I tend to shy away from "business" books as for the most part they deal in generalities ("increase profits by cutting costs....I'll show you how!"); lack context (which market does this company play in?) or inundate the reader with inside jargon ("looking at synergies in a cross-pollinated ecosystem..."). Fortunately this book does none of that! Plus it addresses a real-world issue that isn't just a business issue. Artificial Intelligence. It's a scary couple words and an even scarier concept. So many misconceptions - first being that a lay person cannot understand it. At the outset of the book, the authors break down the concept into plan English and demystify it. The second being our lives will be overrun by AI making all our decisions. This is the most crucial take away from the book - that is NOT the case. The entire premise of the book which is addressed so skillfully is that humans and AI are inseparable. One does not exist without the other and each makes the other better in some way. Whether through climate change models, better health care outcomes or more efficient pricing, we co-exist.
As noted above, one of the major shortcomings of a lot of books on this topic is the lack of real and relatable examples. Oftentimes there's one or two case studies and the reader is expected to extrapolate from that. The authors here provide a vast array of studies across all types of industries (electronics, fashion, health care, insurance, etc.), which adds credibility and relatability to work. Plus in each case study there is context - so essential in grasping the concepts.
Lastly, as noted, it's written in plain English - very little jargon (though I did have to Google "Bayesian" but I should have paid closer attention in stats class). The tone of the writing is as if you're having a conversation with the authors - they are talking TO you, not AT you.
This is obviously a complex and evolving technology and it's refreshing to read about it in this way -not with writers who feel they have all the answers, but with writers who know how to pose the right questions.