15 Best Anime About AI
15 Best Anime About AI
Sci-fi anime still has that unique flair that's hard for other genres to capture. With its captivating narrative, complex technological aspects, immersive storylines and plots that make you think deeply, it is truly a golden gem among the wide variety of catalogs available.
Given that AI is attracting more and more attention these days, it wouldn't be surprising to assume that anime dealing with these topics have appeared in recent years. But the anime never ceases to confuse. From Astro Boy in 1963 to Ghost in The Shell in 1995, you'll be surprised to discover how many decades-old series have accurately predicted reality as we know it today.
What's even more fascinating about this genre is that while most media portrays the horrors shown in WALL-E, there are animated series that will not hesitate to tell you that not all AI is there to attack you. Sometimes the peaceful life of humans is enchanting enough for AI.
Today we will look at Anime About AI or Robots For Gen Z. We will include series that feature advanced technological achievements or robots at the core of their story.
15 Best Anime About AI or Robots for Gen Z
1. Vivy: the song by Fluorite Eye
| MAL ratings | 8.41 |
| Number of episodes | 13 |
| Gender | Action, Drama, Science fiction, Androids |
| Studio | Studio Esprit |
2021's Vivy wasn't WIT's first venture into this genre, but it certainly made an impact. As highly evolved AIs are on the verge of eradicating humanity, a scientist bets everything on the past.
A time-traveling bear travels 100 years into the past, when AIs were already an integral part of society, albeit equipped with only one program to run for eternity. Vivy, an AI singer tasked with spreading happiness, finds her entire reality turned upside down when Matsumoto tells her of a doomed future and asks for her help.
Vivy is the perfect example of showing both sides. While humanity is wiped out by them, ironically, those who save them are also AIs. Although Vivy had its fair share of flaws in terms of story depth, the anime offers too much to ignore.
2. Chobits
| MAL ratings | 7:40 a.m. |
| Number of episodes | 26 |
| Gender | CRAZY'S HOUSE |
| Studio | Drama, Romance, Science fiction, Robots |
The 2000s are sometimes considered the golden age of anime due to the sheer number of bangers it gave us. Back then we had CLAMP, which is responsible for at least four of these cultural phenomena. Chobits, while a little weird, was one of them. The weird thing about it is being a CLAMP show, but trust me, that's the best part.
A world where AI humanoids known as "persocoms" have been integrated into society, so much so that the line between humans and humans is blurred. When Hideki, after failing his university exams, meets Chii, an abandoned robotic girl, he decides to take her in.
Hideki begins to teach him everything and Chii, in all his machine-like clumsiness, understands everything. The tone throughout the series is rather slow, SOL, but the ending leaves room for reflection.
3. Page
| MAL ratings | 7:40 a.m. |
| Number of episodes | 1 x 60 minutes |
| Gender | Drama, Romance, Science fiction, Android |
| Studio | Studio Esprit |
If you have 60 minutes and want to watch something with depth that will also lead to an existential crisis at the end, Hal is perfect. Kurumi and Hal are lovers who have a lot to look forward to in the future.
Until a plane crash takes Hal away from Kurumi. To get her out of depression, Kurumi's grandfather sends a humanoid robot named Q01 to take Hal's place. Resistant at first, Kurumi gradually begins to open up to the robot. But he certainly has more to say than meets the eye.
Even though the aspects are at the forefront here, the ending shatters reality and rewrites the entire story. How? Well, you have to watch it to find out!
4. New Year’s Eve time
| MAL ratings | 8.01 |
| Number of episodes | 1 x 105 mins/6 x 15 mins |
| Gender | Drama, Science fiction, Androids, Original |
| Studio | Studio Rikka |
Originally a 6-part OVA, later made into a film, Time of Eve is also set in a future where androids are commonplace as servants. But in this world, they are strictly bound by the Three Laws of Robotics. In fact, according to a blatant ethics committee, robots are treated as minors and anyone who worships them is rejected by society.
Rikuo discovers abnormal activity patterns in his android Sammy. Following her leads him to a strange cafe with the title name with a ruler. Everyone within its walls, human or android, will be treated the same.
Rikuo's worldview begins to be challenged when he sees androids acting more like humans inside the cafe, which really should be possible. The short duration of this anime is enough to bring out the nuance between humans and androids.
5. Ergo Proxy
| MAL ratings | 7.90 |
| Number of episodes | 23 |
| Gender | Androids, Science fiction, Cyberpunk, Noir |
| Studio | Manglobe |
Ergo Proxy may not be for everyone. Not everyone can tackle complex plots with intricate details and multi-layered characters, but that's okay. In a futuristic world where almost everything is controlled by an AI called AutoReivs, humans are no longer born but are “produced”.
Re-l Mayer is tasked with investigating strange events that leave these androids with more self-awareness than usual. Her life is turned upside down as she discovers the "truth" with an AutoReivs specialist named Vincent Law and her own named Iggy.
Ergo Proxy will guarantee a good time for anyone looking beneath the surface. As the enigma begins to be revealed, you will be guided on a journey to answer some of humanity's biggest questions.
6. Psycho-Pass
| MAL ratings | 8.34 |
| Number of episodes | 22 |
| Gender | Action, Science fiction, Cyberpunk, Thriller |
| Studio | GI production |
Psycho-Pass is such an acclaimed series that I doubt anyone reading hasn't at least heard of it. Set in a future where an AI system named “Sibyl” presides over EVERY facet of life. From telling you what clothes to wear to predicting who is likely to commit a crime in the future, Sibyl is a major part of the law.
Akane begins her career as a specialist police officer tasked with eliminating these latent criminals before they arise. But not everyone who is arrested is imprisoned or executed; some are given the position of "enforcers" to help them investigate the psyche of a criminal. However, they are not treated any better than hunting dogs.
Akane not only doubts the treatment of these agents, but also Sibyl's ability to detect criminals. It deals a lot with the ethics and morality of who we consider to be a criminal.
7. Planetary
| MAL ratings | 7.56 |
| Number of episodes | 5 |
| Gender | Science fiction, post-apocalyptic, drama, androids |
| Studio | David Productions |
It's almost funny how quickly this anime can help you. In a good way, because the storytelling is absolutely incredible. Based on a visual novel of the same name, Planetarian is set in a dark future thirty years after the failure of the space colonization program. Humanity is almost extinct.
And in such a dark world, there exists a pre-war planetary in the middle of the city where a robot companion named Hoshino Yumemi has been waiting for 30 years to show someone the stars.
A scrap dealer, a man who salvages goods and artifacts from ruins, stumbles upon this planetarium, and Yumemi immediately thinks he is a customer. But the projector is broken, so the man helps to repair it. What else is in their future?
8. Doraemon
| MAL ratings | 7.81 |
| Number of episodes | 1787 + 44 films |
| Gender | Comedy, Shounen, Robots, Cats |
| Studio | Shin-Ei Animation |
Doraemon colorfully stands out among all the gray colors in post-apocalyptic anime. Of course, it has to be added to the list since it is essentially a cultural phenomenon that is not limited to Japan.
The popularity it holds is almost unmatched. Don't be fooled though. There's more than one Doraemon that will absolutely make your eyes bawl.
Nobita is a lazy one and good to note. Due to his lack of motivation, his future generations are doomed to a life of poverty.
To avoid this, his great-great-great-great-grandson sends him a blue robot cat named Doraemon from the future. With a 4th dimensional pocket full of gadgets, Doraemon is equipped to help Nobita in any situation.
9. Den-noh Coil
| MAL ratings | 8.04 |
| Number of episodes | 26 |
| Gender | Drama, Mystery, Science fiction, Virtual Reality |
| Studio | CRAZY'S HOUSE |
MADHOUSE is known for being the best of the best, and this series is no exception. Dennou Coil brings a different spin to all things AI. In a futuristic world, the lines between real and virtual are blurred. People use special cyberglasses to access this virtual realm.
But in the town of Daikoku, things turn strange. Cyberanimals have disappeared, dark creatures known as "illegals" have come from places that shouldn't even exist, and a virus has attacked not only AI but also the... real world.
What is the reality behind all these strange phenomena, and are the real world and the virtual world really as separate as we thought? This series takes a more casual approach to these crisis-inducing existential questions.
10. ID: Invaded
| MAL ratings | 7.83 |
| Number of episodes | 13 |
| Gender | Mystery, Thriller, Science fiction, Thriller |
| Studio | NAZ |
When it released in 2020, ID stood out as something unique and, for anyone who stuck with it until the end, delivered a satisfying conclusion with an incredible twist. The AI in this series is the Mizuhanome system.
Few civilians know it, but this unique system can allow the police to collect so-called "cognitive particles" at the crime scene and enter the identity card of the perpetrator of the crime.
The prerequisite is that the person diving into the ID has already killed someone in the past. Enter Akihito Narihisago, a former detective who now helps the police help cold-blooded killers. But all these strange happenings inside the ID card that he keeps seeing somehow lead him back to his daughter's case.
11. Summer Wars
| MAL ratings | 8.02 |
| Number of episodes | 1 x 144 minutes |
| Gender | Action, science fiction, virtual reality |
| Studio | CRAZY'S HOUSE |
-sensei has created more than a few masterpieces. How he keeps coming up with these complex sci-fi plots, which are also somehow grounded in reality, is anyone's guess.
The Internet has evolved into a system called OZ in a futuristic world. This virtual space is incredibly popular with people, who can transform into avatars inside this space, ensuring complete anonymity.
Kenji Koiso is a mathematical genius and moderator of OZ who was called by his crust Natsuki to spend the summer at her place. Kenji should be excited by all means, but when an unknown sender challenges him by sending him a code, he can't help but crack it.
If only he knew this would open up a whole can of worms leading to twists and turns and secrets related to this seemingly perfect AI world.
12. Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
| MAL ratings | 8:60 a.m. |
| Number of episodes | ten |
| Gender | Action, Sci-fi, Cyberpunk, Gangs |
| Studio | TRIGGER |
Cyberpunk proved that Trigger can never lose its sci-fi touch. In a futuristic Californian metropolis, extreme body modifications and associated technologies are what everyone is obsessed with.
David Martinez only wants to fulfill his mother's wish, but an incident with a secret gang leaves him in tatters. Fueled by his rage, he plants a cyber war behind his back to help him in his revenge.
Destiny leads him to a life as Edgerunners. David is willing to risk everything to defeat the corrupt system that society imposes on his people.
13. Ghost in the Shell
| MAL ratings | 8.27 |
| Number of episodes | 1 x 83 minutes |
| Gender | Action, Science Fiction, Cyborgs, Dark |
| Studio | GI production |
When it was released in 1995, no one doubted that Mamoru Oshii's Ghost in Shell would depict an entire era of cyberpunk anime. The waves caused by this are still being felt after all these years. Set in the future, advances in cybernetics have allowed citizens to replace their limbs with robotic parts. Humans have abandoned their physical form to transform into cyborgs.
Inspector Makoto Kusanagi is on the hunt for a vicious hacker known only as the Puppet Master, who has left a trail of victims stripped of their memories. Soon, Makoto will have to face the question of his own existence.
14. Lain Serial Experiments
| MAL ratings | 8.09 |
| Number of episodes | 13 |
| Gender | Action, Science fiction, Dark, Psychological |
| Studio | Triangle stick |
To say that Serial Experiments Lain was ahead of its time is the biggest understatement of the century. It's almost scary how relevant the message of this series was in the 90s. Lain Iwakura was one of the people who received a strange email from his classmate Chisa before she was found dead .
Although technophobic at first, as soon as she delved deeper into WIRED (the Internet basically), she found herself more fascinated by it. Enigmatic messages, men in black who somehow know her, strange AI... Consciousness and identity take a new form.
15. Steins;Door/Steins;Door 0
| MAL ratings | 9.07 |
| Number of episodes | 24(S1) + 23(S2) |
| Gender | Science fiction, Thriller, Time loop, Psychological |
| Studio | WHITE FOX |
For me, Steins;Gate is a gem that shines so brightly that when you finish it, you can't help but feel a little empty inside. Yes, you may have watched the first three episodes in the past and forgotten about it, thinking it's not your cup of tea. But believe it, once you reach episode four, there is NO going back.
Okabe and his friends spend their time at the Future Gadgets Research Lab, making strange and useless gadgets together. But what happens when they accidentally create something capable of sending messages to the? Okabe is about to find out the hard way.
And that brings us to the end! We hope you enjoyed reading this and will be on the lookout for similar articles in the future!
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