-
Your next favorite book
is waiting.
Savior or Destroyer? The History and Future of Artificial Intelligence
by George Zarkadakis
A timely and important book that explores the history and future, as well as the societal and ethical implications, of Artificial Intelligence as we approach the cusp of a fourth industrial revolution.
Zarkadakis explores one of humankind's oldest love-hate relationships - our ties with artificial intelligence, or AI. He traces AI's origins in ancient myth, through literary classics like Frankenstein, to today's sci-fi blockbusters, arguing that a fascination with AI is hardwired into the human psyche. He explains AI's history, technology, and potential; its manifestations in intelligent machines; its connections to neurology and consciousness, as well as - perhaps most tellingly - what AI reveals about us as human beings.
In Our Own Image argues that we are on the brink of a fourth industrial revolution - poised to enter the age of Artificial Intelligence as science fiction becomes science fact. Ultimately, Zarkadakis observes, the fate of AI has profound implications for the future of science and humanity itself.
"Starred Review. A delightfully lucid combination of the history, philosophy, and science behind thinking machines." - Kirkus
"Starred Review. By the conclusion of this highly accessible work, Zarkadakis convincingly posits a future in which "post-humanism will have morphed into trans-humanism," showing how a romance with AI will present humans with a daunting dilemma." - Publishers Weekly
This information about In Our Own Image was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
George Zarkadakis has a PhD in Artificial Intelligence. He has worked for various companies and organizations, including Accenture and Silicon Graphics, and is currently a digital transformation consultant and web entrepreneur. Awarded a knighthood by the French government for his international work in science communication, Zarkadakis writes for several international publications including the Daily Telegraph, the Huffington Post and Aeon magazine. He lives in London.
If you liked In Our Own Image, try these:
by Jayson Greene
Published 2026
From the author of Once More We Saw Stars comes a gripping novel about four intertwined lives that collide in the wake of a mysterious tragedy. Set in a near-future world where the boundaries between human and AI blur, the story challenges our understanding of consciousness and humanity.
by Nnedi Okorafor
Published 2026
In this exhilarating tale by New York Times bestselling and award-winning author Nnedi Okorafor, a disabled Nigerian American woman pens a wildly successful Sci-Fi novel, but as her fame rises, she loses control of the narrative—a surprisingly cutting, yet heartfelt drama about art and love, identity and connection, and, ultimately, what...
by Anton Hur
Published 2025
Negotiating the terrain of Kazuo Ishiguro's Klara and the Sun and Emily St. John Mandel's Sea of Tranquility, a brilliant, haunting speculative novel from a #1 New York Times bestselling translator that sets out to answer the question: What does it mean to be human in a world where technology is quickly catching up to biology?
L.A. Women by Ella Berman
Two ambitious writers in 1960s LA face betrayal when one writes a novel based on the other's life.
Your guide toexceptional books
BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
