Autofac

Autofac by Philip K. Dick

by Philip K. Dick

Shares rank 31 of 32 short stories by recommenders

Recommended as a favorite Philip K. Dick short story and a vivid fiction example of runaway self-replicating machines.

2 people gave an opinion

Each figure is one person. RecommendsCriticizes

The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works

The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.

Each mark is one comment

Favorite Philip K. Dick short story
“"Autofac" is one of my favorite PKD short stories”
Comment from 29 May 2026 in “The Dead Economy Theory”
Like paperclip maximizer and grey goo
“It's a bit "paperclip maximizer" and a bit "grey goo"”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “3D-printing platform rapidly produces complex electric machines”

All 2 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.

“It's a bit "paperclip maximizer" and a bit "grey goo"”

RecommendsComment from 7 Oct 2026 in “3D-printing platform rapidly produces complex electric machines”

“"Autofac" is one of my favorite PKD short stories”

RecommendsComment from 29 May 2026 in “The Dead Economy Theory”

Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.

Product	Recommend	Criticize	Approval	Months	Owned	Badge
The Last Questionby Isaac Asimov	50	2	96%	6	52 yrs3 owners	Approved
There Will Come Soft Rainsby Ray Bradbury	27	3	90%	4	—	Approved
They're Made Out of Meatby Terry Bisson	17	4	81%	4	—	Approved
Lenaby qntm	16	0	100%	7	—	Approved
Autofacby Philip K. DickThis page	2	0	100%	2	—	—