Artificially Intelligent

“AI is the magic of our day. David Eliot – an actual real-life magician, AI researcher, academic, and wonderful writer – takes us on a journey through the origins of AI, what it means for us today, and the future that is coming faster than we ever dreamed.” - Miro Cernetig, CEO and Publisher, CityAge, and Former China and New York Correspondent, The Globe and Mail

“Finally, an AI book that informs and inspires rather than intimidates. David Eliot lays out in compelling fashion why all of us, not just technologists, have a role in shaping the future of AI. Highly accessible, timely, and democratic.” - Jennifer Ewbank, Former Deputy Director of CIA for Digital Innovation

“With impressive dexterity, David Eliot negotiates the twists and turns in the evolution of AI that have landed us in a world of ‘ubiquitous computing,’ where we’ve become cyborgs of a sort in a surveillance state. He invites us to see the ‘digital enclosures’ created by the likes of Google and Facebook, and warns us that the control of data is power. But things are not hopeless. Eliot insists that if we understand the impact of AI on our lives, and not just passively use it, we can resist the wealth inequality it has created. He cautions us that a storm is coming, and we need to prepare. An important book.” - Rosemary Sullivan, author of Stalin's Daughter and the New York Times bestseller The Betrayal of Anne Frank

“Artificially Intelligent is a compelling and timely reflection on one of the most transformative forces of our time. David Eliot brings both clarity and depth to a topic too often shrouded in hype or fear. As a professor of marketing and chair of major boards, I see daily how AI is reshaping decision-making, creativity, and governance. This book reminds us that the story of AI is still being written – and that we all have a role to play in shaping its future.” - Johanne Brunet, PhD, Full Professor of Marketing, HEC Montréal and Chair of the Board, SAQ, SQDC, and Groupe TCJ Inc.

“Artificially Intelligent astutely identifies artificial intelligence as the Rorschach test of our time: both savior and saboteur to society. In an accessible writing style, David Eliot cogently presents the promise and threats of artificial intelligence. Equally important, he persuasively argues that humans, on an individual and societal level, must take an active role in shaping the evolution of this technology.” - Albert Yoon, Michael J. Trebilcock Chair in Law and Economics, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto

“This engaging and hopeful book offers a culturally and historically rich account of AI’s human foundations, weaving distant episodes into a cohesive narrative that remains insightful even to well-informed readers. With keen sensitivity to social implications, it illuminates how AI is profoundly reshaping society.” - Zsuzsanna Szegedy-Maszak, Curator of Photography, Hungarian National Museum

“Conventional discussions of AI are often trapped in simplistic dichotomies: humans vs. machines, hope vs. fear, capable vs. incapable, before vs. after, and so on. In Artificially Intelligent, Eliot offers a social understanding of AI’s emergence that frees readers from these limiting frames. He crafts an empowering narrative and invites us to take an active role in this unfolding process.” - Jean-Frédéric Morin, Professor of Political Science, Université Laval

“Artificially Intelligent is the most lucid and approachable discussion of artificial intelligence I have read. Throughout, Eliot intertwines the story of his own interest in AI with stories of some of the pioneers of the field, from the eighth-century figure who gave us the word ‘algorithm’ to the leading figures of today. He is clearly excited at the possibilities for AI to improve our lives but argues that the way it is being implemented politically is leading us in the wrong direction. AI is not some vision for the future but rather is already deeply embedded in many systems that shape our lives today. Eliot explains the trade-offs we are making, explores the potential negative impacts, but nevertheless ends with hope. This is a book that I would recommend to anyone seeking to understand the larger context of the adoption of AI.” - Virginia Haufler, Professor, Department of Government and Politics, University of Maryland, College Park