AI 2041
Ten Visions for Our Future
In this groundbreaking blend of imaginative storytelling and scientific forecasting, the pioneering AI expert and a leading writer of speculative fiction join forces to answer an imperative question: How will artificial intelligence change our world within twenty years? AI 2041 will be releasing mid September 2021 in the U.S. and U.K.
About the Book
AI will be the defining development of the twenty-first century. Within two decades, aspects of daily human life will be unrecognizable. AI will generate unprecedented wealth, revolutionize medicine and education through human-machine symbiosis, and create brand new forms of communication and entertainment. In liberating us from routine work, however, AI will also challenge the organizing principles of our economic and social order. Meanwhile, AI will bring new risks in the form of autonomous weapons and smart technology that inherits human bias. AI is at a tipping point, and people need to wake up – both to AI’s radiant pathways and its existential perils for life as we know it.
In this provocative, utterly original work of “scientific fiction,” Kai-Fu Lee, the former president of Google China and bestselling author of AI Superpowers, joins forces with celebrated novelist Chen Qiufan to imagine our world in 2041 and how it will be shaped by AI. In ten gripping short stories, set twenty years in the future, Lee and Chen introduce readers to an array of eye-opening characters and situations, including:
- In San Francisco, a new industry, “job reallocation,” arises to serve displaced workers
- In Tokyo, a music fan throws herself into an immersive form of celebrity worship
- In Mumbai, a teenage girl rebels when AI gets in the way of romance
- In Seoul, virtual teachers offer orphaned twins new ways to learn and connect
- In Munich, a rogue quantum computing scientist’s revenge plot imperils the world
By gazing toward a not-so-distant horizon, AI 2041 offers urgent insights into our collective future—while reminding readers that, ultimately, humankind remains the author of its destiny.
About the Authors
Kai-Fu Lee
Kai-Fu Lee is the CEO of Sinovation Ventures and New York Times bestselling author of AI Superpowers. Lee was formerly the president of Google China and a senior executive at Microsoft, SGI, and Apple. Co-chair of the Artificial Intelligence Council at the World Economic Forum, he has a bachelor's degree from Columbia and a PhD from Carnegie Mellon. Lee's numerous honors include being named to the Time 100 and Wired 25 Icons lists. He is based in Beijing.
Email: kaifu@ai2041.com
Twitter: @kaifulee
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaifulee/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drkaifulee/
Medium: https://kaifulee.medium.com/
Chen Qiufan
Chen Qiufan (aka Stanley Chan) is an award-winning author, translator, creative producer, and curator. He is the president of the World Chinese Science Fiction Association. His works include Waste Tide, Future Disease, and The Algorithms for Life. The founder of Thema Mundi, a content development studio, he lives in Beijing and Shanghai.
Email: qiufan@ai2041.com
Website: http://chenqiufan.cn/
Twitter: @chenqiufan
Endorsements
SATYA NADELLA
Satya Nadella, Chair and CEO, Microsoft
"By blending imaginative storytelling and technical expertise, Kai-Fu Lee and Chen Qiufan bring to life a vision for AI that addresses both our curiosity and our fears. Read this captivating book to better understand how and when certain technologies are likely to mature, and what that could mean for all of us."ARIANNA HUFFINGTON
Arianna Huffington, Founder, HuffPost and founder and CEO, Thrive Global
"We have reached a momentous inflection point with AI, and no other book I’ve read captures it with such stunning insight and imagination. Instead of wondering whether to trust AI, we must think of it as a tool—one that we humans are in charge of shaping. Kai-Fu Lee’s brilliant analysis in AI 2041 embodies this urgent mandate for humanity, while Chen Qiufan’s gripping stories reveal how AI can become a bridge between previously unsolvable problems and a future of new possibilities."RAY DALIO
Ray Dalio, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Principles, Co-Chairman and Co-Chief Investment Officer, Bridgewater Associates
"I recommend AI 2041 for an invaluable and entertaining vision of the future."MARC BENIOFF
Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO, Salesforce
"AI 2041 is the perfect fusion of science and fiction, illuminating the pervasive impact artificial intelligence will have in our lives and the challenges we face in shaping a techno-future that benefits all of humanity."MARK CUBAN
Mark Cuban, businessman, entrepreneur and Owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, Shark on ABC’s “Shark Tank”, bestselling author of “How to Win at the Sport of Business”
"Applying AI to business usually means learning the technology first and then figuring out how to apply it. AI 2041 allows readers to take the exact opposite approach. Through amazingly entertaining stories, Lee and Chen take us on an immersive trip through the future and then zoom out with exceptionally clear explanations of the technology at work. The result is an enjoyable and eye-opening book for those trying to understand how to apply AI."YANN LECUN
Yann LeCun, Chief AI Scientist, Facebook, NYU Professor and 2018 recipient of the Turing Award
"Making predictions about the future of AI is not for the faint of heart. This inspired collaboration between a pioneering technologist and a visionary writer of science fiction offers bold and urgent insights into how these technologies may impact our lives."In the Media
Global Versions
English (UK/BC)
Portuguese (Brazil)
Thai
Portuguese (Portugal)
French
Traditional Chinese
Polish
German
Simplified Chinese
Hungarian
- For press inquiries, please email: Sarah Breivogel, sbreivogel@prh.comFor bulk orders of 25 copies or more, please email: BTBSales@penguinrandomhouse.com