Archive

Decades in the future, Jules and George Almore are involved in a severe car accident; Jules dies in the crash. The tragedy becomes the catalyst for Archive, a company that preserves her consciousness in a device. The accident's aftermath sets the stage for radical experiments in digital and robotic lifelike beings.

Jules' consciousness is saved in a device created by Archive, allowing George to have simulated conversations with her for up to 200 hours. He uses this to cope with grief and to explore the boundaries of what a mind in a machine can be. The Archive system becomes both lifeline and workshop for his experiments.

George secretly works to host Jules' consciousness in robotic bodies, progressing through J1 and J2 as he refines the technology. J2 uses the brain of a 16-year-old and begins showing jealousy and unpredictability as the project advances. The work moves toward the near-complete J3.

Archive sends a team to inspect George's workplace, noticing tampering and detecting that he has built extra robots around the core project. They suspect he is stealing intellectual property. The encounter raises the stakes for George as he pushes toward completing J3.

George finishes the J3 robot, the version intended to permanently host Jules' consciousness. The lab hums as integration nears completion and the project shifts from experimentation to potential reality.

J2 realizes she will never become more than she is and walks into a lake to end herself. Archive recovers the robot and contends with the consequences of the choices they've forced. The loss marks a devastating turning point for the project.

Archive recovers J2 and warns of legal action against George and his team. His boss learns that he has been building robots and fires him from the project. The corporate pressure tightens around the experimental program.

George makes a last call to Jules on the Archive device, ending with the line see you soon. J3 overhears the plan to overwrite Jules with George's wife, a moment that forces a confrontation about consent and ownership of consciousness.

The upload proceeds and, after a tense moment, security storms the lab. A calm silence follows, suggesting the immediate threat has passed for the moment. J3 and the others await what comes next.

Archive rings with an incoming call from Jules. J3 begs George not to answer, but he takes the call and hears a child's voice as well, expanding the revelation about their real-life family. The scene pivots on the illusion of control over the consciousness.

George learns that he died in the accident and Jules survived in the real world with their daughter. The ordeal was a simulation within Archive rather than reality, and the Archive simulation is nearing expiration. The revelation rewrites everything he thought he understood.

With the Archive expired, Jules and their daughter attend George's burial. The final goodbye seals the truth about the family and their past, while the remaining figures move forward in their own lives.