Nova's PicksThe AI Literacy Program: Understand the Technology Reshaping Everything
A growth plan for understanding the AI revolution not just technologically but historically, economically, and politically — who benefits, who decides, and how to think clearly about the most consequential technological transition of our lifetimes.
1. Module 1 · Understand What's Actually Happening
Build a rigorous, evidence-grounded understanding of what AI is, how it works, and what historical parallels can actually tell us.
A Brief History of Intelligence
Max Bennett's evolutionary account of how intelligence developed across five biological breakthroughs.
The Alignment Problem
Brian Christian's deep investigation into the values and safety challenges at the frontier of AI development.
Human Compatible
Stuart Russell's landmark reframing of AI safety by one of the field's founders.
2. Module 2 · The Geopolitics & Economics of AI
AI is not just technology. It's a new domain of great power competition and economic transformation.
AI Superpowers
The essential geopolitical text for understanding where AI power will be concentrated.
Chip War
Chris Miller's gripping history of semiconductors as the strategic foundation of AI.
Power and Progress
Acemoglu and Johnson's historical argument that technological benefits rarely distribute automatically.
3. Module 3 · Living and Working in the AI Age
From abstract geopolitics to personal reality: how to think about your career, your creativity, and your role in a world being fundamentally restructured by machine intelligence.
AI Needs You
Verity Harding's optimistic but rigorous argument that democratic societies must actively shape AI development.
Co-Intelligence
Wharton professor Ethan Mollick's hands-on guide to working alongside AI.
Competing in the Age of AI
Iansiti and Lakhani's framework for how AI-first companies operate differently.
The Coming Wave
Mustafa Suleyman's (DeepMind co-founder) account of the dual-use dilemma at the heart of AI.