Aldnoah Drives seem to understand language (as seen when Asseylum ordered Castle Crutheo's Drive to sleep) and recognize people (as seen when Emperor Vers was granted activation powers at the first contact with Aldnoah in Mars).
Do Aldnoah Drives have any kind of intellect?
No, there is nothing in the series that indicates that Aldnoah drives possess consciousness or intelligence. Aldnoah was awakened by Emperor Vers, but, according to the wiki, it can be activated by voice but "will continue running regardless of the activator's location, but only if the individual with the activation factor either loses consciousness, dies, or if a descendant of the VERS Royal Family intervenes, will the Aldnoah Drive shutdown."
There are several different ways to stop an Aldnoah Drive's activity:
- Damaging/Destroying it
- The user deactivates it
- Someone of Royal Blood (such as Princess Asseylum) forcibly shuts it down
- The heart of the person who activated it stops (if the person gets revived with CPR he/she needs to reactivate the Aldnoah Drive).
The drive itself does not seem to be able to activate itself, stay activated, or deactivate itself at will; has never demonstrated a concern regarding its ethical use; has not taken any side in the war; has not personally communicated with anyone; and does not seem to participate in a relationship with the activator to the degree that it will not/cannot run without the activator present.
This differs slightly from mecha technology such as the Escaflowne in Tenkuu no Escaflowne, to which one must form a contract to awaken it and, once done, it seems to take the side of the pilot, be loyal to the pilot, and work with the pilot in a supporting and sometimes rescuing role.
