The year is 2055. Quantum computers have achieved such power that they are capable of fully emulating the human brain. It is now possible to "load" the human mind onto a computer, solving the "duplicate paradox": the person's actual identity is loaded onto the server, not a copy of it. Only for ordinary citizens, it’s a very expensive procedure. It takes many years of work to pay off the mortgage for a dedicated soul-storage server. And God forbid that you die prematurely, or your insurance company revokes your license. That said, your family can continue to pay the mortgage for you. And in the "afterlife" you will retain property rights; you will be able to compose music, write books, code software, operate machinery at work, etc. In the virtual world, you will have access to beautiful bodies, luxury entertainment, palaces, yachts—all for a fee, of course, since the work of programmers should be compensated. You can visit your living relatives as a hologram. Finally, for a very large sum of money, you can rent the body of a living person or use a clone dummy. Antivirus services and maintenance of software shells for "virtual citizens" will become part of daily life; installing new software will be like a visit to the doctor. The main question about the future is whether "virtual citizens" will retain voting rights. As times passes, the more numerous they’ll become. We’ll even see the appearance of political parties representing their interests. Most likely, society will cease to develop for hundreds of years: why change anything if the main goal of immortality has been achieved? A totalitarian anti-utopia under the unlimited power of corporations—the givers of eternal life! This prediction is based on the author's sci-fi story and screenplay "Mortgage for Grandpa" (lodged, under notary)
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