Book description
A Wall Street Journal Bestseller
An insider’s revealing and in-depth examination of Big Tech’s failure to keep its foundational promises and the steps the industry can take to course-correct in order to make a positive impact on the world.
Trampled by Unicorns: Big Tech’s Empathy Problem and How to Fix It explores how technology has progressed humanity’s most noble pursuits, while also grappling with the origins of the industry’s destructive empathy deficit and the practical measures Big Tech can take to self-regulate and make it right again. Author Maëlle Gavet examines the tendency for many of Big Tech’s stars to stray from their user-first ideals and make products that actually profoundly damage their customers and ultimately society.
Offering an account of the world of tech startups in the United States and Europe—from Amazon, Google, and Facebook to Twitter, Airbnb, and Uber (to name a few)—Trampled by Unicorns argues that the causes and consequences of Big Tech’s failures originate from four main sources: the Valley’s cultural insularity, the hyper-growth business model, the sector’s stunning lack of diversity, and a dangerous self-sustaining ecosystem. However, the book is not just an account of how an industry came off the rails, but also a passionate call to action on how to get it back on track.
Gavet, a leading technology executive and former CEO of Ozon, an executive vice president at Priceline Group, and chief operating officer of Compass, formulates a clear call to action for industry leaders, board members, employees, and consumers/users to drive the change necessary to create better, more sustainable businesses—and the steps Western governments are likely to take should tech leaders fail to do so. Steps that include reformed tax codes, reclassification of platforms as information companies, new labor laws, and algorithmic transparency and oversight.
Trampled by Unicorns’ exploration of the promise and dangers of technology is perfect for anyone with an interest in entrepreneurship, tech, and global commerce, and a hope of technology’s all-empowering prospect. An illuminating book full of insights, Trampled by Unicorns describes a realistic path forward, even as it uncovers and explains the errors of the past. As Gavet puts it, “we don’t need less tech, we need more empathetic tech.” And how that crucial distinction can be achieved by the tech companies themselves, driving change as governments actively pave the road ahead.
Table of contents
- Cover
- Epigraph
- Introduction
-
PART One: Monsters of Scale
- CHAPTER 1: Making the World a Better Place
- CHAPTER 2: Culture Bubble
- CHAPTER 3: Emerald Cities
- CHAPTER 4: The New Feudalism
-
CHAPTER 5: Anti-Social Networks
- UNDERMINING FACTS AND SCIENCE
- DEMOCRACY UNDER ATTACK
- UNRELENTING HATE
- “WHEN SHE SHOWED ME THE MESSAGES, I JUST FELT SICK”
- “#NEWZEALANDMOSQUEATTACK”
- “THE UGLY”
- YOUTUBE RECOMMENDED ALEX JONES 15 BILLION TIMES
- SECTION 230
- “YOU'RE ARGUING ABOUT WHETHER THE BABY'S DEAD”
- “I'M GOING TO SHOW YOU MORE CAR CRASHES”
- NOTES
- CHAPTER 6: Venture Capital and the Holy Grail of Scale
- CHAPTER 7: Psychos of the Valley
- CHAPTER 8: Between Scylla and Charybdis: What Happens If We Do Nothing
- PART Two: Fixing the Chaos Factory
- Epilogue: A Manifesto for Change
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Index
- End User License Agreement
Product information
- Title: Trampled by Unicorns
- Author(s):
- Release date: October 2020
- Publisher(s): Wiley
- ISBN: 9781119730644
You might also like
book
Monster
"In their 'deliberately short book' IT analysts, management consultants and technology practitioners Roehrig and Pring explore …
audiobook
Transformed
Help transform your business and innovate like the world's top tech companies! Transformed: Moving to the …
book
Competing with Unicorns
Today's tech unicorns develop software differently. They've developed a way of working that lets them scale …
book
What's Your Problem?
"The author makes a compelling case that we often start solving a problem before thinking deeply …