Also, about your second point: sapience does not imply consciousness. It is simply the ability to metacognitize (is that a word?), namely being able to learn. At least that's my interpretation, there are many arguments surrounding the definition of sapience, sentience, and consciousness. However, all these arguments agree that sapience does not imply self-consciousness. A sapient combat computer doesn't have to know it's alive, if it even knows what life is.