The Weight of I Love You
Joi’s Virtual Somatechnics and Identity Negotiation in Blade Runner 2049
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 17819145 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Neo Xia (0009-0000-9494-3357, RMIT Europe, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 122-138 |
| Publication date | 2026-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Somatechnics (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2044-0138 • E-ISSN: 2044-0146 |
| Publisher | Edinburgh University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.3366/soma.2026.0484 |
| OpenAlex | W7154565219 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 21 |
In the postcyberpunk narrative of Blade Runner 2049 (Villeneuve 2017), the virtual embodiment of the affective AI [artificial intelligence] Joi is a central concern. Her virtual body itself functions as a complex locus wherein her multiple and contradictory identities – as a personalised companion, a mass-produced commodity, and a nascent form of potential autonomous consciousness – are constantly negotiated. Drawing upon the theoretical lenses of virtual somatechnics and identity negotiation, this paper analyses the multifaceted significance of Joi's affective commitment. The inquiry parses this significance into three dimensions: Joi’s initial lack of ontological weight as a technologically determined object; the emotional weight she accumulates through her co-created relationship with K; and the ethical weight she ultimately claims through her climactic act of self-sacrifice. This analysis leads to the core inquiry of the paper: can a programmed entity, through such profound affective commitment, transcend its inherent commodity status to achieve a form of subjective authenticity? Ultimately, this research contends that Joi’s virtual existence challenges conventional ontological boundaries. Her case offers a critical perspective for understanding the intricate entanglement of technology, corporeality, and the moral status of artificial beings in the digital epoch
Consciousness · Identity (music) · Narrative · Negotiation · Perspective (graphical) · Digital Games and Media · Digital Media and Philosophy · Utopian, Dystopian, and Speculative Fiction
The Cambridge Handbook of Artificial Intelligence
Human-Machine Communication
Affective Computing
How We Became Posthuman
Artificial Unintelligence
Recycled Dystopias
Beyond Cyberpunk
Ontological Boundaries between Humans and Computers and the Implications for Human-Machine Communication
Postcyberpunk dystopian cityscape and emotion artificial intelligence
Deconstruction of gender in Post-cyberpunk literature through a Poststructural feminist approach
Beyond trauma? Memories of Joi/y and memory play in Blade Runner 2049
Towards a Theory of Posthuman Care
What makes AI 'intelligent' and 'caring'? Exploring affect and relationality across three sites of intelligence and care
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |