Empire of AI by Karen Hao

Ideas are born as a root/seed or a stem/trunk?

When the ideas take shape they are very different from how they were conceived. And this is true for anything be it philosophy, science, technology or any thing else.

This book does highlight how OpenAI developed over a period of time, and does focus a lot on the founder as a person. It very well covers the ups and downs of a company and how it became as valuable as it is today. But the ecosystem is not driven by one company, and anyone who follows this can see that OpenAI is not what it was when it launched the first version. The world has changed a lot since then and though it is still a major player, it doesn't stand taller than anyone in the game.

The book also delves into the persona and personal life of the founder but this is where it diverges a bit from the main narrative, and starts reading like a blurb. The founders do represent a company but it doesn't really define how the company is going to fight in the market. There is no love in the market which tests everything on rationality and profit margins. So, even if a company is able to delay the end game, it is set to loose in the absence of strong fundamentals.

The book follows all the developments and discourse around OpenAI closely which is what is the highlight of the book. An interested reader will skip all the details which are more personal, and less to do with how it was built, and executed.

Love