These reproductive stalks, jutting as high as 30 feet in the air, shoot up from agave plants at the end of their life cycle after 10 or 15 or 20-plus years—a last gasp at immortality.

Will robots become self-aware? Will they have rights? Will they be in charge? Here are five scenarios from our future dominated by AI Stephan Talty, illustrations by Jules Julien In June of 1956 ...