WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 1, Episode 7 of Star Trek: Picard, "Nepenthe," now streaming on CBS All Access.

One of the biggest plot twists in Star Trek: Picard so far has been the traitorous turn by Doctor Agnes Jurati at the end of the series' fifth episode. Initially introduced as a meek, expert on synthetic life and artificial intelligence, Jurati joined Picard's crew aboard La Sirena on an unsanctioned mission to locate the android Soji and her creator Bruce Maddox. After rescuing Maddox, Jurati's mentor and former lover began to recuperate from his injuries in La Sirena's sickbay only for Jurati to tearfully murder him where he lay. The latest episode of Picard revealed the reason for Jurati's betrayal, and it has a surprising potential connection to fellow CBS All Access series Star Trek: Discovery.

In the prologue to Picard's seventh episode, set before Jurati joined the crew, the scientist is seen meeting with Starfleet Commodore Oh, a Vulcan who was revealed earlier in the series to secretly be a high-ranking member of the Romulan Star Empire's clandestine organization the Zhat Vash. An even more sinister extension of the Romulan secret police, the Tal Shiar, the Zhat Vash are dedicated to the eradication of all artificial intelligence and synthetic life in the galaxy, which is the reason neither had existed within the the Romulan Empire before its implosion following the destruction of Romulus as the result of a devastating supernova.

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Oh joined her mind with Kurati's through a Vulcan mind meld to reveal an apocalyptic vision of the galaxy subjugated by sentient machines should synthetic life be allowed to proliferate. This mirrored an earlier flashback prologue in which rogue synthetic beings turned Starfleet's planetary defense system on Mars, resulting in the deaths of thousands and leading to the Federation banning the existence and research of synthetic life. More interestingly, it mirrored Spock's character arc during Discovery Season 2 when his own apocalyptic visions made him lose his signature Vulcan composure.

Ethan Peck Speck Star Trek Discovery feature

Spock's visions, which gave the Vulcan science officer nightmares, were related to a series of mysterious red signals leading to a time traveler from the distant future known as Red Angel. Spock's connection to Red Angel was eventually revealed through a mind meld: Red Angel had traveled back in time on a mission to prevent Starfleet's artificial intelligence program, Control, from gaining vital information on a top-secret device known as the Sphere. In Red Angel's future, Control had used the Sphere to go on a rampage to eradicate the galaxy of all organic, sentient life, bringing about its own technological apocalypse .

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With the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery now in the far-future themselves, centuries beyond the events of Picard, it is unknown if they will encounter the effects of continued artificial intelligence and synthetic life from the latter series' events. However, the shared Vulcan visions of an apocalypse brought about by rogue artificial intelligence suggests that the Romulans may be justified in their animosity towards A.I. and synthetics. On the other hand, the Zhat Vash has already displayed a propensity for manipulation through its initial approach to Soji, so it's possible that Oh's mind meld could have implanted a false vision into Jurati's psyche to help turn her against Maddox and the others.

Regardless, it is interesting that both of the new Star Trek series on CBS All Access focus on rogue artificial intelligence as an overarching, apocalyptic threat. While Spock and the crews of the Enterprise and Discovery had ostensibly thwarted Control's plans over a century before the events of Picard, the attack on Mars and Romulans' fears of artificial intelligence bringing about Armageddon has provided the franchise with its own Terminator-style twist on sentient machines turning against their creators. And with Picard leading his new crew to stop the Zhat Vash, the venerable admiral may be helping artificial intelligence come back in the Star Trek Universe in a big way.

Star Trek: Picard stars Patrick Stewart, Alison Pill, Michelle Hurd, Evan Evagora, Isa Briones, Santiago Cabrera and Harry Treadaway. A new episode arrives each Thursday on CBS All Access.

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