I selected this book as reference for a thriller I'm writing about an AI. I want him human but must maintain the truth that he's a machine. I set that book aside to pursue another genre but will get back to it. I'll review this book then. From paging through it, it looks good.

After reading this book, I felt somewhat redeemed. Over the last several years, I have discussed/argued/insisted that robots will NOT replace humans and take away all our jobs. I would point out that mankind has gone through transformations in the past, and each time more jobs were created and life actually got better. Years of reading sci-fi had presented many sides of this question, and helped to dispel any worrisome thoughts.

Receiving solid backup from authors Daniel Newman and Olivier Blanchard was encouraging. They even added the caveat that it would be in everyone’s best interest to begin preparing for this new world now, something I had also preached. My nuts and bolts knowledge didn’t extend much beyond these talking points. Fortunately, the authors have put plenty of thought and time into this subject, and presented a book full of facts.

Human/Machine goes into depth on the possibilities that await us while preferring not to get too far ahead of current reality. Although periodically the book would peer 30 years into the future, most of the book focuses on the present and moving through the next decade (leaving the prognosticating to those brave enough to take their crystal balls out of the closet. The authors recognized that there are too many variables preventing a reliable vision into what the future may look like in 2050).

I thought it was helpful to dive into specific areas, addressing which jobs might be more at risk. This took us into white- and blue-collar jobs, and eventually into job categories and titles. The authors offered suggestions, sharing preparatory steps for any of us to take to be ready for the job shifts (and in reality, doesn’t retaining any job have a lot to do with being valuable to the company you work for?). Other chapters dealt with the ethics and morality of what tech companies create (think Big Brother, then consider the exact opposite) and embracing a future where humans work in more of a symbiotic relationship with AI rather than one that is adversarial.

Newman/Blanchard do inject repetition of their common themes throughout the book (prepare for the upcoming changes, work with rather than against robots, etc.), a bit bothersome when I felt I had “got it” the first time around. Even though on several occasions they insisted the book was for the normal person out in the job market, there were many terms and acronyms used without layman explanations. In retrospect, maybe this was their way of reminding me how I already interact with machines and programming, because at those moments, Google was my friend.

I recommend this book, especially those between the ages of 15-55 (and anyone 55+ who wishes to remain longer in the job market). Although there is repetition of themes/thoughts in the book, the message is clear: Anyone can be a thriving part of the future economy, but the time to prepare for it is now. Three stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Kogan Page Ltd for a complimentary ebook of this title.

I fundamentally disagree with the authors premise and conclusions. Most of the book sounds like it was written from an older, business type who just doesn't understand the fast advancement of AI and machine learning.

Their argument is that automation will slowly approach and enhance worker's jobs by eliminating monotonous tasks, but I wholeheartedly disagree as we are already seeing machines like self-checkouts in grocery stores popping up every day.

In the developer community, I see other developers working on AI/automation everyday to eliminate people's jobs and are a lot closer than what is presented in this book. It feels like maybe this was a book written by 'management' that doesn't really comprehend the amazing changes that are on the cusp.

Even though I was looking forward to reading this, I found myself disagreeing with the authors arguments on nearly every page, so for that reason it was a difficult read. I would not recommend this book solely for the fact that it feels like the authors are treating AI just like any other passing technology, rather than the game changing force that it will become.

Artificial intelligence is changing the world. Many are already offering interesting insights into applying technology to make us better is countless ways. Sadly, Human/Machine: The Future of Our Partnership with Machines fails to provide anything that even resembles valuable information. Here's why it misses the mark.

Human/Machine Failure

There are no shortage of new books about artificial intelligence. I've reviewed 5 others in just the past 6 months. Many provide helpful information on how this tech will transform our world and the ways you can harness it to supercharge your business and life. Human/Machine is such a mess, it falls short of even the most basic books on the topic.

Lack Of Knowledge

First, it seems there's a lack of understanding around the possibilities AI will enable. The authors seem to have a very narrow view of the tech and what it may be used to accomplish. While it's seen explosive growth over the past couple years, their view seems to believe that it will suddenly grind to a halt and make very little advancement from its current state over the next 5-10 years.

It's really by far the most cautious look at AI technology of the numerous books I've read on the topic. They avoid even making guesses at where it may take us and instead make AI sound limited. Maybe they don't understand the opportunities AI will bring, but their failure to understand those possibilities make the technology appear to be far from the game-changer it is. Talk about selling it short.

While they take a very conservative view of AI abilities most of the time, the authors have no problem expunging on the limitations it will be hampered by (in their view). "No matter how advanced machine learning, smart automation, and artificial intelligence get in the next 30 years, they will not develop better complex business decision-making skills than humans." That's an INCREDIBLY bold claim and one that most experts seem to disagree with.

Throughout the book, lots of the examples of AI which aren't actually AI. Sending an email to someone 48 hours before an event is given as an example of AI usage, but such a task in no way requires use of this tech. I can simply schedule an automatic message, in the same way you receive a welcome email when you signup for a newsletter. All that is required are basic web tools that have been around for over a decade.

The ignorance here is unbelievable. "We can go on and on about this, and our conclusion is always the same: an AI can assist and augment but not truly and effectively replace, nor should it." You can believe it shouldn't but it's pure stupidity to believe that AI won't be able to replace, as we've already seen it do many cases already, and without a doubt will even more in the future.

In reading Human/Machine, it's clear the authors don't have a great handle on the topic of focus.

Woeful Wording

It's not just the lack of knowledge that this book suffers from but also the way it's written.

Throughout the book there are lists and in nearly every case, they're far too long. You don't need to list every possible career impacted AI may bring. 3-5 will do. Twenty is far too many. These lists drag on until you skip fully reading them because the point was made long ago. We don't need countless further examples to understand the impact.

"Machine learning, smart automation and artificial intelligence" is used in sentences throughout the book and I think you'd agree that it's bit of a long one. Where most abbreviate machine learning as ML and artificial intelligence as AI, that's never done here. Abbreviations are used so we don't have to keep repeating long terms needlessly. Please use them.

Often the authors struggle to stay on-topic. When talking about opportunities for workers displaced by future tech, general examples are given for white-collar and other workers then out of nowhere they go on a strange deep-dive into exoskeletons for blue-collar workers. They even explore the various categories to which exoskeleton technology falls. Are these guys getting some kind of kickback from the exoskeleton folks? It was a senseless detour, that was completely off-topic in the context.

As the book goes on, it becomes abundantly clear that the authors were given a minimum length requirement from their publisher and they're struggling to hit it. Repetition becomes rampant and incredibly drawn-out explanations are everywhere, without warrant. You get to the point of praying for chapters to end, just to make the boring babble stop. A good editing could cut this thing in half.

It's clear they're clueless as to how to wrap the book, so it ends with the same arguments and conclusions, which have been brought up and beaten to death throughout the previous 8 chapters.

No Audience, No Thanks

Even if we're to ignore the countless issues above (which we can't), possibly the biggest problem Human/Machine faces is that it has no focus. It tries to be a book for those who will potentially be displaced by AI technology, while also trying to speak to where the tech may take us. At the same time it also attempts to guide business leaders, and advise government on laws and more. In trying to be all things to everyone, it ends up being nothing for anyone.

In the end, it's not even worth bothering with. Human/Machine: The Future of Our Partnership with Machines is mind-numbingly boring, lacks knowledge on the topic it attempts to cover, and simply isn't worth your time. Skip it and check out one of the other books on the future of artificial intelligence recently reviewed here instead.