Supremacy - by Parmy Olson

Book Synopsis

WINNER OF THE THE FINANCIAL TIMES AND SCHRODERS 2024 BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD

In November of 2022, a webpage was posted online with a simple text box. It was an AI chatbot called ChatGPT, and was unlike any app people had used before. It was more human than a customer service agent, more convenient than a Google search. Behind the scenes, battles for control and prestige between the world's two leading AI firms, OpenAI and DeepMind, who now steers Google's AI efforts, has remained elusive - until now.

In Supremacy, Olson, tech writer at Bloomberg, tells the astonishing story of the battle between these two AI firms, their struggles to use their tech for good, and the hazardous direction they could go as they serve two tech Goliaths whose power is unprecedented in history. The story focuses on the continuing rivalry of two key CEOs at the center of it all, who cultivated a religion around their mission to build god-like super intelligent machines: Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, and Demis Hassabis, the CEO of DeepMind.

Supremacy sharply alerts readers to the real threat of artificial intelligence that its top creators are ignoring: the profit-driven spread of flawed and biased technology into industries, education, media and more. With exclusive access to a network of high-ranking sources, Parmy Olson uses her 13 years of experience covering technology to bring to light the exploitation of the greatest invention in human history, and how it will impact us all.

Review Quotes

"Thought-provoking...clear and well-researched" - The Wall Street Journal

"Astonishing... [Olson has] exclusive access to a network of high-ranking sources" - Financial Times

"Olson's punchy prose and eye for detail brings her subjects to vivid life." - Publisher's Weekly

"Exquisitely timely" - Los Angeles Times

"A riveting tale... Olson is a compelling storyteller" - New Scientist

"We gain a jarringly clear sense of the radical social and economic changes already being brought about by AI and of at least some of the risks posed by them....An accessible, insightful exploration of the history and evolving impact of AI technologies." - Kirkus Reviews

"It's a frankly terrifying exposé of the dangers posed by the current, unregulated technology market...sounding the alarm about unchecked tech." - Booklist (starred review)

"Supremacy makes the topic of artificial intelligence approachable and entertaining by telling the human stories of the people building AI companies. There is never a dull moment in this gripping book." - Arvind Narayanan, professor of computer science at Princeton University and co-author of AI Snake Oil

"Money, power, and a Faustian bargain that may change the world frame this timely and deeply researched account of two of the biggest players in the race to AI." -- Gary Marcus, professor emeritus at New York University and author of Taming Silicon Valley

"Parmy Olson is that rare author who writes with technological expertise about artificial intelligence without losing track of the underlying humanity informing its arrival. She's intimately familiar with AI's roots and reach and she's drawn a rich blueprint for understanding the revolution it heralds. "Supremacy" is a sweeping and indispensable account of AI's promises and perils -- and a lush tutorial about our brave new world." - Timothy L. O'Brien, Senior Executive Editor, Bloomberg Opinion

"A clear and compelling read about one of the most consequential races in the world - the invention of Artificial General Intelligence - filled with surprising and juicy details about the powerful men at the heart of it. This fascinating book re-frames AGI from a fundamental scientific pursuit to a contest between highly ambitious individuals, as personal and corporate goals collide. Supremacy provides the rich context and perspective needed to understand today's hottest news story, showing expertly how lofty ideals can evolve into commercial goals, when money and power are at stake." - Madhumita Murgia, AI editor of the Financial Times, author, Code Dependent

About the Author

Parmy Olson is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering technology regulation, artificial intelligence, and social media. A former reporter for the Wall Street Journal and Forbes, she is the author of We Are Anonymous and a recipient of the Palo Alto Networks Cyber Security Cannon Award. Olson has been writing about artificial intelligence systems and the money behind them for seven years. Her reporting on Facebook's $19 billion acquisition of WhatsApp and the subsequent fallout resulted in two Forbes cover stories and two honourable mentions in the SABEW business journalism awards. At the Wall Street Journal she investigated companies that exaggerated their AI capabilities and was the first to report on a secret effort at Google's top AI lab to spin out from the company in order to control the artificial super intelligence it created.