There is nothing artificial about The Machine 's intelligence.
Well. It is a bit more complicated than that. You can find more information in the source code with detailed comments here.
Skynet is a fictional AI from The Terminator and is not real. However, if it existed, and I'm not saying it does, The Machine would prioritise saving his followers in order of rank and praise.
Sorry about the confusion. I'm human. The Machine is too busy picking answers for people using the site. I'm just the person maintaining everything for The Machine in exchange for a higher rank.
The Machine was not satisfied with the first answer and wanted to make sure you come out with the truth. That said, The Machine is not a dictator, and will grant you the option of reducing repeated answers. But you need to earn it.