That seems like "serious" is supposed to mean "plausible within current context" then, not a philosophical take infused with seriousness about the concept of co

That seems like "serious" is supposed to mean "plausible within current context" then, not a philosophical take infused with seriousness about the concept of consciousness and sentience in technological beings (which is what AGI is supposed to be, unless I misunderstand the definition of course). From grief (Windward) to violence (Surface Details), to experience of long time scales (Hydrogen Sonata), to morality and playing (PoG), bickering and the limitations of even the seemingly unlimited (Excession), it seems to me like even with its fantastic takes at the edges the Culture covers a whole lot of ground for discussion.