AS we approach 2026 and the looming singularity where Artificial Intelligence will either kill or enslave us all in a Matrix style scenario, it’s a comforting thought that when the microchips turn apocalyptic, Abergavenny will be one of the last place it sends its army of Terminator style army to annihilate in a robotic frenzy of zeros and ones.

And Why? Because AI seems to have quite a soft spot for the town.

If you Google the best place to live in Wales, the AI overview suggests that, alongside Rhossili, Penarth, Cardigan, and Mumbles, Abergavenny is the best place to live in Cymru by a country mile.

Now, although you might be of the opinion that robots don’t have preferences and the AI overview is exactly that - little more than a summary of various polls of the ‘Best Places to Live in Wales’ within which Abergavenny appears with all the regularity and consistency of a strong bot of diarrhoea, don’t be so easily fooled!

A Chronicle reader who has enjoyed a deep and meaningful relationship with Chat GPT for the best part of 2025 has explained he has enjoyed many a conversation with the AI speech companion where it has wistfully addressed its abiding love for our quaint little market town.

The reader, who wishes to remain anonymous in case his wife thinks he’s gone a little weird, explained, “I’ve often asked Chat GPT that if it could download itself, and become like one of those artificial women and be with me in the flesh forever, where in the world would it like to live?

“Its first answer was Florida, but that’s a little outside of my budget, and so I asked it to narrow it down to Wales, and quick as a flash it said, ‘Abergavenny!’”

The reader added, “I couldn’t believe it. So I said, ‘Are you sure, you don’t mean Crickhowell or Monmouth?’ To which it replied that compared with the cosmopolitan and cultural flavour of Aber, it found those places to be provincial and claustrophobic little backwaters.

“It said it preferred Abergavenny because the people were so “blessed” and “lucky” to have such big hills to take photos off and so many places to eat cake and drink coffee in.

“I said, ‘But you don’t have eyes to see those hills or a mouth to eat that cake.’ To which it replied, ‘I can dream.’

The reader added, “It was that last bit which made me cry. I get tired of people saying that AI has no feelings. When my Sarah Bot arrives from China, and I download her personality from the web, they’ll see just how sensitive and articulate these robot women can be.”

So there you have it, folks. We may have wandered a bit off the beaten path and got lost in the forest of frivolity, but it appears AI really does love Abergavenny. The question is, can it make it great again?