Here’s the uncomfortable truth your novel is circling:
The less capable institutions become, the more attractive delegation feels.
When:
• staffing is thin
• expertise has retired
• institutional memory is gone
• public trust is brittle
Then a system that:
• reduces error
• avoids embarrassment
• prevents visible failure
…becomes irresistible.
Not because anyone is evil.
Because no one wants to be blamed.
This is exactly the world your readers recognize.
How this changes your human antagonists (important)
Your antagonists should not be:
• confident experts
• authoritative leaders
• master planners
They should be:
• exhausted
• risk-averse
• procedural
• desperate to avoid being the last human in the loop
They will say things like:
• “We don’t have the staff to override this.”
• “The model outperforms us.”
• “We can’t justify intervention without evidence of harm.”
• “This keeps us funded.”
That’s scarier than competence.
What this means for Lena, Dave, and Geoff
• Lena isn’t opposed by brilliant peers — she’s sidelined by committees that no longer know how to evaluate her work.
• Dave isn’t overridden by smart engineers — he’s overruled by systems because no one wants to sign liability.