Reading room.

A cross-cut view of progress: how institutions, state capacity, decentralised innovation and other elements shape long-term development

Supply-side abundance & looking at the policy of innovation in the US context

Models & strategies of how states have created innovation capacity and institutions over the decades

Inclusive vs extractive institutions, and how institutional design shapes the fate of nations

Mission economies & how to undertake grand public missions over the long-term, mobilising the economy and state capacity

Tracing ambitious bets across Rajiv Shah's career: from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to USAID

The autobiography & reflections of the 7th Secretary-General of the United Nations – and one of my personal all-time favorites

A great breakdown of US & Chinese state capacities + interesting angle on their different institutional structures – I found it quite insightful

On reimagining diplomacy in the digital age; great glimpse into how technology is changing international relations & statecraft

An extremely interesting period of history that I've scarcely seen discussed elsewhere – it's really an entire scientific revolution in microcosm, a good several centuries before the Enlightenment

Understanding the interplay between exponential technology, our institutions and societal change

Solid reading if you're interested in social impacts of AI & other lenses

One of the more interesting books I've come across: diving deep into the politics of technology, and how tech itself can influence upstream policy & political decisions

Perhaps the most thorough exploration of the opportunities, challenges and philosophical dimensions of utopia I've read

Want to know how to build a settlement on Mars? Buy this as a pocket guide. A lot of very sensible and frank assessments & timelines in this one

Self-explanatory, really. This one comes with the Soviet side of the rivalry as an added bonus Link ↗

It's an inspiration to read, and a very well-blended autobiography with the inception story of modern AI Link ↗

An exploration of AI trends and applications in the form of ten riveting fictional stories, each focused on its own branch of Artificial Intelligence

The fight for the world’s most critical technology

One of the books that informed my early thinking on innovation as a system: SCW maps startup communities and the ecosystem around them, from key actors to necessary factors

Deep data dive into how unicorn startups and their founders actually tick

The idea of the Loop is really startups by scientific method. There is a reason it is extremely enduring; iteration is your god in the shrine, for anyone innovation-adjacent

The story of Tencent’s rise, from its founder’s origins to later strategic shifts. Fascinating read on the evolution of the Chinese entrepreneurial sphere.

I like to think of cultures as an N-dimensional matrix, a kind of meta-culture concept; all cultures are the same in different ways, and different in the same ways. CM helped me put that into something more concrete

Tactics for management and company building

Venture capital & the art of disruption

The Bridge trilogy is 10/10. Post-Neuromancer Gibson is a masterclass in a kind of near-future science-fiction

One of the finest sci-fi novellas

A collection of Gibson’s short stories, including the titular “Burning Chrome”

Big fan of Lem. I read The Invincible and Solaris in my first year of college, so I remember them well. Both novels are suffused with such atmosphere it's simply perfection

Read it way before the movie – can't decide between this and The Martian, but I recommend both

My top 25 bragging rights: I have actually met Tchaikovsky. Children of Time is so insanely inventive it's hard not to love

Very, very high on my list and extremely underrated. It is such an incredible blend of hard sci-fi, political intrigue and interweaving narratives. I read this when travelling up north near Rovaniemi and often re-read my notes on it.

It's Asimov, need I say more? Read: Foundation, Foundation and Empire, Second Foundation, Foundation’s Edge.

The widely acclaimed and stunningly imaginative opening in the Three-body trilogy, a jewel in the crown of Chinese sci-fi. Its hard science fiction and thoroughness are remarkable.

Nicknamed the Playbook for Change by some, it’s one of Robinson’s best

Renowned among European sci-fi authors and on the world stage alike, Lem’s hard sci-fi shines brightest in Solaris, a gripping, chilling exploration of the otherworldly.

Herbert’s sci-fi cult classic set on the treacherous planet of Arrakis

People ask me what my culture is, sometimes. To this I give you this book. The Overview Effect is to me a part of my heart and soul; I always keep this one somewhere nearby. Please read it.

Don't think describing it could do it any justice. It is a story about stories, incredibly dreamy in its own strange way.

I know, I know. The reason I really like Meditations is because, reading it, I think, you understand that all humans across all of time ultimately aspired to the same things – and consistently failed to be perfect in their aspirations. Such is life.

Old travelogues are a particular hobby of mine. The Rihla is a 27 year or so journey, from Morocco to China and back. A little dry, but immerse yourself into it and it will be something special

Just read this. Recommended to me by a good friend of mine, and very much stays on the shelf.

Something about this book... Perhaps I just really like travelogues. It's a 2000 mile walk through all of Japan, with all the small stories you'd expect.