Written by Jonathan Brackley and Sam Vincent, based on the Swedish science fiction drama Real Humans, the series explores the themes of artificial intelligence, robotics, and their effects on the future of humanity, focusing on the social, cultural, and psychological impact of the invention and marketing of anthropomorphic robots called "synths".

[1] The series focuses on the social, cultural, and psychological impact of the invention of anthropomorphic robots called "synths".

It explores a number of science fiction themes, including artificial intelligence, consciousness, human-robot interaction, superintelligence, mind uploading[2] and the laws of robotics.

"It was about stripping back any physical tics you naturally incorporate into performance", explains Chan, who adds that it was a "relief to go home and slouch" after a day on set.

[36] For one week in May 2015, the series was marketed using a fake shopfront for Persona Synthetics on London's Regent Street, inviting passers-by to create their own synth using interactive screens,[37][38] and employing actors who pretended to be synths around central London.

[39] An accompanying Channel 4 trailer for the series in the style of an advertisement for Persona featured "Sally", a robotic servant described as "your new best friend".

The site's critical consensus reading: "Humans is a mature, high-octane thriller offering emotional intrigue and thought-provoking suspense that should prove irresistible to sci-fi fans while remaining accessible enough to lure in genre agnostics.

"[45] Metacritic gave the season a rating of 76 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

The site's critical consensus reads, "Humans continues to quietly distinguish itself in the sci-fi drama category – and prove better than most of its flashier AI competition.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Humans gains new sociopolitical dimensions in its third season, mining deeper insight from its sci-fi premise without diluting the potency of its well-drawn characters.

[51] A review in the Telegraph praised the show's performances but said that the story is "conceptually ... old hat" and "wasn't breaking any new ground philosophically".

"[53] On 25 July 2018, it was announced Roland Moore would be head writer on a Chinese version of Humans in Mandarin called 你好，安怡 / Nǐ hǎo, ān yí (Hello An Yi),[66] produced by Endemol Shine China and Croton Media.