The follow-up to his very successful book, Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari looks to the “History of Tomorrow” in his book Homo Deus. Released in 2016 the book explores what has happened over the last several decades. Hunger, wars, and disease have become more manageable for most people/countries. As noted, most people are more likely to die of overeating than being malnourished. The book then looks to what may happen in the future – the continued rise of AI, new ideals, the importance of “dataism”, not to mention the rise of new god humans to replace Homo Sapiens.
While it was published 9 years ago, much of it is still relevant today and it’s fascinating to read in the midst of all the changes happening in the world in just the last 9 months. The book talks a lot about AI and the super-rich using technology to increase their wealth and life expectancy, leaving most of the world behind to suffer as their jobs are replaced by computers and are left with little meaning. It’s certainly a dystopian view. As he notes, Harari tells his ideas of the future to a colleague who’s reply is that she hopes she’s dead before all this happens. It was exactly what I thought as I was reading the passage.
While many others don’t agree with his view, as noted in various reviews, Home Deus is a fascinating look into the future. It’s one that will surely get the reader to think about what this will all actually look like and what he/she wants to leave behind for the next generation. It’s hard to fathom what happens tomorrow, but in a lot of ways, tomorrow is already here.
9/10
The Light Appears 