, Advance Praise for The Technological Republic
“The wizards of America’s digital revolution have produced many shiny consumer
products and apps. But they have often remained aloof from engaging in a sense
of national purpose or common good. This book is a rallying cry, as we enter the
age of artificial intelligence, for a return to the World War II era of cooperation
between the technology industry and government in order to pursue innovation
that will advance our national welfare and democratic goals. A fascinating and
important work.”
—walter isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“Alex Karp’s book might be titled A Freethinker’s Manifesto. He decries the
arrogance and small-mindedness of Silicon Valley and explains his passionate
commitment to defending the West and its cultural values. Karp is a polymath: He
and his co-author, Nicholas Zamiska, take the reader on an intellectual tour from
anthropology to art and music to history and philosophy to explain what matters
for our survival and success. He subtly quotes many brilliant thinkers, but I think
the best summation of Karp’s own iconoclastic style in creating his wildly
innovative software company, Palantir, is a quote from the comedian John
Mulaney: ‘Likability is a jail.’ ”
—david ignatius, Washington Post columnist and bestselling
author of Phantom Orbit
“Alex Karp is what the Germans call a Querdenker—an orthogonal thinker, if not a
downright contrarian one. Convinced that software could provide a service to
national security as well as consumer gratification, he has built a unique business.
The Technological Republic combines fascinating insights into Palantir’s mode of
operation (it’s influenced by the way bees swarm, comedians improvise, and Isaiah
Berlin thought) with Karp’s uncompromisingly national-liberal political philosophy.
This is a stirring manifesto for a new Manhattan Project to ensure U.S. victory in
the AI-enabled wars of the future. ‘Silicon Valley, awake!’ is Karp and Zamiska’s
message. ‘You risk losing everything if you choose cynicism over patriotism.’ ”
—niall ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at Stanford
University’s Hoover Institution and New York Times
bestselling author of The Ascent of Money and Doom
,“In today’s complicated geopolitical, technological, and economic environment, the
authors’ ability to be both well spoken and outspoken in The Technological
Republic can help us understand important issues about the future prosperity of
the United States and its allies. The book is by turns provocative and insightful,
and Alex Karp’s resilience, patriotism, and depth of experience in our rapidly
changing world provide instructive lessons and intellectual arguments for all of us
to consider.”
—jamie dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase
“The Technological Republic should be read by everyone who cares about how
technology should contribute to the protection of American values and our
security. Alex Karp and co-author Nicholas Zamiska are unafraid to offend those
among the technocratic elite who have drifted away from vital national questions
to instead develop a smug and complacent focus on shopping websites, photo-
sharing apps, and other shallow but wildly lucrative endeavors. To them, there is
no point to fighting over who gets the most luxurious stateroom on the Titanic.
Without a renewed commitment to addressing the most existential national threats
we face, serious risks to our country will continue to grow—rendering mere
business success quite hollow. Readers may not agree with every observation in
this compelling, essential book, but it demands to be read, particularly at this
dawn of the age of Artificial Intelligence. Alex Karp is a true patriot—a loving critic
of his industry and his country who wants them both to be better.”
—general james n. mattis (USMC Retired)
“Karp’s rallying cry for a ‘Technological Republic’ sets out clearly what must happen
for the democratic world to maintain its preeminence in the age of artificial
intelligence. Engineers and technologists must use their talents to ensure the
digital future enhances our democratic freedoms, not undermines them. This book
is a wake-up call for tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and beyond.”
—anders fogh rasmussen, founder of the Alliance of
Democracies Foundation and former NATO Secretary General
(2009–2014)
,
“The wizards of America’s digital revolution have produced many shiny consumer
products and apps. But they have often remained aloof from engaging in a sense
of national purpose or common good. This book is a rallying cry, as we enter the
age of artificial intelligence, for a return to the World War II era of cooperation
between the technology industry and government in order to pursue innovation
that will advance our national welfare and democratic goals. A fascinating and
important work.”
—walter isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“Alex Karp’s book might be titled A Freethinker’s Manifesto. He decries the
arrogance and small-mindedness of Silicon Valley and explains his passionate
commitment to defending the West and its cultural values. Karp is a polymath: He
and his co-author, Nicholas Zamiska, take the reader on an intellectual tour from
anthropology to art and music to history and philosophy to explain what matters
for our survival and success. He subtly quotes many brilliant thinkers, but I think
the best summation of Karp’s own iconoclastic style in creating his wildly
innovative software company, Palantir, is a quote from the comedian John
Mulaney: ‘Likability is a jail.’ ”
—david ignatius, Washington Post columnist and bestselling
author of Phantom Orbit
“Alex Karp is what the Germans call a Querdenker—an orthogonal thinker, if not a
downright contrarian one. Convinced that software could provide a service to
national security as well as consumer gratification, he has built a unique business.
The Technological Republic combines fascinating insights into Palantir’s mode of
operation (it’s influenced by the way bees swarm, comedians improvise, and Isaiah
Berlin thought) with Karp’s uncompromisingly national-liberal political philosophy.
This is a stirring manifesto for a new Manhattan Project to ensure U.S. victory in
the AI-enabled wars of the future. ‘Silicon Valley, awake!’ is Karp and Zamiska’s
message. ‘You risk losing everything if you choose cynicism over patriotism.’ ”
—niall ferguson, Milbank Family Senior Fellow at Stanford
University’s Hoover Institution and New York Times
bestselling author of The Ascent of Money and Doom
,“In today’s complicated geopolitical, technological, and economic environment, the
authors’ ability to be both well spoken and outspoken in The Technological
Republic can help us understand important issues about the future prosperity of
the United States and its allies. The book is by turns provocative and insightful,
and Alex Karp’s resilience, patriotism, and depth of experience in our rapidly
changing world provide instructive lessons and intellectual arguments for all of us
to consider.”
—jamie dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase
“The Technological Republic should be read by everyone who cares about how
technology should contribute to the protection of American values and our
security. Alex Karp and co-author Nicholas Zamiska are unafraid to offend those
among the technocratic elite who have drifted away from vital national questions
to instead develop a smug and complacent focus on shopping websites, photo-
sharing apps, and other shallow but wildly lucrative endeavors. To them, there is
no point to fighting over who gets the most luxurious stateroom on the Titanic.
Without a renewed commitment to addressing the most existential national threats
we face, serious risks to our country will continue to grow—rendering mere
business success quite hollow. Readers may not agree with every observation in
this compelling, essential book, but it demands to be read, particularly at this
dawn of the age of Artificial Intelligence. Alex Karp is a true patriot—a loving critic
of his industry and his country who wants them both to be better.”
—general james n. mattis (USMC Retired)
“Karp’s rallying cry for a ‘Technological Republic’ sets out clearly what must happen
for the democratic world to maintain its preeminence in the age of artificial
intelligence. Engineers and technologists must use their talents to ensure the
digital future enhances our democratic freedoms, not undermines them. This book
is a wake-up call for tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley and beyond.”
—anders fogh rasmussen, founder of the Alliance of
Democracies Foundation and former NATO Secretary General
(2009–2014)
,
