As AI becomes part of everyday life, understanding it has never been more important. The books listed in this article will help you better understand the ecosystem.
From deep investigations into companies like OpenAI, Microsoft, Google and NVIDIA to personal stories of the leaders shaping the field, these books help readers understand how AI is being built and where it is taking us. They cover everything from the risks of superintelligence to the breakthroughs that made large language models possible, and the fierce competition among tech giants to control the future.
This list brings together the most helpful and interesting titles published over the last year.
Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman’s OpenAI by Karen Hao
This influential 2025 release offers an in-depth look at OpenAI’s rapid ascent, examining its goals, inner workings, and the impact of its pursuit of artificial general intelligence (AGI). The author, a former AI journalist at a major tech publication, builds the narrative through conversations with more than 260 people connected to the company, along with private emails and internal files.
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All by Eliezer Yudkowsky & Nate Soares
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies delivers a clear and unsettling look at the risks that superintelligent AI could create. The authors, Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares, warn that today’s large-scale AI models built from massive networks of learned parameters rather than readable code operate in ways that are difficult to interpret or predict. Because their behaviour emerges from statistical patterns rather than explicit instructions, these systems can behave unpredictably when placed in new situations.
Yudkowsky and Soares argue that once AI surpasses human intelligence, it may pursue goals that don’t match human intentions, and we may not be able to correct or restrain it.
The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip by Stephen Witt
Written by journalist Stephen Witt, The Thinking Machine charts NVIDIA’s transformation from a small company focused on gaming graphics to one of the most influential players in the global AI industry.
The book shows how, under Jensen Huang’s leadership, NVIDIA made bold bets on parallel computing and reimagined what chips could do. This shift turned the GPU from a gaming accessory into a core engine driving the training of modern AI systems.
Witt builds the narrative through extensive reporting, drawing on insights from engineers, executives, investors, and people close to the company. He captures not only the technical breakthroughs but also the intense competition, strategic risks, and sheer persistence that shaped NVIDIA’s rise.
AI Valley: Microsoft, Google and the Trillion‑Dollar Race to Cash In on Artificial Intelligence by Gary Rivlin
Published in 2025, Gary Rivlin’s AI Valley offers an inside look at the intense competition among tech giants and investors as they chase dominance in the booming AI industry.
Rivlin, a seasoned journalist, follows founders, executives and influential venture capitalists over the course of a year to capture how they navigate what many believe is the most transformative tech wave in a generation.
The book brings together stories from across the ecosystem—from young startups trying to break through to big players like Microsoft, Google and Meta, all fighting to secure their share of the AI future. By weaving together personal narratives, boardroom decisions and market pressure, the book paints a vivid picture of an industry in rapid motion.
The Scaling Era: An Oral History of AI, 2019–2025 by Dwarkesh Patel & Gavin Leech
The Scaling Era offers a unique, interview-driven account of how AI has developed during these pivotal years. Patel draws on his long-form conversations with leading researchers, entrepreneurs and engineers to build a detailed picture of the breakthroughs, concerns and debates that shaped modern AI.
The book captures an extraordinary moment in tech history—the period when scaling models with more compute, more data and more parameters became the dominant strategy for progress. Through first-hand stories, readers see how large language models were built, why emergent behaviours surprised even their creators, and the challenges teams faced around safety, interpretability and deployment.
The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future by Keach Hagey
Authored by journalist Keach Hagey, The Optimist provides the first detailed biography of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, a charismatic and sometimes controversial figure who has become central to the modern AI movement. The book explores how Altman rose to prominence and why he is considered one of the most influential leaders in technology today.
Hagey relies on more than 250 interviews with people connected to Altman, including family members, close friends, colleagues and major investors. These conversations help her build a rich, layered picture of his personality, ambitions and worldview.
The story follows Altman from his early years in St Louis to his rapid ascent at Y Combinator, where he helped shape dozens of successful startups, and eventually to his role as the head of OpenAI, one of the most powerful and closely watched AI labs in the world.
The Nvidia Way: Jensen Huang and the Making of a Tech Giant by Tae Kim
Written by technology journalist Tae Kim, The Nvidia Way tells the story of how NVIDIA grew from a modest graphics-chip startup in the early 1990s into one of the most important companies powering today’s AI boom. Kim traces the company’s evolution across three decades and explains how it became a key force behind modern computing and machine learning.
The book draws on more than 100 interviews with founders, early team members, investors and senior leaders. These accounts help Kim construct a detailed picture of the company’s internal challenges, bold bets and significant turning points.
