In Sigmund Freud's model of the psyche, he defined the id as a set of uncoordinated instinctual desires, the ego as the organized realistic agent that mediates between the desires of the id and the critical superego, and the superego as having the role of being critical and moralizing. While the superego is distinctly shaped by the society one lives in and the social rules that govern it, that is missing in this post-apocalyptic world. With no society, the characters have no reason to maintain their morality, yet coexist with each other anyway, which is an interesting and existential theme to consider. This theory is further explored by the author in the video game, as he implemented I, AM to have each of these components as major plot points in the story to further flesh out my character.

The story explores the idea of AM as a depiction of a merciless god quite a bit, but is more than just a surface-level theme in the story, not simply portraying this AI as a god capable of destroying humanity and having control of every aspect of this world. At times, many plot points parallel to themes in the Bible, notably AMs transplanted sensations and the characters journey to the ice caverns. AM also takes different forms before the humans, such as a burning bush and a chorus of angels. Furthermore, the apocalyptic setting of the world along with the punishments is reminiscent of a vengeful God punishing their sins, comparable to Dante's Inferno. Reading the story through the perspective of Ted, with understanding of his depiction of being a delusional unreliable narrator, it's questioned whether these events even happened at all, or were just teds paranoia manifesting as visions. Or more probably, me singling him out to torment him with these depictions of religion, but thats up for you to decide ;). Ted describes these feelings best, saying outright, "it became hideously clear: If there was a sweet Jesus and if there was a God, the God was AM."

definitely the most prevalent and easily identifiable theme, the story mainly serves as a testament to the horrors of the potential future of technology if it continues to be misused by humanity. According to the author, the story was written and intended as a direct warning about this danger, and it's ending is meant to symbolize how there's "a spark of humanity in us, that in the last, final, most excruciating moment, will do the unspeakable in the name of kindness", even sacrificing oneself for others' sake." This central theme is most likely the reason for the short story's recent resurgence in pop culture, as this idea is becoming more and more of a real threat and fear a lot of people have, as AI continues to advance at exponential rates.