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Supremacy, Parmy Olson

WINNER OF THE 2024 FINANCIAL TIMES BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD

Join us at the Data Ethics & Society Reading Group to discuss Supremacy by Parmy Olson. 

👋 We will be holding two sessions over two weeks. The sessions will each focus on a different section of the book- but if you can't make the one you want to come to, we can still guarantee a great conversation! Read more about our changes in our recent Data in Government blog post.

See 'Sessions' below for more details.

The event is FREE to attend, but places are limited so please sign up to reserve your spot! 

"Discover the never-before-told story of the ruthless shadow race between Microsoft and Google, as both compete to develop a mass-market AI while juggling existential questions of ethics, human progress and the future of the world as we know it."

Sessions

We will discuss this book over two sessions, you can attend both if you want.

• Tue 29 Apr 2025 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM (focusing on the first half of the book, loosely themed 'AI ethics & AI safety')
• Wed 14 May 2025 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM (the last half of the book, focusing on the theme: 'The race: lessons learned')

When securing your space you will be asked which date you want to attend.
If you would like to attend both please select 'Both sessions'. 

Please note signups for the first session will close on Friday 11th April at 6pm. Signups for the last session close on Friday 2nd May at 6pm.

AI ethics & AI safety

Sam Altman, Demis Hassabis and others have drawn a lot of attention to the possible utopian/dystopian world AI may create; how important is AI safety in your view and to what degree does it obscure, or work alongside, other ethical challenges posed by AI?

The race: lessons learned

The book tells the story of OpenAI and DeepMind from their inception to 2024. How much did you learn from the book about how technology is shaping our world, and what do you think about these companies' approaches to ethics?

Reviews

A review from Madhumita Murgia, author of Code Dependent, which we read last year:

"A clear and compelling read about one of the most consequential races in the world – the invention of artificial general intelligence – filled with surprising and juicy details about the powerful men at the heart of it. The deep research in Supremacy reveals startling news and facts as yet unreported about two of the world’s most scrutinized companies"

A review from our panel member:

"The content of Supremacy is a little different to a lot of the 14 (!) books the group has read in the past five years (see here). Many of these books understandably cover a lot of the same examples (e.g. COMPAS). I feel like Supremacy offers fresh material for our readers. It follows the story of Sam Altmann and Demis Hassabis, from their early years of designing video games and coding, through to their ideas (and fears) about AI and how these shaped the inception and core principles of OpenAI and DeepMind. The book then explores the steps each took to try and win the GenAI race, including shifts in their philosophies and personalities, and what deals were made with tech giants. The book does bring in figures familiar to our readers, including the stories of Joy Buolamwini , Timnit Gebru and others, as well as first-hand accounts from OpenAI and DeepMind employees, but what I liked the most was it provided me with plenty of food-for-thought whilst reading on what really goes on in a business from start-up to global powerhouse in the world of technology, the same technology our departments may be procuring today."

About us

See our GitHub page for more information.

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Harriet & Michael (organisers of Data Science: Ethics & Society Reading Group events)