Science fiction has a long tradition of pitting artificial intelligence (AI) against humanity in a struggle for dominance.Ray Kurzweil, Google’s director of engineering and a noted futurist and inventor, envisions a more co-operative future. He says the human brain will soon merge with computer networks to form a hybrid artificial intelligence.Kurzweil said human intelligence has already merged with technology, although not to the extent that he predicts.Kurzweil acknowledged that artificial intelligence is a scary prospect. Responding to a question from the audience, he argued that humans will eventually become comfortable sharing the world with AI.