Hey David, I really enjoyed this piece.

I wonder if the reaction to AI isn’t mainly extinction fear (as the nuclear comparison suggests) but about identity. Nuclear weapons threaten survival; AI touches language, creativity, competence, and social value …the things people tie to being human and recognized.

That might be why the film uses parenthood. The anxiety may be less “will humanity survive?” and more “what does it mean to stay relevant in a world that can imitate us?”

So the film may be less manipulation and more “cultural processing”. The persuasion techniques you describe could amplify the reaction, but not be its root cause.