JAMES PETHOKOUKIS: Is AI really a ‘deal with the devil?’ The medieval story of Faust continues to infect how we think about technology. “Johann Wolfgang von Goethe fiddled with his version for decades, but completed it in 1831 just before his death. This Faust is an aging scholar who also makes a deal with Mephistopheles: The devil will serve him on Earth, but if Faust finds a moment of complete satisfaction, his soul belongs to Hell. Faust pursues various ambitious projects and finally finds satisfaction in a project to reclaim land from the sea. He dies, but his constant striving for betterment and final act of working for humanity’s benefit saves his soul, which ascends to Heaven.”