Book · 2021 · Computers
The Genius Makers
Google, Facebook, Elon Musk, and the Race to Artificial Intelligence
Why people recommend it
The Genius Makers by Cade Metz is a comprehensive historical account of the artificial intelligence revolution, tracking the key breakthroughs and figures that shaped modern machine learning. On the podcast Acquired, David Rosenthal recommended the book while recounting the story of an auction for DNN Research, humorously thanking the author for his thorough history of AI that the hosts referenced multiple times throughout their episodes. Rosenthal drew on the text again when discussing Larry Page's strategy meeting on an undisclosed South Pacific island and when noting an article written by Metz prior to the book's publication regarding the formation of OpenAI. Additionally, Ben Gilbert mentioned the title during the same podcast series as part of the recommended reading lists associated with their deep-dive episodes, highlighting the book's value for anyone attempting to understand the rapid development and competitive landscape of the artificial intelligence industry over the past decade. The book functions as a vital resource for listeners seeking background context on the individuals who sparked the current technological transition, providing detailed reporting on the secretive labs and academic circles where deep learning first took root and eventually captured the attention of major global technology companies.
Who recommended it
- David Rosenthal Recommended
- Ben Gilbert Recommended
David Rosenthal — 3 mentions
“So, Jeff Hinton actually runs the auction from his hotel room at the Hera's Casino in Lake Tahoe. Oh my god, amazing. So, the bids all come in and we got to thank Cade Mets, the author of Genius Makers, great book on the whole history of AI that we're actually going to reference a lot in this episode.”
“A few months earlier, Larry Pageige held a strategy meeting on an island in the South Pacific in Cade Mets's book, It's an Undisclosed Island.”
“To quote from an amazing Wired article at the time by Cade Mets, who would later write Genius Makers, right?”
Ben Gilbert — 1 mention
“So if you go to blinkist.com/Nvidia you can find books by Gary Kasparov, Kai-Fu Lee, and Cade Metz, who we already mentioned earlier on the show who wrote the amazing Wired article.”