AGI: Beyond Current Models

by Maria Johnsen

484 pages, Paperback

Published July 24, 2025

About the author

Maria Johnsen, originating from Trondheim, Norway, is a multifaceted expert with a wide range of skills that span AI computer engineering, film and TV investment, writing, directing, producing, poetry, and digital marketing. Her multilingual upbringing significantly contributed to her linguistic expertise. Her academic background is equally diverse, encompassing Information Technology, Informatics, Beauty Arts and Culture, Computer Engineering, and Film Production.
Maria’s remarkable work has earned her numerous accolades, including the International Star Award for quality leadership, innovation, and excellence in 2019. Her films, available on platforms like Amazon Prime, have reached audiences in over 200 countries. In addition to her success in filmmaking, Maria has authored 85 books across multiple languages, including English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese, and Dutch, many of which are used as educational materials in postgraduate studies. Her influence as an author spans the globe, with her works being utilized in universities across North America and Europe.
Some of her most notable titles include Search Engine Revolution, The Business of Filmmaking: Building a Business and Networking Strategies in the Movie Industry, AI in Digital Marketing, The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Marketing: The Next Big Technological Break, Blockchain in Digital Marketing: A New Paradigm of Trust, Multilingual Digital Marketing: Managing for Excellence in Online Marketing, AI and Moral Dilemmas, Large Language Models (LLMs), Self-Aware AI Robot, Computer Engineering, Neural Networks, and Sales in The Age of the Intelligent Web. These works highlight her deep knowledge of digital marketing and emerging technologies.
Maria’s educational experiences have taken her around the world, with studies at Sorbonne University in Paris, Kharkov University in Ukraine, and other institutions in Changchun, China, where she became proficient in Korean and Chinese. She has taught English, French, and Russian to undergraduate and postgraduate students, achieving a notable 70% success rate in helping her students secure scholarships for further studies in the US and Canada.
As an entrepreneur, Maria founded Golden Way Media, a global business promotion company. Based in London, UK, she leads both Golden Way Media Films and Golden Way Media, a digital marketing firm in Norway. Recognized as one of the top digital marketing influencers worldwide and among the top 100 global influencers in artificial intelligence (AI) and Fintech by Onalytica in 2016, Maria continues to thrive in multiple fields. She also writes commercially viable screenplays, making a significant impact in the film industry.

Reviews

[Josh Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book felt refreshingly grounded. I’ve read a lot of AI/AGI stuff that either overhypes current models or just repeats the same talking points, and this didn’t do that.

One thing I liked was that Maria Johnsen briefly walks through some of her own inventions and ideas not in a “look how amazing this is” way, but more to show how she’s been thinking about the problem from different angles over time. It helps add context to the rest of the book and makes it clear she’s actually been hands on with this stuff, not just commenting from the sidelines. I am also following her youtube and social media channels as she gives some tips on AI and AGI.

The core of the book is pretty honest about where current models fall apart: shallow reasoning, poor generalization, brittle behavior, and the limits of just scaling everything up. If you’ve worked with LLMs or followed AI research closely, a lot of this will feel familiar but the way it’s tied together makes you rethink how far we really are from anything resembling true AGI.

Some sections are dense and you have to slow down, but I didn’t mind that. It felt more like someone thinking out loud and sharing real conclusions rather than trying to impress or sell a vision. The ethics and alignment discussions also felt integrated, not tacked on at the end.

Overall, it reads like a book written by someone who’s actually spent time building and breaking systems. If you’re already AI literate and tired of hype, this is a solid, thoughtful read.

[Ingvar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author takes something complex and makes it engaging. Instead of just rehashing the same familiar explanations about AI we’ve all heard before, she pushes readers to think farther: What comes after today’s models? How might future forms of intelligence differ from what we know? And what could it mean for humanity? What I loved most is how the book strikes a great balance: it’s ambitious and forward-thinking without being unnecessarily technical or overwhelming. You can tell the author has done her homework, but she writes in a way that keeps the conversation lively and accessible. There’s curiosity on every page and a genuine sense of wonder about where the next breakthroughs might come from. It made me excited about the future and eager to explore these ideas further. A super compelling read