May 29, 2020
P. W. Singer is a strategist at New America and the author of a
string of impactful and prescient books. His non fiction books
(including Cybersecurity and Cyberwar, and LikeWar), have
contextualized the new realities of the internet enabled conflicts
we find ourselves in. His fiction, including Ghost Fleet, has
provided interesting drama and stimulating entertainment while at
the same time helping us all come to grips with hard issues we need
to deal with. His latest book, Burn-In, is similarly a work of
helpful fiction, providing entertainment and an enjoyable story
that will keep you turning pages, while at the same time being
helpful to all of us who seek to understand what tomorrow may bring
so we can make better decisions about it today.
Burn-In is anchored in the realities we see all around us today.
Artificial Intelligence is coming fast and changing the nature of
many jobs, robots and automation are bringing tremendous new
capabilities but also threatening humanity with loss of employment
opportunities. Parenting in a world where everyone, including kids,
are always connected is already changing how we raise the next
generation. And citizens with employment, privacy and security
concerns are already taking action to be heard and to have a voice
in what happens next. P.W. Singer and his co-author August Cole
have been tracking these megatrends for years and based their book
on the realities of today extrapolated into the near future. They
do so in a way that will help us all think through what we want of
our future.
In our OODAcast discussion, we ask P.W. questions around how he
thinks, how he researches, and how he observes reality. Our
discussion dove deep into the many trends he has been tracking and
how he used fiction to weave them all into a more comprehensive
understanding of what the human impact of technology may be.
We promise no big spoilers, but plenty of actionable context you
can apply to your own strategic thinking.
OODA members can purchase the Burn-In book with a 25% discount
at this page:
Additional Reading:
https://www.oodaloop.com/archive/2019/12/02/top-10-security-technology-and-business-books-of-2019/
https://www.oodaloop.com/archive/2018/11/26/best-security-business-and-technology-books-of-2018/
https://www.oodaloop.com/ooda-original/2017/12/08/best-security-intelligence-technology-books-2017/
https://www.oodaloop.com/ooda-original/2016/12/07/best-security-business-technology-books-2016/