The Age of Surveillance Capitalism cover art

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

By: Shoshana Zuboff
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $43.99

Buy Now for $43.99

About this listen

 The “groundbreaking, magisterial, alarming”(Financial Times) exposé of the unprecedented form of power called "surveillance capitalism," and the quest by powerful corporations to predict and control our behavior

The heady optimism of the Internet’s early days has turned dark. Surveillance capitalism has deepened inequality, sown societal chaos, and undermined democracy.

The fight for a human future has never been more urgent. Shoshana Zuboff argues that we still have the power to decide what kind of world we want to live in: Will we allow surveillance capitalism to wrap us in its iron cage as it enriches the few and subjugates the many? Or will we demand the rights and laws that place this rogue power under the democratic rule of law? Only democracy can ensure that the vast new capabilities of the digital era are harnessed to the advancement of humanity. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism is a deeply original, exquisitely reasoned, and spell binding examination of our emerging information civilization and the life and death choices we face. Computer Science Consumer Behaviour & Market Research History & Culture Machine Theory & Artificial Intelligence Marketing & Sales Social Sciences Technology & Society Technology Capitalism Socialism Inspiring Social Capital

Critic Reviews

An International Bestseller

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year

A Financial Times Best Book of the Year

A Sunday Times (UK) Best Business Book of the Year

Selected by Barack Obama, Zadie Smith (in the Wall Street Journal), Jia Tolentino (in the
New Yorker), Elif Shafak (in the Guardian), and Ana Botin (in Bloomberg) as one of the
best books of 2019

Finalist for the Financial Times/McKinsey Best Book of the Year Award
“If a book’s importance is gauged by how effectively it describes the world we’re in, and how much potential it has to change said world, then in my view it’s easily the most important book to be published this century... Zuboff is concerned with the largest act of capitalist colonisation ever attempted, but the colonisation is of our minds, our behaviour, our free will, our very selves. Yet it’s not an anti‑tech book. It’s anti unregulated capitalism, red in tooth and claw. It’s really this generation’s Das Kapital.”—Zadie Smith
“Extraordinarily intelligent... Absorbing Zuboff’s methodical determination, the way she pieces together sundry examples into this comprehensive work of scholarship and synthesis, requires patience, but the rewards are considerable ‑ a heightened sense of awareness, and a deeper appreciation of what’s at stake. A business model that seeks growth by cataloging our ‘every move, emotion, utterance and desire’ is too radical to be taken for granted. As Zuboff repeatedly says near the end of the book, ‘It is not O.K.’”—Jennifer Szalai, New York Times
“The rare volume that puts a name on a problem just as it becomes critical... This book’s major contribution is to give a name to what’s happening, to put it in cultural and historical perspective, and to ask us to pause long enough to think about the future and how it might be different from today.”—Frank Rose, Wall Street Journal
“Many adjectives could be used to describe Shoshana Zuboff’s latest book: groundbreaking, magisterial, alarming, alarmist, preposterous. One will do: unmissable... As we grope around in the darkness trying to grasp the contours of our digital era, The Age of Surveillance Capitalism shines a searing light on how this latest revolution is transforming our economy, politics, society ‑ and lives.”—John Thornhill, Financial Times
“One of the most important criticisms of the power of Big Tech.”—Rana Foroohar, Financial Times
All stars
Most relevant
Every person who wants to retain their free will should take heed of this book.

Eye opening and shocking.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
great research and synthesis. we need to regain control of our minds from the data lords hive

important book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
An informative perspective of the prevelance of Big Other and our ability to adapt as a society to the challenger to the traditional capitalistic and democratic forms

Futurists meet realists

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I thought I had a reasonable understanding of the invasion of our privacy by social media! Well this was a shock to me.
I have replaced my iPhone with a Nokia dumb phone that is not linked to the internet and is used for phone calls only.
I am not on social media other than YouTube, which will still expose me to the behavioural theft.
A must read for everyone who believes in individual freedoms!

Outstanding insights into Big Tech

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This should be considered one of the great books of our time.
For all the doom and gloom, Shoshanna does spread a message of hope and the belief that humanity can still prevail against the surveillance aristocracy.
Yes, the book is long. But it's worth it.

A masterpiece spanning past, present and future

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.