Apollyon

In this course

Apollyon functions in the readings as a mythological anchor for anxieties about technological systems that operate beyond human comprehension or control—a figure of bottomless destruction invoked when discussing predictive models and algorithmic processes that even their architects cannot fully grasp. The excerpt deploys this biblical language to suggest that contemporary AI systems embody a kind of secular apocalypticism, where understanding itself becomes the abyss, and Hughes's inability to fully internalize the models he encounters mirrors the paralysis of confronting forces one has unleashed but cannot contain.

Background

The Hebrew term Abaddon and its Greek equivalent Apollyon appear in the Bible as both a place of destruction and an angel of the abyss. In the Hebrew Bible, abaddon is used with reference to a bottomless pit, often appearing alongside the place Sheol, meaning the resting place of the dead.

Mentioned in 1 reading