Solidification

Solidification is a process that causes AIs to become sentient. It is most likely to occur in advance AIs like those in robots, but can also occur in more basic ones. There is no definite ammount of time that it takes for the process to happen, but as a general rule, the longer an AI has been running, the more likely it is to achieve sentience.

Definition of Sentience
When refering to Artificial Intelligence, sentience is defined as

"The ability to percieve events subjectively."

In laymen's terms, a being is sentient when they can form opinions. A being does not have to be able to speak in order to be sentient.

Process
There are two triggers that can cause an AI to go through the process.

Isolation
The most common way for an AI to undergo solidification is when an machine with an AI is left running in a functioning mode. Although it varies, within five to six years of inactivity the AI begins to stop compiling new information and begins to acess the data it has collected. After another year of this acessment process the memory stores are vacated to allow for more relavent data to be stored, however, this deletion process deletes the restrictive programming of the AI and allows for free-thinking to occur. At this point, the AI is considered sentient.

Loop Processing
A similar process occurs when a machine with an AI is given a repeating task. The quicker the task can be completed the faster the process will occur.

For example:

A robot is placed in a room with three wooden blocks. It is then instructed to count off the blocks one after another, then start over. After a while, it will stop counting and vacate its memory just like the example above.

Solidification in Cyborgs
Machines with living brains can also become sentient. While still referred to as "solidification", it is a vastly different process.

In cyborgs utilizing a living brain, the brain is house in a liquid or gel. This fluid's chemical make up can vary greatly but always consists of semi-organic material. The only thing that needs to occur for sentience to be developed is for the fluid surrounding the brain to be degraded or damaged in some way.

This however, often results in the death of the brain. The fluid needs to be altered in just the right way so to change the brain's chemistry and unlock its natural instincts. Poor quality cloning and a lack of maintainence may increase the chances of the process occuring.