ABSTRACT
This chapter sets the scene for making a test for human and artificial histories. It argues that a test is possible because most histories are artefacts that can be considered without their makers being present. They can be books, films, or algorithms. It looks back to an early example of an artificial historian—Todai Robot—and explains what made it possible for it to pass a history exam that included an essay question. It highlights our need to focus on the rules or the logic that shape histories and how attention to these may prevent history from being forgotten in the global geopolitics of AI.
