Futureproof

9 Rules for Humans in the Age of Automation

By: Kevin Roose

Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain

“While we need to rewrite the rules of the 21st-century economy, Kevin’s book is a great look at how people can do this on a personal level to always put humanity first.” (Andrew Yang)

“A clear, compelling strategy for surviving the next wave of technology with our jobs - and souls - intact.” (Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit)

The machines are here. After decades of sci-fi fantasies and hype, artificial intelligence has leapt out of research labs and Silicon Valley engineering departments and into the center of our lives. Algorithms shape everything around us, from the news we see to the products we buy and the relationships we form. And while the debate over whether or not automation will destroy jobs rages on, a much more important question is being ignored:

What does it mean to be a human in a world that is increasingly built by and for machines?

In Futureproof: 9 Rules for Humans in the Age of Automation, New York Times technology columnist Kevin Roose lays out a hopeful, pragmatic vision of how people can succeed in the machine age by making themselves irreplaceably human. He shares the secrets of people and organizations that have survived technological change and explains how we can protect our own futures, with lessons like:

• Do work that is surprising, social, and scarce (the types of work machines can’t do).
• Demote your phone.
• Work near other people.
• Treat AI like an army of chimpanzees.
• Add more friction to your life.

Roose rejects the conventional wisdom that in order to compete with machines, we have to become more like them - hyper-efficient, data-driven, code-writing workhorses. Instead, he says, we should let machines be machines and focus on doing the kinds of creative, inspiring, and meaningful things only humans can do.

This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF that contains the Appendix and Reading List from the book.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2021 Kevin Roose (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Engaging...Roose delves into this crisis with an accessible touch that nicely explains how AI is infiltrating every part of our society and workforce.” (The Times)

"Artificial intelligence - and robots themselves - can be terrifying, but Kevin Roose provides a clear, compelling strategy for surviving the next wave of technology with our jobs - and souls - intact. Whether you’re an optimist or a pessimist about the future, Futureproof is the survival guide you need.” (Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit)

“While I think that Skynet is still going to send the Terminator back to try to kill humanity someday, it’s worth your time and attention - if that is still a thing in the addled Internet age - to read Kevin Roose’s bracing book now. Why? Because it’s a primer on the future and how to deal with the incoming today, from AI to automation to robotics and more, by using the tools of creativity and just being human. Whether the digital threat comes from a cybernetic organism from 2459 arriving in a big ball of lightning or from that innocent-looking mobile supercomputer in your hand, I do know that you need to prepare for the next tech age. And there’s no better way to do it than to futureproof yourself by letting Roose show you how.” (Kara Swisher, cofounder of Recode, host of the podcasts Recode Decode and Pivot, and a New York Times contributing opinion writer)

Muy reconfortante

Me encantó el balance entre realidad y optimismo. Kevin es periodista y te lleva de una manera muy amena sobre los peligros de dejarse llevar solamente por la tecnología, pero también te da esperanza sobre el futuro si logramos hacer equipo y usar la tecnología en beneficio de la humanidad.

Required reading

I shall recommend this book to all I know who work with technology and have the ability to define their career paths.

excelente!

i absolutely loved this book! amazing insight. This book direction in which we should move to cope with new technologies

Good listen

It was read by an AI, right?? Was waiting for a referral at the end. Otherwise that’s what I think of the audiobook experience. Ironically robotic.

Book’s great though! Each of the tips are well argued and presented. Offers me some food for thought as to how I can stay relevant as technology creeps. I mostly love the empowering notions about how te future is not written and it’s humans who design the robots. For now.

Relevant and interesting read

I have recommended Futureproof to all my friends since my first day of reading it. This book brings to light engaging and thought-provoking concepts about our place (as humans) in an AI world. I am also a huge fan of Kevin Roose's podcast Hard Fork in which they discuss tech news. This book juxtaposed Kevin Roose's positive outlook on new technology with a thoughtful person looking to hold onto their humanity.

Enjoyable and Thought Provoking

This work is one that I will reflect on and share. The presentation is very well done, and the material is essential, especially for people who are advocates for a better future for youths.

We are at a point of development where it is easier for us to end life on Earth, than to provide a better future. The shortcomings of unregulated capitalism and technology are clear.

We need to work together to find & nourish the adjacent future that will provide a healthier physical, social, and spiritual environment. We need to emphasize the humanities, not tech as an end unto itself.

Loved, loved the book...

Tolerated the writer. Felt like he had no grasp of the content and just phoned it in.

Heard him on planet money, and enjoyed his book.

This is a well researched, easily digestible book exploring the unintended consciences of A.I. Kevin Roose looks back at the industrial revolutions of the past, all the way up to the COVID 19 pandemic, searching for insights on the changing roles of machines, and A.I. In our personal and professional lives.

The nine rules are not really “rules” in the Jordan Peterson sense, but jumping off points for conversations on how, we the readers, can engage, and influence the technology that is already embedded in our lives, and what surprising skills workers will need in the future to succeed in the jobs of tomorrow.

If your looking for a book that will just tell you “learn how to code” in 10,000 words, this is not it. “Futureproof” is a reminder, that we should let robots be robots, and embrace our own wonderful humanity.

Relevant now more than ever

If I had read this two years ago I would have been skeptical and brushed it off completely. Now A.I. is front and center, especially in my industry, which I never thought would be possible. This book will help you prepare for what’s coming.

starts on topic, increasingly deviates

some good starting points in the first chapters. however it gets more and more political.