Magi Supercomputers, the central operation of NERV headquarters. The Magi were a set of three supercomputers designed by Naoko Akagi, mother of Ritsuko Akagi (a main character) and brilliant scientist. Each computer was designed to emulate the thought process of three influential women in Naoko Akagi’s life, her mother, grandmother, and daughter. Their purpose was to serve as the control system for the Evas and coordinate the various functions of the NERV organization. The concept of supercomputers was first introduced in 1976 with Cray-1.

These Magi were interfaced through various systems within NERV, including the monitoring and control systems for the Evas, the security systems, and the command and control systems. They also interfaced through a system called the “Dummy Plug,” which allowed Evas to be controlled remotely without a pilot.

Virtual Reality NERV training was used in the series to train Eva pilots and other personnel in various combat situations and scenarios. These simulations are similar to our own VR technology, just with a lot more accuracy and realism simulated in them. The first modern VR headsets were first introduced in the 1990’s around the time the movie was made.

Entry Plugs allowed a bridge between a pilot and Eva. These plugs are a HCI component of actually using the Evas, and their ability to seamlessly interface with the pilots shows how well they were created with their users in mind. While the Evas were completely made of human technology, the concept of them can be linked with humanoid robotics. These giant mechas allowed an interfaced connection between their user and their actuation through the use of plugs. This connection can be seen when Asuka enters her Eva, or the dummy plugs used to manipulate the new generation of Evas in the movie. While NERV nor SEELE really interacted with the creation of Evas, the concept of the angels being organic in nature and Shinji and Asuka’s ability to use the plugs to interface with the giant humanoid creature that the Eva suits were created around shows that biotechnology existed to allow that connection.

Rei Ayanami is an artificial being created by NERV. She was created in a laboratory by Naoko Akagi, based on the DNA of Yui Ikari and Gendo Ikari (Shinji’s parents) and was created to pilot an Eva unit or serve as a replacement. In the series, she is often emotionless and detached, similar to how AI’s currently have no proven abilities to express their own emotions. In the movie, she seems to break from this mold and gain more human qualities and make her own decisions. We can see similarities between Rei and chat gpt or other trained models, but the main difference between them is that Rei has her own automation and self identity, and isn’t completely chained to a structure querying her to do something.

Radio was briefly hinted at in the movie, with radio being around since 1895, but the lack of smartphone technology is a big gap between the real world’s 2015 and the movie’s post apocalyptic 2015 setting. Smartphones were first introduced in 1994, right when the series was already in production and coming out. Holograms were used for communication between upper SEELE members, used as a holo-conferencing tool. The hologram was a full 3D image of a project that can be seen by any person on the other end of the line. This technology is used for communication between staff, military, and other locations, showing the world’s ability to transfer very large amounts of data across far distances, including different countries. This technology was not accessible to the general public. The first instance of a “hologram” could be considered to be 1948 when holography was first invented, but there is no actual technology similar to the holograms in Neon Genesis Evangelion that provides full 3d modeling.

CCTV cameras were used extensively in the NERV compound as well as by the government and military. The usage of them in NGE was consistent with their use in modern society for surveillance and security purposes. CCTV cameras were first introduced in 1942.