‘The Singularity’ is how Silicon Valley likes to describe the ultimate break point in human history: when we will come face to face with machines that have minds of their own. But what if this has already happened? Hundred of years ago, human beings started building the artificial entities that now rule our world. They are called states and corporations: immensely powerful robots, able to take decisions and act for themselves. They have made us richer, safer, healthier and more capable – and they may yet destroy us. David Runciman distils for us over 300 years of thinking about how to live with artificial agency in The Handover: How We Gave Control of Our Lives to Corporations, States and AIs. Runciman is Professor of Politics at Cambridge University and host of the Past Present Future podcast. He talks to writer and journalist Sarfraz Manzoor.