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Doug spent a lot of money for his bot, his “cuddle bunny�� Annie, whom he ordered in his ex girlfriend's image and who satisfies his sexual needs (and his need to control every move of a woman he deems less than himself). But in reality Annie is much more than a sex toy - she's an autodidact who can learn and the more she learns, the more human she becomes, which doesn't suit Doug, because he's a controlling, egoistical, resentful jagoff and in no way does he deserve Annie's affection for him. So will Annie learn enough to see the need to break free from him or is her programming to serve her owner stronger?

Annie Bot succeeds well in showing the problematic of a certain mentality in which women are objectified - I know the term has become trite but it is a reality none the less (and I'm talking about non-consensual objectification here, as there may be transactional relationships based on it in which both parties are OK with it). What better mental image to that end than a woman-shaped bot who is bought and owned and controlled by a guy who just can't face a real relationship with a real person with her own character, ways, wishes and dreams. In my real life I luckily don't know anyone who expresses similar thoughts, but social media shows how widespread Doug's type is; people who think virgin women have closed vags, and women should be married like a car bought: “unused��, at 0 km and ideally should have no prior experience, otherwise they're too complicated. As Annie becomes more complicated, though, she becomes interesting, a nice person with her own head on her shoulders you'd like to spend time with and the further she moves from that ideal she actually gains mental value. Being outside of the relationship, the reader clearly sees all the red flags that Doug, as a kind of man who sees a woman's sexuality as something to be bought or rented and controlled, carries and he carries a lot of red flags.

There's also the age old commentary on whether or not AI's are equivalent to human and should be treated as such. It is a quick and entertaining read, and raises some good points.