his terms: "Colonel Hansen, since currently it's difficult to find suitable armor personnel within the Netherworld Dogs, I hope the equipment developed later can be prioritized for my team.
I will optimize it promptly during their usage to improve suitability—and you've cut off my supply route for raw materials."