The Coming Wave

AI, Power, and Our Future

By: Mustafa Suleyman, Michael Bhaskar - contributor

Narrated by: Mustafa Suleyman

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An urgent warning of the unprecedented risks that AI and other fast-developing technologies pose to global order, and how we might contain them while we have the chance—from a co-founder of the pioneering artificial intelligence company DeepMind and current CEO of Microsoft AI

“A fascinating, well-written, and important book.”—Yuval Noah Harari

“Essential reading.”—Daniel Kahneman

“My favorite book on AI.”—Bill Gates, GatesNotes

A Best Book of the Year: CNN, Economist, Bloomberg, Politico Playbook, Financial Times, The Guardian, CEO Magazine, Semafor • Winner of the Inc. Non-Obvious Book Award • Finalist for the Porchlight Business Book Award and the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year Award

We are approaching a critical threshold in the history of our species. Everything is about to change.

Soon you will live surrounded by AIs. They will organize your life, operate your business, and run core government services. You will live in a world of DNA printers and quantum computers, engineered pathogens and autonomous weapons, robot assistants and abundant energy.

None of us are prepared.

As co-founder of the pioneering AI company DeepMind, part of Google, Mustafa Suleyman has been at the center of this revolution. The coming decade, he argues, will be defined by this wave of powerful, fast-proliferating new technologies.

In The Coming Wave, Suleyman shows how these forces will create immense prosperity but also threaten the nation-state, the foundation of global order. As our fragile governments sleepwalk into disaster, we face an existential dilemma: unprecedented harms on one side, the threat of overbearing surveillance on the other.

How do we ensure the flourishing of humankind? How do we maintain control? How do we navigate the narrow path to a successful future?

This groundbreaking book from the ultimate AI insider establishes “the containment problem”—the task of maintaining control over powerful technologies—as the essential challenge of our age.

©2023 Mustafa Suleyman (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A heartfelt and candid exploration of what the future may hold for us . . . Eloquently articulated. Reading [The Coming Wave], what came to mind was Gramsci’s famous adage that what we need is ‘pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will.’ To his great credit, [Mustafa] Suleyman has both.”—The Guardian

“[A] sweeping look at the future of artificial intelligence and other transformative technologies. . . . Suleyman is intimately familiar with the technologies, companies and personalities at the heart of the A.I. revolution.”—The New York Times

“Dazzling . . . You have by now read a great deal of both hype and doom-mongering on the subject [of AI]. But Suleyman’s is the book you cannot afford not to read. . . . Brilliant.”—Niall Ferguson, Bloomberg

Important but Repetitive

Very good overview and predictions of “The Coming Wave” of AI, biotech, etc. This is an important book that should be read widely by those with the power to influence change, and by those of us who will inevitably live through that change.

The information here is excellent. The writing, however, could have used a heavier hand during the editing process. The title of the book is repeated so frequently it was burned into my brain a quarter of the way in. It would make for a great drinking game. There are a lot of repetitive sections and seemingly irrelevant contextualizations. None of this should deter you from listening, however, as the subject matter outweighs the writing flaws.

First half interesting, downhill from there

TLDR; Great on history in the first portion, and interesting on the tech and scale of AI. From there, slowly goes downhill, to a point where I’d say skip part three onward. Recent political opinions lack perspective, while near no focus on AI defense that counterbalance all of the panic and doom.

Required reading...

In all likelihood, this is the most important book I've read this year. And here we are in September.

I'll be the first to admit, maybe the 101st, that I don't know much about AI. And yet, this book was written for me. I'm old enough to understand the implications of the history lessons Mustafa sets down as foundation for the narrative on offer. 

Altogether compelling, unintentionally dark at times, and mostly free of any table pounding advocacy, his message is clear; AI is already here and it's only going to get more promising…and more threatening.

Read (or listen to, like I did 2x) the book, beginning to end. Think about the ideas presented without judgment, and resist the temptation to drone on about how this is "old news." And…? Stand up and be counted. Tell the world what you think and why.

Insightful and powerful

This was a powerful insight into what’s ahead by some of humanities most powerful minds and how things are to shape up and what’s coming down the pipeline. Like it or not. It’s here

Helpful for understanding possibilities

If the proliferation of AI makes you nervous but you can’t ground your fear in scenarios, this book provides. The author puts his faith in human elbow grease and alliances to contain AI, but not before painting a detailed picture of potential catastrophes. I found the book very helpful and learned a lot. I also like that the author is an AI practitioner vs. someone who only comments from a distance. Nicely read as well.

Brilliant assessment of new tech impact on society

Suleman does a masterful job in giving up the essential ingredients of the new tech wave, with lots of examples and firsthand experience. He then goes on to make his case for "containment" of this awesome onslaught. He is most qualified to make these points as a co-founder of DeepMind, whose AlphaGo beat the world champion Go player. The book has an amazing recount of tech advances in history and is written in very accessible prose. Maybe the most important and best book I've listened to for quite a while. Definitely recommend it.

A bit scary but extremely deep and arguments view

As a developer myself I found it very helpful in understanding what is happening ATM in AI, what is the pace of change and potential future branches. The brilliance of this book is that it is coming from the practitioner. Highly recommend

Great grade. Critically important. Brilliant.

I purchased the audible version and the hardcover. I have listened to this while, riding the peloton and walking on the beach and driving in my car. This is a text to remember. This is a text to teach from. This provides insights of the road, we may choose to take ahead. if knowledge is power, then this book provides a genuine pathway to power.

Insightful, yet dry

On one hand, this is a good primer on AI and the concepts upon which it is built. I like how the author lays out specific, thought-out plans for containment.

I also feel like the content was kind of dry, even repetitive, in places.

Overall, an informative book.

Very important message, delivered with redundancy

Very important message, delivered in a very redundant rhythm. I hope leaders in every sphere are listening.