The show is based on Asimov’s Foundation series, which was originally published as a series of short stories in the 1940s and later compiled into novels. The story is set in the distant future, where the Galactic Empire, a once-glorious civilization that spans the entire Milky Way, is beginning to decline.
At the center of the narrative is Hari Seldon (played by Jared Harris), a brilliant mathematician who develops a concept called “psychohistory” — a form of statistical sociology that allows him to predict the future of entire populations.
Seldon foresees the imminent collapse of the Galactic Empire, an event that will lead to a period of chaos and darkness lasting for thousands of years. To shorten this “dark age,” Seldon creates the Foundation, a group of scholars tasked with preserving and expanding human knowledge, which will ultimately be the key to restoring civilization.