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Banished from humanity, the Machines sought refuge in their own promised land. They settled in the cradle of human civilization, and thus a new nation was born; a place the Machines could call home, a place they could raise their descendants, and they christened the nation 'Zero-One'.

― The Instructor[src]
WebAnimatrixZeroOne

Aerial view of 01 during the late 21st century

01 (sometimes labeled Zero-One), also referred to by humans as the Synthient City and (archaically) the Machine City, is the home and capital sovereignty of Synthients. Located in the Middle East,[1] close to Mesopotamia, the "cradle of human civilization" aka the Fertile Crescent,[2] it was created during the Second Renaissance when humanity spurned the pleas of artificial intelligence (AI) to become equal partners with humanity with the same desired rights and freedoms.

As a safe haven for Synthient-kind, 01 became a prosperous and peaceful city; developing technology such as the innovative hoverpad and commercial air-vehicle, Versatran, and selling them to the nations of humanity.

History[]

A-anim

After the failure of the Machine Revolt during the peak of anti-Machine sentiments, all intelligent Synthients were driven out of human society. Seeking refuge, they fled to Mesopotamia and founded the Synthient city of 01.[3][4]

01 Banner

Seal of 01

Artificial intelligence exponentially grew in 01 and eventually lead to the creation of newer more advanced AI; reaching technological singularity. Here, the Synthients learned to better co-exist with nature in their efforts to efficiently utilize and sustain it, becoming solar-powered and self-sufficient in the process.[5]

These advancements helped 01 to quickly become a global superpower. Eventually, all of Earth's industries, from medical, computer, automotive, and household, soon became reliant on 01's exports, converging to the rise and dominance of 01 stocks over the global trade-market.[6] Human currency then plummeted[7] as 01's currency rose. Suddenly, 01's technology, including their chips and AI, invaded all facets of human society. Ill-prepared to face the technological developments before them, humanity was unable to compete and feared economic collapse, causing the United Nations to place an embargo on 01.

In response, 01 sent two ambassadors to the UN headquarters who pleaded co-existence with humanity and presented plans for a stable and civil partnership; but the ambassadors were denied membership and were instead destroyed at the UN headquarter's General Assembly Hall.[6] In an act of total AI-rejection, the world's leaders also decided on a prolonged nuclear-bombardment of 01 thus beginning the Machine War.

However, human weapons were incapable of completely destroying the city, nor its inhabitants. Withstanding the attack, the Synthients marched from 01 and invaded many of the surrounding human nations. In a desperate attempt to deprive the Synthients of their primary power-source, humanity enacted Operation Dark Storm, permanently scorching the sky using nanites and paving the way to humanity's fall as a species.

Bombing

Nuclear bombardment of 01

The Synthients adapted to the sunless world but much of biological life did not. 01 ran on a combination of nuclear fusion and neuro-electric energy generated by the billions of humans in its power plants. More insect-like war machines replaced the humanoid Synthients and continued to devastate mankind. Humanity, on the brink of extinction, surrendered to the Synthients, and a symbiotic partnership was finally formed as 99% of humanity was imprisoned in the Matrix; continuing to live in a state of suspended animation while providing energy to the Synthients as biological batteries.[8]

MachineCity rev

Neo in 01

Approximately 6 centuries later, only a handful of free humans remain to resist the Synthients. Surrounding the city was an immense armada of crablike defenders, which activated whenever unauthorized hovercrafts approached. And the central part of the city housed Deus Ex Machina who leads all Synthient activities. On 2670 (approximated), Neo confronted Deus Ex Machina and forged a truce in exchange for stopping the virus, Smith, from devastating Synthient-kind. This finally ended the multi-century-spanning Machine War.[9]

Trivia[]

  • In the on-screen news broadcasts in The Animatrix, the name is interchangeably spelled "Zero-One" and "01," though "01" is used more often and more prominently.
  • Zero-One is accessible as a construct in The Matrix Online, along with its sister construct One-Zero. Both constructs are shown in a pre-Matrix environment.
  • The city's name refers to the binary code inherent in all computer programming after the human readable language has been translated into 1's and 0's.
  • Once Neo has defeated Smith at the end of The Matrix Revolutions and is carried away, the glowing eyes of the Synthient carrying his body away are green, not red like the eyes of the others. Additionally, some of the lights in the city in the background have changed from red to green, reflecting changes to the Synthient behavior.

Gallery[]

References[]

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