The Deception of Light: Tokyo's Gleam
When the first ray of morning fell upon the heights of Shinjuku, Amir’s eyes opened. The call to prayer was flowing from his mobile phone, but there was a strange peace in his heart. In this small Tokyo apartment, where sunlight filtered through glass windows, a new chapter of Amir’s life was beginning.
While performing ablution, he looked at his face in the mirror. Thirty-two years old, a sparkle of dreams in his eyes, and a smile of confidence on his face. The journey from Pakistan to here hadn’t been easy, but today he was a senior programmer at a renowned tech company in Tokyo. Standing on the prayer mat, when he prostrated, words of gratitude filled his heart.
After prayer, Ayesha was making tea in the kitchen. A simple scarf on her head, morning fatigue on her face, but the light of love in her eyes. “How will today be?” she asked with a smile.
“Very good,” Amir said while lifting Maryam into his arms. This little two-year-old soul had just woken from sleep, her eyes blinking. “A new project is starting today, and I have a special weapon.”
Ayesha raised her eyebrows. “Weapon?”
“AI coding tools,” there was excitement in Amir’s voice. “You know, GitHub Copilot and ChatGPT? These are amazing things. Last week I did work that normally takes three days in just six hours.”
Ayesha placed a cup of tea before him. “That’s very good, but what about your own effort?”
“The effort is still there,” Amir said, taking a sip of tea. “It’s just that now the effort is smarter. Look, the world is changing. Those who don’t accept this change will be left behind.”
Through the room’s window, the view of Tokyo was visible. Tall buildings, gleaming trains, and flowing life on the streets. This city itself was like a machine - organized, fast, and constantly moving forward. Amir felt he was moving at the same pace.
Reaching the office, he opened his laptop. Today’s task was to build a complex authentication system. He opened GitHub Copilot and started writing comments. “Create a secure JWT authentication system with refresh tokens...”
And the magic began. The AI started writing code line by line. Amir was just pressing Tab, and code was being written. In one hour, work was done that previously took a whole day.
“Amir, this is amazing!” his colleague Tanaka said. “How are you working so fast?”
Amir smiled and showed his screen. “With AI’s help. This is the new era’s method.”
At noon when his boss Yamato-san saw his work, he too was impressed. “Sugoi! Amir-san, you’ve written a new definition of productivity. Your salary will increase from next month.”
In the evening on the way home, there was lightness in Amir’s steps. Sitting on the train, he took out his mobile and opened ChatGPT. “What are some creative ways to celebrate a promotion at home with a toddler?”
The AI immediately responded, and Amir made a mental note. He felt as if a wise friend sat in his pocket, ready to answer every question.
Reaching home, he lifted Maryam and tossed her in the air. “Today Abbu got a promotion!”
Ayesha clapped her hands in joy, but there were some questions in her eyes. “These AI tools, you’re relying on them a lot, aren’t you?”
“Not relying, using,” Amir said. “There’s a difference. I’m an engineer, these are just my tools.”
At night after dinner, Amir opened his laptop. The bookshelf that was once full now had only a few books. The remaining space had been taken by Maryam’s toys. “Who reads books now?” he thought. “Everything is online.”
He typed in ChatGPT: “Explain the concept of microservices architecture in simple terms.”
In five minutes he had a detailed answer. No need to open a book, no need to go deep. Everything easy, everything instant, everything at a click.
Ayesha called from the other room. “Aren’t you coming to sleep? It’s past ten.”
“Just five minutes,” Amir said, but those five minutes became thirty minutes. The blue light of the screen was falling on his face, and he kept scrolling continuously.
Outside, Tokyo’s nights were bright, but there was a strange silence in Amir’s room. That silence that occurs before a coming storm. But Amir wasn’t aware of it yet. Right now he only had the intoxication of success, and faith in AI’s power.
The night grew deeper, and Tokyo’s lights went out one by one. But Amir’s screen kept glowing.
