A cake in the shape of the number 9 sits next to a stack of circuit boards in the shape of the letter K. The circuits have a switch on the top, a white cable connected to them and are marked ‘Restart’

Parties. Work parties. ‘Gatherings’. Team affirmation events. They’re always awkward. Stilted. Strained. A genuine nightmare — especially if you’re a robot. But you still have to be there, time after time … after time. Don’t you?

#scifi by Robert Blasiak www.nature.com/articles/d41...

So excited for this one to be out in the world and couldn't be happier with how it turned out! Check out "Ozymandias Undead" when you get a chance as well as the other phenomenal scifi from Nature Futures!!

A crumbling, humanoid statue composed of human skulls flexes its arms under a stormy sky

I have mastered technology and now it bends to my will. I have sidestepped the cold hand of death and plotted a new course for humanity. This is destiny. This is life everlasting. And there’s only one way this can end…

#scifi by @writerbryce.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A small figure lifts a cube from a glowing heart amid a landscape of brains

Feel like you’ve forgotten something important? Want to revisit the happy memories of your childhood? Need to bring those blissful times back into focus? Then try MnemoMist — we restore the memories you didn’t know you still had!

#scifi by Tomias Keno www.nature.com/articles/d41...

I have a sci-fi story in @naturefutures.bsky.social! On the baby you always wanted…or not

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A person peers over the edge of a long circular shaft that stretches down away from them towards a glowing white light

This slum might seem a strange place to hunt for a baby, but prospective parents are prepared to pay for a child with the right genes. We just have to find them. But what we offer in return — well, it’s life changing. Truly.

#scifi by @dango-ramen.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Streams of binary code in a network converge on a small rock

It’s the latest model and it’s so good. It takes care of every domestic task, leaving us free to do what matters. We simply couldn’t run the retreat without it. And yes, it’s totally safe. Tried and tested. Look, here it comes now…

#scifi by @suhaja.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Two silhouetted figures face each other, one holds a green apple, the other has a computer network pattern in its head

They said it was a simple switch in commercial model — to a kind of barter system. We help the system learn more about us and the world, and in return we get our groceries. Simple. No cash. No fuss. No reason to worry.

Is there…?

#scifi by Daniel Roop www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A smiling human face sculpted in silver and wearing a visor over its eyes

They stood face to face. The human and the robot. Each sure of their worth and their place in the world. Each ready to defend their status. The question was, which one was right?

#scifi by Zhouhe Zhang & Haochen Hua www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Plastic-eating fungus caused doomsday[2][3] This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the End of Plastic (2029) article, about the Tremella purgare fungus, released into the Gulf of Mexico following the TransAm War Oil Spill, and …

Originally said this would happen in Plastic Eating Fungus Caused Doomsday [2][3] in @naturefutures.bsky.social (reprint in @flashfictiononline.bsky.social). It was in Nature, so it must be true.

www.flashfictiononline.com/article/plas...

A silver human figure raises its hands; spanning out from it on both sides are multiple similar silver figures arms outstretched

It had carried these minds for what seemed like forever. So long, it was hard to remember where it stopped and they began. But now it was time to relinquish the burden and become something new. Something more. Something singular.

#scifi by Preston Grassmann www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A female figure sits silhouetted in front of a glowing light in a hemispherical shelter amid jungle foliage in which large eggs nestle

The planet had long been an outpost, and now it was winding down. The research undertaken slowly being shut down. But there was one question that still needed an answer: where do the moa go at night?

#scifi by @marksbailen.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Glowing white light and large transparent bubbles leak from the lid of a large black chest that sits in what looks like a cellar

Ads within ads. Their investors loved the idea. Will love it. Will have loved it. It gets complicated.

#scifi by @timothyquinn.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The phrase ‘Update available Y/N’ is rendered in space with the letters in varying states of repair — some open wireframes, some blurry, some more fully formed and linked by geometric shapes

This was home. At least, it seemed like home. It looked like the same apartment but also … it didn’t. It had changed. So had the street outside. Just a bit. But enough. What exactly had that last update done?

#scifi by Lucien R. Starchild www.nature.com/articles/d41...

So excited my story "18,000,000 Minutes" is out today in @naturefutures.bsky.social! Check it out!

A human figure rendered as a wireframe made of the repeated number ‘1’ holds its head in its hands

Thank you for choosing the Remembrance Machine — we truly value your custom. We not take some time to review your usage? To reconnect with the memories you’ve enjoyed most. Check out your highlights — and remember to remember!!

#scifi by Spencer Nitkey www.nature.com/articles/d41...

So that's it: @naturefutures.bsky.social published my science fiction story. I bet that my versions of other branches of the Universe's wavefunction are dying of envy! Thanks, Nature!

The word ‘GO’ is picked out from glowing dots in the sky

The stars are not where they should be. They are drifting from their positions. This is not a measurement error. This is not an anomaly. This is deliberate. Considered. This question is why? And what does it mean?

#scifi by @celsoguarei.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

"And so Derek sold the aliens as a service. He didn’t tell anyone that the secret sauce was godlike beings from beyond the stars, who were mere moments away from us by radio.

In retrospect, perhaps we should have all been a bit more concerned about that."

– "Freemium", @naturefutures.bsky.social

The words ‘Subsector XZ-74’ are rendered in blurring and cracking 3D type as they get sucked towards black hole at the centre of the space in which they are floating

The stars were dimming. Just in one subsector, but they were dimming nonetheless, which could only mean trouble. But the challenge was convincing those in charge they needed to act. If only there was a way to make the news accessible…

#scifi by Chao Liu www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A full cup of coffee sits on a table with lots of empty pink mugs, each of which is decorated with linear scale from a timer and a lot of random numbers

This is a sanctuary. A place to work and learn free from the constraints of the day. Where time literally stands still while the world goes by. Where you can gain more hours, days, weeks. But is more time ever really enough?

#scifi by Sara E. Pour www.nature.com/articles/d41...

An old, damaged, robotic hand signals ‘stop’ to a human hand holding an electronic device with a large cross on it

She had waited for so long. Alone. Ravaged by time and the acid raining from the skies. She had performed her function. She had waited. And she had guarded. But now the waiting was over. It was time to act.

#scifi by João Guilherme Bochnia Küster www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A fiery protoplanet appears to be sucking other worlds, including some that are in boxes, towards a hole that has opened up in its side

Congratulations! You are now the proud owner of a flat-pack planet. Your order is being prepared and will be with you soon. Meanwhile, if you have any questions or need help setting up your planet, why not read our handy guide?

#scifi by @arthurmanners.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

I have my first story in Nature Futures, which is available now!

A multi-armed robot stands amid wooden panels and bricks, all of which are surrounded by timber frames and stone columns

There was no way round it, things were a mess. The Cataclysm hadn’t been kind to buildings, and the rubble they’d become needed clearing. But although the robots were doing a good job, they were also getting ideas of their own…

#scifi by @historyneverwas.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41...

My second story in Futures! So proud 🥳

Brightly coloured, glowing tentacles flail in the darkness while clutching empty glass tumblers

There had been better days. Days away from this planet. When life was simpler and the what he was hadn’t mattered. But now, no one seemed to care that all he wanted was to put down some roots and enjoy being.

#scifi by Nathalie Béchon www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A small vial with glowing bands of light around it sits on a pillow in a spaceship

Space exploration is hazardous. It is, by definition, all about the unexpected. That means you will face difficulties you can’t anticipate. And things will go wrong. Badly. The secret is knowing what to do next.

#scifi by Anna Kahn www.nature.com/articles/d41...

A planet, seemingly built of bricks with a conical slate roof and chimney, floats in space

Sometimes you just need somewhere to stop. To rest and recharge. This world is one such place, and you can meet all kinds of species as they pass through. But for the human race, this world was a place to settle — if they could.

#scifi by M. J. Pettit www.nature.com/articles/d41...

The Venus project

The thing about Mars is it totally hogs the headlines. Everyone just, well, sees red. Mission to Mars. Life on Mars. Even go to live on Mars. But other planets are available. Maybe now it’s time to show Venus some love…

#scifi by Monti Sturzaker