By the time of the age of no-ships, artificial intelligence had progressed to the point where they were able to control most functions of no-ships as well as being nearly indistinguishable from humans. However, in the case of a breakdown or error, there were always humans who were ready to take control of the no-ship's functions as needed. These people. who were often well versed in no-physics and computers, were known as shipspeakers.
One such AI, known as "Marty", was in control of the Krasny Fujisaki during the second killing game. Notably, despite the hostile AI Daniel taking control, she still managed to continue a niche existence inside the ship's systems, aiding the crew when she was able to.
Though they had a vast knowledge of no-physics, shipspeakers were not necessarily mentats. However, they were still able to perform foldspace calculations quickly when required.
The role of a shipspeaker must not be confused with that of a captain. Captains were mostly in charge of providing morale and establishing command over the crew, while shipspeakers were supposed to handle the more technical aspects of no-ship travel. However, they were often unfamiliar with machinery other than their Markov Drives and no-field projectors, meaning that most no-ships had machinists as a seperate occupation.
Many shipspeakers spent large amounts of time interacting with the ship's mechanical parts and conversed with the ship AI than their crewmates. This, coupled with their technical knowledge, led many to be viewed as oddballs by their crew members. This slightly negative view can partially explain the ghola caregiver Leto's disgust for Miu Iruma during the Second Killing Game, though other factors may have played a larger role.