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dmendels 's review for:
This book is much better than the hyperbolic title. It can be trite at times, but I learned quite a lot and Kai-Fu Lee's evolution and ideas for the future are quite compelling.
The least interesting part of the book is that implied by the title, the "battle" between China and Silicon Valley as it relates to AI. What I did find interesting and learned a lot from: i. good introduction to the Chinese internet ecosystem; ii. interesting attempt to describe Chinese business culture and contrast to the US. (This does suffer from some of the same problems and reminds me of books on Japanese business in the late 1980s--a bit too enamoured, a bit too simple--but is still useful and valuable); iii. A good framework for understanding the state of AI as a technology and its business impact; iv. a good discussion and review of the literature on the potential economic/societal disruption that appears likely to be caused by very significant and likely AI related job loss; v. A prescription for policies and ideas on how humanity can and should deal with that disruption. This is where the book surprises, as first Kai-Fu Lee first shares a very personal story of his own "rebirth" after facing a cancer scare. His Blueprint for AI and Human coexistence is not all convincing, and may be far too optimistic for what humanity is capable off, but has some compelling ideas as a starting point we will do well if others in business and government build on his ideas.
The least interesting part of the book is that implied by the title, the "battle" between China and Silicon Valley as it relates to AI. What I did find interesting and learned a lot from: i. good introduction to the Chinese internet ecosystem; ii. interesting attempt to describe Chinese business culture and contrast to the US. (This does suffer from some of the same problems and reminds me of books on Japanese business in the late 1980s--a bit too enamoured, a bit too simple--but is still useful and valuable); iii. A good framework for understanding the state of AI as a technology and its business impact; iv. a good discussion and review of the literature on the potential economic/societal disruption that appears likely to be caused by very significant and likely AI related job loss; v. A prescription for policies and ideas on how humanity can and should deal with that disruption. This is where the book surprises, as first Kai-Fu Lee first shares a very personal story of his own "rebirth" after facing a cancer scare. His Blueprint for AI and Human coexistence is not all convincing, and may be far too optimistic for what humanity is capable off, but has some compelling ideas as a starting point we will do well if others in business and government build on his ideas.