Issue 04
The Fabric of CivilizationVirginia Postrel
2020 · History
The Fabric of Civilization
What if the history of technological progress could be told through a single thread? Virginia Postrel traces the extraordinary influence of textiles, revealing how the need to spin, weave and dye fabric helped transform trade, mathematics, engineering and entire economies. From ancient silk routes to industrial machinery, the book challenges the assumption that textiles belong exclusively to the world of fashion. A particularly fascinating read at a moment when companies are reimagining how fabrics themselves are made. Sometimes the most revolutionary technologies are hidden in the things we take for granted.
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The Alchemy of UsAinissa Ramirez
2020 · Materials
The Alchemy of Us
Materials scientist Ainissa Ramirez explores the surprisingly intimate relationship between invention and everyday life. Through eight technological breakthroughs, including clocks, photography, steel rails and silicon chips, she reveals how the objects humans create eventually transform the societies that created them. The book moves between science, history and unexpected human stories, challenging the familiar narrative of innovation as a straightforward march towards progress. An original exploration of how technology doesn’t merely change what we can do, but also who we become.
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The Genesis MachineAmy Webb & Andrew Hessel
2022 · Biology
The Genesis Machine
For centuries, humanity has learned to understand and manipulate the biological world. But what happens when we begin to design it? Amy Webb and Andrew Hessel explore the emerging field of synthetic biology, where advances in computing, genetics and engineering are making it increasingly possible to create biological systems with specific functions. From personalised medicine to food production, the implications extend far beyond the laboratory. An ambitious examination of the opportunities, commercial possibilities and ethical questions surrounding one of technology’s most consequential frontiers. The future of innovation may be written not in software, but in DNA.
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Issue 03
The Nature of TechnologyW. Brian Arthur
2009 · Innovation
The Nature of Technology
Technology doesn’t appear out of nowhere. It evolves. Arthur’s cult-ish 2009 book explains why innovation is usually the recombination of things that already exist, a surprisingly useful lens for understanding almost every company in this issue.
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The Machinery of LifeDavid S. Goodsell
2009 · Biology
The Machinery of Life
A beautifully illustrated trip inside the molecular machines that make life work. Read this after Basecamp and suddenly proteins, DNA and cells stop feeling abstract and start looking like the most sophisticated engineering system on Earth.
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The Kill ChainChristian Brose
2020 · Defence
The Kill Chain
A sharp account of why autonomous systems, AI and networks are reshaping modern defence. The perfect companion to Anduril, and a reminder that the biggest technological shifts often require an entirely new business model around them.
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Issue 02
Material WorldEd Conway
2023 · Materials
Material World
For understanding what the future is physically made of. Conway follows sand, salt, iron, copper, oil and lithium through mines, factories and supply chains to show how physical the digital world still is.
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The Unaccountability MachineDan Davies
2024 · Systems
The Unaccountability Machine
For understanding why systems become smarter, and sometimes stupider, than the people inside them. Read this if you have ever wondered why intelligent people inside companies create incredibly stupid systems.
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The Thinking MachineStephen Witt
2025 · Technology
The Thinking Machine
For understanding how a company can prepare for a revolution before anyone knows it’s coming. The inside story of how Nvidia went from video-game graphics to the centre of AI.
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Issue 01
LoonshotsSafi Bahcall
2019 · Innovation
Loonshots
A physicist explains why great organisations kill their wildest ideas, and how the few that don't end up winning wars, curing diseases and changing industries.
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The Idea FactoryJon Gertner
2012 · History
The Idea Factory
Inside Bell Labs, the research lab that gave us the transistor, the laser and information theory. The best case ever made for patient, curious companies.
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Invention and InnovationVaclav Smil
2023 · Technology
Invention and Innovation
The perfect antidote to hype. A short history of inventions that were meant to change everything, and the quieter reasons some actually did.
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