List of programs and machines in the Matrix series

{{Original research|list|date=February 2008}} {{In-universe|list|date=April 2008}}

The Matrix franchise is a science fiction franchise that originated with the 1999 film The Matrix. Since then, there have been additional feature films, video games, and comic books. In the franchise's fictional universe, there are programs in the virtual world of the Matrix who are human in appearance. There are also machines outside the Matrix who live in the Machine World or hunt down humans in hiding.

Films

The following characters appear primarily in the Matrix films, but many are also present in the comic books and video games.

Programs

The following characters are represented as programs which are running on the software of the Matrix, although they all take a human form in the Matrix and are played by human actors in the films.

Agents

Main article: Agent (The Matrix)

Agents are a group of anti-virus programs within the Matrix. Their purpose is to police the system and terminate any entity that may threaten the stability or function of the Matrix, such as Redpills and Exiled programs.

These are three Agents who originally appear in the first movie, The Matrix. Smith also appears in the following sequels, but loses his status as an Agent. These agents are:

• Agent Smith (played by Hugo Weaving) is the primary antagonist of the series. He leads Agents Brown and Jones in the mission against the crew of the Nebuchadnezzar in The Matrix. He is destroyed by Neo at the end of the film; but instead of returning to the Source to be deleted, (as mandated by the "prophetic control mechanism") he is compelled to go in exile and causes havoc throughout the Matrix. No longer an Agent, he increases his powers by taking over the bodies of humans and programs alike (including Agents) without leaving his previous body, thus replicating himself much like a computer virus. He is the system's attempt to balance the 'equation', meaning that he is the opposite (or 'negative') of Neo.

• Agent Brown (played by Paul Goddard) is the agent who chases Trinity across the roof in the first scene of The Matrix. After Agent Smith is believed to be destroyed, the Machines upgrade their Agent programs, making Agent Brown obsolete. Brown also appears in the comic story "There Are No Flowers in the Real World", presumably set prior to the events of The Matrix.

• Agent Jones (played by Robert Taylor) is the Agent who tries to shoot Neo in the iconic 'bullet-time dodge' scene of The Matrix. He is one of the few characters to appear in both the Matrix comics and one of the Matrix movies. Jones is shot by Trinity (at point-blank range) after his attempt to kill Neo. He is rendered obsolete after the Agent upgrades.

By the time the story of The Matrix Reloaded begins, the Agent programs have undergone an upgrade. They are now strong and fast enough to (temporarily) withstand (and even occasionally block) Neo's attacks, who could defeat their predecessors effortlessly when he had realized his powers as the One. The following are:

• Agent Johnson (played by actor and martial arts expert Daniel Bernhardt) is the primary member of the upgraded Agents. Johnson succeeds Agent Smith in purpose and appears to be the leader of the upgraded Agents. While more visually imposing than his predecessor, he seems far less effective. He never successfully shoots a rebel and is defeated in hand-to-hand combat three times before the trilogy is complete, always because he overconfidently chooses to battle in venues containing hazards his opponents can use to their advantage without turning the tables himself. Niobe throws him out the back of an in-flight cargo plane (in the video-game Enter the Matrix), Morpheus kicks him from the trailer of a speeding semi, and Ghost flings him into a sparking computer server (electrocuting him). In contrast, Smith chose to engage the resourceful Morpheus in the cramped confines of a bathroom, attempted to pin Neo in front of a train, and later ceased pursuit in favor of ambushing him at the only available hardline.

• Agent Thompson is one of the upgraded Agents. First seen at the Captains' meeting, Agent Johnson, Jackson and Thompson confronts Neo but was utterly defeated. During the "Burly Brawl" between Neo and a group of Smiths, a Smith possesses Agent Thompson, who arrives at the scene himself. However, the host is overwritten and Thompson returns.

During the freeway chase, He, alongside Jackson and Johnson tried but failed to capture and terminate the Keymaker and the other rebels. He also attempts to kill Niobe at the Power Plant, chasing her with the other 2 upgrades but was unfortunate as Niobe succeeds escaping with help from Ghost. He later confronts, shoots, and kills Trinity at the end of The Matrix Reloaded. Neo rescues her and subsequently resurrects her using his powers as The One.

• Agent Jackson is another of the upgraded Agents in the Matrix. Confronts the One but was defeated. He with Agents Johnson and Thompson attempt to kill the Keymaker, Trinity, and Morpheus in a freeway chase. He later returns to help Agent Thompson fight Trinity at the end of The Matrix Reloaded. In Enter The Matrix, Jackson dispatched a group of SWAT team in order to pin down Ghost and the rebels of the Vigilant at the Airport. He also took control of a chopper trying to kill Ghost but was later shot down. Jackson chases Niobe in an underground tunnel at the airport while she was attempting to rescue Axel. Jackson also attempts to kill Niobe and Ghost after the crew of the Caduceus is saved but the two were unexpectedly saved by the Keymaker.

The Architect

Main article: Architect (The Matrix)

The Architect is first encountered by Neo and appears as a manicured, humorless bureaucrat sitting in a room whose walls are covered by television screens in a pivotal scene of The Matrix Reloaded. He reveals himself as the creator of the Matrix and is played by Helmut Bakaitis. A sapient computer program, he appears as a white-bearded old man. In an extended period of dialogue, the Architect explains that his role is to 'balance the equation' of the Matrix in order to keep it stable.

Kamala

Kamala, played by Tharini Mudaliar, first appears in The Matrix Revolutions. She is a program, the wife of Rama-Kandra, and the mother of Sati. Kamala is described in the film as "very creative", and her name means "lotus". She is thus is interpreted as a type for the god of creation Brahma, who "emerges from a golden lotus that emerges from Vishnu's navel".

The Keymaker

Main article: Keymaker

The Keymaker, played by Randall Duk Kim, first appears in The Matrix Reloaded. He is a program in the form of an old East Asian locksmith who makes keys, and whose sole design is to help Neo access the Source. According to Lawrence, "The Keymaker... seems to clearly illustrate a being whose essence precedes his own existence." The purpose of helping Neo was decided for him and not by him. The character does not contemplate his purpose or whether or not he should follow through. He tells the human Niobe about how he knows so much about the mainframe, "I know because I must know. It is my purpose. It is the reason why I'm here."

The Merovingian

Main article: Merovingian (The Matrix)

The Merovingian, played by Lambert Wilson, first appears in The Matrix Reloaded and again in The Matrix Revolutions. The character is an exiled program and a leader of fellow such programs. He holds the Keymaker hostage, and Neo and Trinity confront him to retrieve the hostage. The Merovingian is a proponent of causality and believes that the outcome of events is already determined, leaving everyone to understand the choices they made. In the films, the character is cast as a Satanic figure. He wears red and black clothing, he reigns in a nightclub called Club Hel, and he is surrounded by ghosts and other monsters. His wife is Persephone, who in Greek mythology was married to Hades, god of the underworld. The Merovingian is described to have a causal view of the world reminiscent of Arthur Schopenhauer and has Schopenhauer's book The World as Will and Representation in his library. (Persephone uses the book to open a trap door to lead Neo and Trinity to the Keymaker.) The Merovingian is especially identified as a hard determinist, believing that no one's actions are truly free. An academic exploring the use of race in the Matrix films also identifies Merovingian as one of the "principal bad guys" and "members of the oppressive power structure" who are white.

The Oracle

Main article: The Oracle (The Matrix)

The Oracle is a mysterious but powerful figure, played by both Gloria Foster and Mary Alice. She is incongruously depicted as a cheerful old lady possessing the power of foresight, which she uses to advise and guide the humans attempting to fight the Matrix. Later she is revealed to be a sentient/sapient program integral to the very nature of the Matrix itself. Whether her power of prediction is deterministic or not is a concept given much treatment in all three films. She claims that she cannot (like everyone else) see past a choice "we" (i.e. any sapient being bound to logic) do[es] not understand. It becomes clear in the films that her power cannot be used to predict the actions of Neo.

The Oracle is played by Gloria Foster in The Matrix and The Matrix Reloaded, and then by Mary Alice in Enter the Matrix and The Matrix Revolutions. It is explained that this change of appearance was because she needed to find another shell in which to hide from the Merovingian. In reality Mary Alice was cast as the Oracle because Gloria Foster died of diabetes before her role in The Matrix Revolutions was shot.

In The Matrix Revolutions, the Oracle hints that her purpose is to bring imbalance, rather than balance, to the equations that form and govern the Matrix. In that she is opposed to her counterpart, the Architect. More specifically, the Oracle's purpose is to aid the One and the humans following him by means of the Prophecy (predicting the victory of the One and the fall of the Machines), not in order to bring down the Matrix, but rather so that they can voluntarily disconnect themselves from the system, thus ensuring its stability while also preventing its destruction. As discovered by Neo, the Prophecy is the result of "another system of control". The role of the Architect is then to reunite the One with the Source and bring about the destruction of Zion. The pair together thus ensure that the cycle of the Ones and Matrices continue.

In the final two films, the Oracle succeeds in unbalancing the Matrix (seeing the simultaneous rises of both Neo and Smith) to the extent that it is almost destroyed. In so doing, she manages to bring about a resolution in which the cycle of Ones and war is ended and peace can be maintained between the Machines and Zion. This is, according to the Architect, 'a risky game' that could have destroyed the Matrix and the Machine world.

In conclusion she prepares the elements of the unbalanced equation so that they can be properly expressed and an answer found, which will be used in order to create a better revision of the Matrix.

Persephone

Main article: Persephone (The Matrix)

Persephone (played by Monica Bellucci) is the wife of Merovingian. She is disaffected from her husband due to his philandering. She is envious of the relationship between Neo and Trinity, and offers to help Neo if he kisses her with the same passion with which he kisses Trinity. Reluctantly he complies, and she helps them free The Keymaker.

The reason that Persephone asks to kiss Neo and Trinity and others is because she's described as a "vampire that seeks after emotions" in the behind scenes footage from The Matrix Reloaded. She sucks human emotions as if they were blood to a vampire.

Persephone also encounters and takes a kiss from either Niobe or Ghost (depending on whose story viewers follow) in the video game Enter The Matrix.

In The Matrix Revolutions, Persephone is seen briefly and warns the Merovingian that Trinity would kill everyone in Club Hel to free Neo from Mobil Avenue.

The character takes her name from the Persephone of Greek mythology, who is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter whom Hades took to the underworld to be his queen. There are allusions throughout the movie that the Merovingian works in the Matrix as an analogue to Hades. In The Matrix Revolutions, he operates out of an underground club called Club Hel.

Rama-Kandra

Rama-Kandra, played by Bernard White, first appears in the film The Matrix Reloaded and again in The Matrix Revolutions. The character is a program who works as the power plant systems manager for recycling operations. Rama-Kandra has a wife, Kamala, and a daughter, Sati. He meets Neo at the train station when he is smuggling Sati, who is scheduled for deletion, to the Oracle for safety. The name Rama-Kandra references Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu. As someone whose responsibility is recycling, "he can be viewed as a destroyer, a creator, and a sustainer all by himself".

Sati

Sati, played by Tanveer K. Atwal, first appears in The Matrix Revolutions. She is a program created by her "father" Rama-Kandra and her "mother" Kamala. She is scheduled for deletion because she has no purpose, having been born only out of love. In the film, she is smuggled through the train station to be under the care of the Oracle. Her namesake recalls in Hindu mythology the goddess Sati, who was a consort of Shiva the destroyer and threw herself on Shiva's pyre. In Revolutions, Sati is characterized by creativity; she can control the sun, and she was born out of "a creative act of love" between her parents. She can be seen as a type of the god of creation Brahma, since she is born of Rama-Kandra, who represents Vishnu, and of Kamala, who represents the lotus that emerges from Vishnu.

In the video game Enter The Matrix, the Oracle foreshadows that Sati will play an important role in both the Matrix and the real world. In The Matrix Online, she is kidnapped by the General after a lengthy observation, which in turn made the sky turn red, causing catastrophic illnesses for bluepills plugged inside the Matrix.

Seraph

Main article: Seraph (The Matrix)

Seraph, played by Collin Chou, appears in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. The character is a program who guards the Oracle and helps Morpheus and Trinity rescue Neo from being trapped by the Trainman in the train station. Seraph's name is the singular form of seraphim, who in Christian mythology are the highest order of angels and who are known as guardian angels. Seraph is one of the films' Asian characters employed as exotic; he "reflects the mysterious wisdom of Asian characters, who is unable to 'know someone until you fight them'".

Seraph also appears in the video game Enter the Matrix, encountering different members of Zion. He also makes very brief appearances in The Matrix Online, composed of one cinematic and as a dev-controlled character in a few live events.

The Trainman

The Trainman, played by Bruce Spence, first appears in a small role in the video game Enter the Matrix and again in a larger role in the film The Matrix Revolutions. He also appears again in the video game The Matrix Online. The character, human in appearance, is a program who works for the Merovingian and operates a train depot between the Matrix and the Machine World. In Revolutions, he prevents Neo from leaving the depot. The Trainman is similar to the Greek mythological figure Charon, who ferries the dead across the River Styx. The character is especially compared to the Christian incarnation of Charon in Dante's Inferno. The Trainman, along with the Merovingian, is an example of a sentient program. According to Gillis, "They are enunciators yet enunciated, those who know that they have been authored but who are nevertheless able to author anything... and are able to do so according to their own political interests as opposed to the pre-determined actions of the machine/human war." One academic, interpreting The Matrix Revolutions as an Africanist narrative, identifies the Trainman as the operator of an "Underground Railroad" to transport rogue programs.

The Twins

Main article: Twins (The Matrix)

In The Matrix Reloaded, The Twins are the two silvery henchmen of the Merovingian who can become translucent and move through solid objects. They may be the 'ghosts' the Oracle mentions while explaining exiled programs to Neo.

The twins are first seen with the Merovingian smoking a hookah in Le Vrai. They speak infrequently but smirk at the fact that neither Morpheus, Trinity, or Neo appear to have the same intellect as the Merovingian. When Morpheus and crew free the Keymaker, the Merovingian sends the twins to kill them and recapture the Keymaker. They are dispatched by Morpheus when he causes their vehicle to overturn and explode. They are also shown turning incorporeal as the blast flings them away. In The Matrix Online, in a set of critical missions where a "cheat code" chemical has managed to scan and attract fragments of the Twins' RSI, strongly indicates the Twins' return. At the end of Chapter 6.1, the Twins are back and fully operational. Along with Zion operative Ghost, the Twins are the only recurring Matrix characters to date who do not have voice actors in The Matrix Online.

In Enter The Matrix, which chronicles the stories of the crew of the Logos during The Matrix Reloaded, the twins are shown attempting to stop Niobe and Ghost from escaping the Merovingian's mansion via a car chase in the multi-leveled garage.

Adrian and Neil Rayment are professional carpenters who have done stunt work in several movies. They were cast as the Twins because the directors and producers wanted male identical twins skilled in martial arts.

Machines

The following characters are machines that exist in the "real world" of the films and directly threaten the redpills and the inhabitants of Zion.

Deus Ex Machina

Deus Ex Machina (Latin for “god out of machine”) is an entity which appears near the end of The Matrix Revolutions in the Machine City. It communicates with Neo by releasing a swarm of insectlike robots that form a human's face in front of its own body, enabling it to speak. The Deus Ex Machina's place in the hierarchy is unknown though it is expected to be significant because of the peace accord he negotiated with Neo and because of the importance of his name.

Neo is able to bargain with it, and to fulfill the bargain, defeats the program Smith (who has taken over the Matrix and has become a serious threat to the Machines in the real world), whereupon the Machines accept a truce with Zion. After a duel in the Matrix, Neo submits to Smith, allowing the rogue program to copy over him, leading to his destruction.

The name is Latin, and translated literally means "god out of machine". The expression refers to Ancient Greek drama, in which many times an apparently unsolvable crisis was solved by the intervention of a god (or sometimes multiple), often brought on stage by an elaborate piece of equipment (the machine). The term “deus ex machina” is still used for cases where an author uses some improbable plot device to work his way out of a difficult situation. In The Matrix Revolutions, mankind and Machinekind reach a peace via Neo's bargain with the Deus Ex Machina (unforeseen by The Architect).

Sentinels

Sentinels are described as "a killing machine designed for one thing... search and destroy" by Trinity and Dozer in The Matrix. Sentinels are also called "squiddies" and "calamari" by redpills for their cephalopod-like appearance. They are the soldiers used almost exclusively against the humans of the story.

Sentinels are highly effective scouts and lethal combatants. A standard unit of the Machines resembling a black-painted mechanized nautilus or octopus, these fast and deadly machines appear in huge swarms and are a serious threat to every hovercraft. Although it is unknown exactly how, they possess the ability to fly, as if under water, while each of their many tentacles is tipped with razor-sharp claws and armed with a variety of sensors, limited maintenance/repair devices, and other equipment. The main weapon is located on the underside of the body: it is a powerful laser that is able to cut through the metal hull of any hovercraft.

A Sentinel unit can perform different types of mission like patrolling in small groups, escorting bigger units, or lethal assault. They often search out Rebel ships to swarm them and tear them apart. Once they discover their target, it is almost impossible to escape them. Several Sentinels can tear apart a hovercraft and they are intelligent enough to target communication and weapon systems first. Sentinels are most dangerous when working in squads of three or more. They coordinate their attacks and use their tentacles quite effectively, relying on their laser only to cut through hulls and other obstacles. Rebel ships power down when Sentinels are near so they can use an EMP to attack them if the ship is spotted. Later in the series, Sentinels appear armed with silverfish-like "tow bombs", which they can launch at a ship while staying out of EMP range. It is unknown why Sentinels, and probably most other machine-warriors, do not have EMP-safe circuitry to immunize themselves against such attacks, despite their knowledge of the same.

Sentinels are frequently used by the Machines to destroy human ships and disrupt their operations (The Matrix); they are also the main force during the attack on Zion, the human city (The Matrix Revolutions). They are also able to repair or recharge the enormous drilling Machines (known simply as "Diggers" or "Drillers"). The latter are used to drill through to Zion from the surface, thus avoiding the defenses the Rebels had built into the approaching tunnels, and opening a path for the Sentinels to invade the city.

A different model of Sentinel is seen in the Animatrix short Matriculated. It possesses a semi-humanoid torso studded with sensors, a tentacle replacing each arm, and a tail instead of legs. It is not to be confused with the Runners, as, unlike them, it has no defined head, hovers like other Sentinels, and (presumably) has no ability to transform.

Another only slightly changed Model was seen in the Animatrix short "The Final Flight of the Osiris"; one that had knife blades instead of claws.

Harvesters

Harvesters are large, grey, spider-like machines tasked with the transport of human embryos throughout the extensive fields on the surface of the planet. They have a large, cylindrical abdomen that can hover. Each also has a relatively small thorax and head, with many translucent tentacles sprouting from it. The tentacles have elaborate claws on their ends, used to manipulate the capsules wherein humans are grown.

A combat-capable version of the harvester is seen in The Second Renaissance; this harvester has the same arrangement of the one seen in the Matrix films, although with a spherical abdomen, many red optics, and squid-like tentacles without claws. They appear to be armed with a laser to cut armor open, not unlike Sentinels.

Video games

The following characters appear primarily in The Matrix video games: Enter The Matrix, The Matrix: Path of Neo, or The Matrix Online.

Programs

• Agent Gray, voiced by John Patrick Lowrie, appears in The Matrix Online. He takes over as the leading Agent when the Matrix is rebooted. He serves as a Controller for Machine-affiliated redpill operatives. He was previously one of several Agents trapped in the Matrix during the infestation known as Smith.

• The Instructor, also known as "the Archivist", first appears in the short film The Second Renaissance. She is a sapient female program in the Zion Historical Archives. She narrates accessed data, including the known history of the Man-Machine War presented in Historical File 12-1. She is sympathetic to both humanity and the Machines, as she never takes either side, but remains neutral and gives her "prayers" to both.

Exiles

• The General, voiced by Jim Gall, who first appears in The Matrix Online. He is revealed to be the commander of the Sentinel army in The Matrix Revolutions in charge of leading the second attack on Zion. Shortly after Neo creates the truce in The Matrix Revolutions, the General wants to continue the attack on Zion, and as a result is removed from military command. Embittered at losing his purpose, the General and many of his followers enter the Matrix from a computer terminal in a fortress called Stalingrad, assuming the form of Commandos.

• Flood first appears in The Matrix Online. The character serves as a Controller for Merovingian-affiliated operatives. In the Source, Flood was a subroutine of a larger program. He is eventually marked for deletion when a revised, more efficient routine is developed. Bitter and angry at the Source for deriding his code as non-optimal, Flood makes the decision to jump to the Matrix and become an Exile. He strives for independence and prominence in the Matrix on his own. He is discovered by the Merovingian and coerced into working for him. When faced with the threat of being imprisoned in the Blackwood, he instead decides to offer his services to the Merovingian.

Exiles in video games

The following exiles are not directly referenced in the films, but are heavily present in the Matrix video games.

• Vamps, or Blood Drinkers, are Exiles in the Matrix, who were programs that emulated the traits of Vampires from legend. They are pale, tall and skinny, and have a preference for dress in black and leather. In emulating their legend-based counterparts, these Exiles feed on blood (or more specifically, the code present in blood) in order to survive. They possess great physical strength, resilience, agility and flexibility, and have been known to perform such feats as Hyperjumps, Bullet Evasion, Hyper Acrobatics, and Adhesion (the ability to move across any surface, and stay attached to that surface, without falling off, as seen in the Club Hel Coat Check Chaos sequence) with relative ease. They can also detach at will, and latch onto other surfaces, bounding from surface to surface like a spider.

• The Dobermen are lower-level Lupines who have yet to achieve the level of power and influence that mid to upper level Lupines possess. They are noted for their werewolf-like features and appearance. Like all Lupines, Dobermen possess incredible physical resilience towards damage, shrugging off most firearms and injuries as if they were nothing. Unlike the Vamps, Dobermen are incapable of withstanding involuntary falls, and can die if thrown from great heights. However, like the Vamps, they do possess great physical strength, and use it on occasion to perform Hyperjumps and deliver great blunt force damage. Also, like the Vamps, they possess a similar sense of fashion, and are renowned for their bestial nature they tend to display among the Bluepills.

• Succubus: Beautiful and seductive, these Exiles derive their name from the mythological succubi. They are stronger, faster, and more resilient than humans, recovering from most injuries with great speed. A kiss from a succubus can cause euphoria in redpill and Exile alike, and has the potential to kill both. They are impervious to most injuries, but can be harmed by holy water or water that possesses their Killcode. They are led by Jezebeth, who is leader of the exile gangs, Legion.

• Tengu: Exiles that inhabit the Sakura construct Program. They have all of the traits, strengths, and weaknesses of the Mythological Creatures they are supposed to be.

• The Seraphim is the name given to the Agent Predecessors of the Paradise Matrix. Their role was that of Protectors and Guardians, until the Paradise Matrix failed and crashed. The uniforms they wear are similar to Agents, except that they are white in color. They wear Agent earpieces, which presumably function in the same manner as those worn by the current Agents. They also display a pair of beautiful white wings, which allow them to fly. They are much stronger, faster, and tougher than current Agents, and possess code-related powers that allow them to perform feats far beyond the ability of even Upgraded Agents.

• Ethereals:Exiles who are responsible for many of the Alien Abduction Accounts in the Matrix. They dwell underground, and possess green skin, and have the power to become invisible and intangible. They abduct Bluepills to conduct experiments on them that vary in what they do and the results they achieve.

• Dire Lupine:Upgraded Form of Lupines, that have a unique routines and subroutines added to their Code Structure, that allows for stealth and infiltration. They were created by the Effectuator, to be his bodyguards, and to aid in his research.

• Gargoyle:One of the Exile Types found dwelling in both Widow's Moor and Ashencourte, Exile Constructs. They appear as large, muscular men, with dark brown skin, thick brow ridge, bald, black eyes, and a body covered in intricate designs that seem to be etched or carved into them. They serve as bosses in Widow's Moor and Ashencourte. What their roles are, beyond that, has yet to be seen.

The Dwelling of Exiles

A Domain is a Construct Reality that exists outside of the Core System, and thus does not show up in the Code and is not subject to the reinsertion and reintegration process. Domains are found in the Unformatted Spaces, areas in the subsystem where there is a great deal of unformatted memory used to store the code and data that make up the Matrix reality. These Shielded Worlds are similar to the Construct Programs created and used by the Redpills, except they are self-sustaining and contain a more complex environment.

Machines in The Animatrix

The following is a list of entities which appear in the collection of animated shorts called The Animatrix.

• B1-66ER is an android during the time when humans still controlled the Machines. He is the first Machine to kill a human. He kills his master (owner), another man, and their pets, and claims it was in self-defense because they were planning to have him destroyed, claiming that "He did not want to die". He is declared guilty and is destroyed, leading to the genocide of many other Machines, and eventually to the war and to the Matrix. This machine is first mentioned and introduced into the fictional universe of The Matrix on the official website, in the comic strip Bits and Pieces of Information. This story is expanded into Part 1 of the Animatrix episode The Second Renaissance.

• Runners are seen in the Animatrix short Matriculated. They are a type of advanced Machine scout/patrol unit capable of multiple transformation modes. Runners are so named after their function to run over ground instead of the typical hovering that most of the Machines use, since they have no capability to hover and are bound to the ground with their movements. They are even able to swim and mostly appear in pairs. Runners are able to transform to adapt to the needs of the specific situation and environment.

References

• Irwin, William, ed (2005). More Matrix and Philosophy: Revolutions and Reloaded Decoded. Popular Culture and Philosophy. Open Court. ISBN 0812695720. 
• Kapell, Matthew; Doty, William G. (2006). Jacking in to the Matrix Franchise: Cultural Reception and Interpretation. Continuum. ISBN 0826419097.