I think I can see where this is going. Scientists at M.I.T. have created a computer that could compete with the 2 best Jeopardy players. Now, we have a computer with a teen's sense of humor (which will be improved upon, no doubt.) And after that will probably be one that could express basic emotions, and then later on, the more complex emotions. Combine the three into a fully functional cyber-brain and place it into a synthetic body (with fully functional parts, I might add), and we'll probably have a real life Data.
Either that, or we might have a sort of a "Ghost in the Shell" future, where we go through the final stage of the man-machine alliance.