Business Books & Co.

In 1976 Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak founded Apple. In 1985 Jobs was forced out of Apple after a dramatic corporate power struggle. He immediately founded NeXT, another computer company that built revolutionary technology but struggled to find a market and was consistently barely surviving. 12 years later, Apple, on the brink of bankruptcy itself, would purchase NeXT and the prodigal son would return leading Apple to eventually become the most valuable company in the world. The renaissance of Apple would be built on the incredible technologies developed at NeXT and the hard-won leadership lessons that had transformed Jobs along the way. Renowned journalist and author Geoffrey Cain has written the definitive book on NeXT and the transformation of Steve Jobs as a businessman during those difficult 12 years. We are privileged to be joined by Geoffrey to discuss Steve Jobs in Exile: The Untold Story of NeXT and the Remaking of an American Visionary. Show Notes Steve Jobs in Exile via Amazon Geoffrey Cain's Website Geoffrey Cain on X Follow us on X, Facebook, and YouTube. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

The New New Thing by Michael Lewis is the story of entrepreneur and computer scientist Jim Clark, the heady days of the 1990s .com bubble, and the companies he started. Namely, Silicon Graphics, Netscape, and Healtheon. Written in 1999, it captures a particular era in Silicon Valley, including the unbridled enthusiasm of venture capitalists and startup-stock compensated software engineers thinking they can change the world at every turn. In this episode we’ll discuss the book, the time, the place, and the man, Jim Clark. Show Notes The New New Thing via Amazon S4E3 How The Internet Happened with Brian McCullough via Business Books & Co. Follow us on X, Facebook, and YouTube. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

We went to the depths of hell in Doom Guy with John Romero and to the heights of Apple’s success in Apple: The First 50 Years with David Pogue. Season 5 of Business Books & Co. had it all. From author interviews to deep analysis we read through some insightful, cinematic, and powerful books. Join us as we look back at the last season of Business Books & Co. We discuss the best, and yes, the worst, books of season 5. And at the end of the episode we’ll tell you a little bit about what’s planned for season 6. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book. Show Notes Business Books & Co. Website Business Books & Co. on X Business Books & Co. on YouTube Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and YouTube. Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

David Pogue, prolific tech writer and CBS Sunday Morning correspondent, discusses his New York Times bestselling history of Apple. He explores archival research, securing interviews at Apple Park, and the company’s pivotal moments from the Mac team’s creative culture to Jobs’ dramatic return. Conversations cover Apple’s acquisition strategy, the Newton’s surprising legacy, and Tim Cook’s quieter era.

Although the field of Artificial Intelligence has been around since the 1950s, it's only in the last few years, with the rise of Large Language Models (LLMs), that the general public has truly taken notice. Apps based on LLMs, like ChatGPT, have already upended the labor market, creating productivity gains in some roles, while eliminating others. In James Wang's new book, What You Need to Know About AI, he walks us through not only how modern machine learning works, but also what one needs to know to stay competitive in an AI-inclusive world. The book provides a wide perspective including historical context, practical advice, recent developments, and enough technical explanation to give everyone a sense of the possibilities and limits of this exciting technology. Join us as we talk to James about the book and this transformative time for our economy. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book. Show Notes What You Need to Know About AI via Amazon Weighty Thoughts James on X Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and join our Amazon book club. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini is one of the best-selling books on social psychology of all-time. Influence explains the essential ingredients that make what it calls "compliance professionals" (salespeople, marketers, negotiators) successful. Namely, seven levers of influence: reciprocation, liking, social proof, authority, scarcity, commitment, and unity. In this episode we’ll walk through all seven levers, share some of Cialdini’s memorable examples of each, and some areas where they have applied in our own careers. We’ll also discuss the merits of the book as a whole and what we most got out of reading Influence. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book like Influence. Show Notes Influence by Robert Cialdini via Amazon Season 4 Episode 1 How to Win Friends and Influence People via Business Books & Co. Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and join our Amazon book club. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

The development of quantitative trading has led to an enormous accumulation of wealth amongst a few large hedge funds. A pioneer in this space was Renaissance Technologies and its founder, Jim Simons. Instead of relying on traditional financial metrics and corporate news, quantitative models, like those utilized at Renaissance, look at much larger swaths of data fed into sophisticated machine learning algorithms. In this episode we discuss The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution by Gregory Zuckerman. Join us as to learn about how quantitative investing has changed the financial sector. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book like The Man Who Solved the Market. Show Notes The Man Who Solved the Market via Amazon Renaissance Technologies via Wikipedia Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and join our Amazon book club. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

Patrick McGee, author of *Apple in China* and former principal Apple reporter for the Financial Times, dives into the complex relationship between Apple and China. He discusses Apple's evolution from a garage startup to a global powerhouse and the intricate manufacturing strategies behind that success. McGee sheds light on the partnership with Foxconn, criticizing the external narrative of exploitation, and explores Tim Cook's outsourcing strategies. The conversation reveals the geopolitical risks involved and questions corporate leadership dynamics within Apple.

Bill Gates is known as the aggressive businessman who brought us Microsoft and pioneered the modern software business. But in his recent memoir, Source Code, we discover Trey, the kid with bad grades who resents his parents' authority. From childhood misfit to precocious teenage prodigy, he was a young person who never quite fit in but always had ambition. Source Code takes us through Bill Gates’s childhood, early entrepreneurial ventures, schooling, and the early years of Microsoft. Join us as we discuss the young Bill Gates. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book like Source Code. Show Notes Source Code by Bill Gates via Amazon BASIC: The Democratization of Computing via Kopec Explains Software Pirates of Silicon Valley via Amazon Idea Man by Paul Allen via Amazon Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and join our Amazon book club. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript

John Romero is widely regarded as one of the greatest game developers of all time. In his 2023 autobiography, Doom Guy: Life in First Person, he recounts his journey from a sometimes difficult upbringing to the heights of fame and fortune. An award-winning game designer and programmer, Romero is the co-creator of some of the most influential games of all-time, including the genre-defining Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake. While well known as an innovator in the PC, mobile, and social gaming spaces, Doom Guy also reveals Romero as an inspired and relentless entrepreneur who built the teams, culture, and business models required to create legendary games. We were privileged to be joined by John on the podcast to discuss his life, career, and of course, Doom Guy. Thank you to our friends at Audible for sponsoring this episode. Check out AudibleTrial.com/biz for a 30-day free trial of Audible and free credits toward an audio book like Doom Guy, narrated by John Romero himself. Show Notes Doom Guy by John Romero via Amazon Romero Games The Romero Shop John Romero on X John Romero on Instagram Follow us on X @BusinessBooksCo and join our Amazon book club. Edited by Giacomo Guatteri Find out more at https://businessbooksandco.comRead transcript