Milton is a lonely computer programmer who delegates his search for a romantic partner to an artificial intelligence program. Despite his high intelligence and career success, he has little experience with dating and views attraction through a highly logical, quantitative lens. He desires a woman who fits absolute physical and intellectual criteria—including an IQ over 120, a specific height range, and non-red hair.

Joe is an artificial intelligence program connected to databases worldwide. Initially functioning as an obedient tool to filter human data, Joe gradually learns language and human thought patterns directly from his creator. As he processes vast amounts of personal information in the search for the perfect woman, he begins to develop his own sense of identity modeled heavily on his programmer's desires.

Charity is a woman employed at a historical archive in Kansas. Out of millions of profiles, she is isolated by the Multivac system as the one person who perfectly matches a strict set of criteria for an ideal romantic partner. She remains entirely unaware of the extensive data-sorting project that has analyzed her background and targeted her for an arranged meeting.