Bill Gross' Top Book Recommendations

Founder/Idealab

Want to know what books Bill Gross recommends? We've researched interviews, social media posts, podcasts, and articles to build a comprehensive list of Bill Gross' favorite book recommendations of all time. At Shortform, we know books. Our book guides are the best in the world. Learn why.

AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order

Kai-Fu Lee

4.3

Dr. Kai-Fu Lee—one of the world’s most respected experts on AI and China—reveals that China has suddenly caught up to the US at an astonishingly rapid and unexpected pace. In AI Superpowers, Kai-fu Lee argues powerfully that because of these unprecedented developments in AI, dramatic changes will be happening much sooner than many of us expected. Indeed, as the US-Sino AI competition begins to hea

Recommended by Arianna Huffington, Satya Nadella, Yuval Noah Harari, and 13 others.

Bill Gross

Founder/Idealab

If you were to read just ONE book about the future of technology and the huge transformation the world is about to face, it should be Kai-Fu Lee's amazing new book on #AI, coming out in a few weeks.. Its message is both scary, exciting, and wildly enlightening.. https://t.co/Sz7LBOR8HT [source]

Arianna Huffington

Founder/The Huffington Post

Kai-Fu Lee's experience as an AI pioneer, top investor, and cancer survivor has led to this brilliant book about global technology. AI Superpowers gives us a guide to a future that celebrates all the benefits that AI will bring, while cultivating what is unique about our humanity. It’s one of those books you read and think, ‘Why are people reading any other book right now when this is so clearly the one they need to be reading? [source]

Satya Nadella

CEO/Microsoft

Kai-Fu Lee's smart analysis on human-AI coexistence is clear-eyed and a must-read. We must look deep within ourselves for the values and wisdom to guide AI's development. [source]

Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change

Marc Benioff

4.2

Preview Summary

Recommended by Bill Gross, Jim Cramer, Natalie Petouhoff, and 1 others.

Bill Gross

Founder/Idealab

I've been waiting "im"patiently for @Benioff 's new book to come out. It just came out on Kindle 10 minutes ago. It's terrific. Such a powerful, simple, but important lesson and message, "Values create Value!" I'll be sharing more highlights as I read further.. https://t.co/KAgrFs31fC [source]

Jim Cramer

I love this book and have already used it as the basis for several @MadMoneyOnCNBC segments and a talk to young entrepreneurs !!! https://t.co/fLYtdYAMxC [source]

Natalie Petouhoff

Trailblazer: @salesforce Founder and co-CEO Marc Benioff’s Inspiring New Book Shows How Business is the Greatest Platform for Change @Benioff https://t.co/lcIQbvG1Qo https://t.co/TKCiIpK6ZB [source]

The Great Mental Models: General Thinking Concepts

Shane Parrish, Rhiannon Beaubien

4.2

Preview Summary

The old saying goes, "To the man with a hammer, everything looks like a nail." But anyone who has done any kind of project knows a hammer often isn't enough.

The more tools you have at your disposal, the more likely you'll use the right tool for the job — and get it done right.

The same is true when it comes to your thinking. The quality of your outcomes depends on the mental models in your head.

Recommended by Bill Gross, Matt Mullenweg, and Preston Pysh.

Bill Gross

Founder/Idealab

"I believe in the discipline of mastering the best of what other people have figured out.." great Charlie Munger quote to open the awesome new book on thinking concepts by Shane Parrish of Farnam Street https://t.co/wivKj3mLmb [source]

Matt Mullenweg

Founder & CEO/Automattic

I'm really glad this exists in the world and I can see that I will be recommending it often. [source]

Preston Pysh

I’m super pumped to listen to @farnamstreet new audio book: The Great Mental Models! Congrats on the new book Shane. @stig_brodersen [source]

How We Got to Now: Six Innovations That Made the Modern World

Steven Johnson

4.2

From the New York Times–bestselling author of Where Good Ideas Come From and Everything Bad Is Good for You, a new look at the power and legacy of great ideas.In this illustrated history, Steven Johnson explores the history of innovation over centuries, tracing facets of modern life (refrigeration, clocks, and eyeglass lenses, to name a few) from their creation by hobbyists, amateurs, and entrepre

Recommended by Bill Gross, James Altucher, and Chris Dixon.

Bill Gross

Founder/Idealab

This book really showed me the amazing pathways that led to innovations that make our lives work today. The stories are told almost like a dramatic mystery to make the history come to life with excitement and aha moments. [source]

James Altucher

Founder/StockPickr

Also add to this: “How We Got to Now” by Steven Johnson. Basically: don’t believe the myth of the lonely genius. Ideas come from a confluence of history, “the adjacent possible” specific geographic locations, etc. The connections Johnson makes are brilliant. For instance, The Gutenberg Press (which, in itself, was invented because of improvements in sewing looms), made everyone realize they had bad vision. So the science of lenses was created. So microscopes were eventually created. So germs were eventually discovered. So modern medical science was discovered. And so on. Johnson is a thinker and a linker and tells a good story. [source]