In The New Empire, award-winning journalist and AI expert Karen Hao delivers a gripping investigation into the high-stakes tech arms race led by OpenAI and its enigmatic CEO, Sam Altman. Once founded as a nonprofit dedicated to AI safety, OpenAI has evolved into a dominant force shaping the future of technology and power. With unprecedented access and insider knowledge, Hao traces the company?s meteoric rise while exposing the hidden costs behind the AI boom?massive energy consumption, exploitation of low-wage labour in the Global South, and the scramble for scarce computing resources.
This is not just a story about cutting-edge innovation?it?s a chilling examination of how a handful of ultra-powerful companies are reshaping our world in pursuit of dominance. Hao?s eye-opening account pulls back the curtain on Silicon Valley?s most influential players and asks urgent questions about the ethics, control, and consequences of AI development. Timely, bold, and deeply reported, The New Empire is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the future being built around us.