👁️ Surveillance Capitalism

Critical examinations of how tech companies harvest human experience as raw material for prediction and profit. These books expose the hidden economy of personal data and its consequences for autonomy and democracy.

Targeted

by Brittany Kaiser • 2019

87 million stolen Facebook profiles, two elections, and one whistleblower's confession.

3.58

1k+

📊 Data-Driven Campaigning ⚖️ Tech Ethics 🎯 Behavioral Targeting 🗳️ Election Interference 🕶️ Whistleblowing

Targeted

87 million stolen Facebook profiles, two elections, and one whistleblower's confession.

by Brittany Kaiser 2019

3.58

1k+ ratings

📊 Data-Driven Campaigning ⚖️ Tech Ethics 🎯 Behavioral Targeting 🗳️ Election Interference 🕶️ Whistleblowing

Artificial Intelligence

by Neil Wilkins • 2019

The AI taking your job tomorrow does not exist. The fear is manufactured for profit.

3.18

🤖 Ai Skepticism 🔍 Technology Criticism 🔒 Digital Privacy 💼 Future Of Work ⚖️ Ai Ethics

Artificial Intelligence

The AI taking your job tomorrow does not exist. The fear is manufactured for profit.

by Neil Wilkins 2019

3.18

17 ratings

🤖 Ai Skepticism 🔍 Technology Criticism 🔒 Digital Privacy 💼 Future Of Work ⚖️ Ai Ethics

The Age of Extraction

by Tim Wu • 2025

Tech platforms now extract wealth from everyone. History shows where that concentration leads.

3.89

1k+

🏗️ Platform Economics ⚖️ Antitrust Policy 🔍 Big Tech Critique 💰 Extractive Capitalism 👁️ Attention Economy

The Age of Extraction

Tech platforms now extract wealth from everyone. History shows where that concentration leads.

by Tim Wu 2025

3.89

1k+ ratings

🏗️ Platform Economics ⚖️ Antitrust Policy 🔍 Big Tech Critique 💰 Extractive Capitalism 👁️ Attention Economy

Tech Agnostic

by Greg Epstein • 2024

Technology sold you a faith: saints, sacraments, apocalypse. The humanist case for walking away.

3.49

156

🕉️ Digital Religion ⚙️ Technology Criticism 🤔 Techno-Skepticism 🤖 Algorithmic Bias 📱 Phone Addiction

Tech Agnostic

Technology sold you a faith: saints, sacraments, apocalypse. The humanist case for walking away.

by Greg Epstein 2024

3.49

156 ratings

🕉️ Digital Religion ⚙️ Technology Criticism 🤔 Techno-Skepticism 🤖 Algorithmic Bias 📱 Phone Addiction

Dream Lovers

by Alfie Bown • 2022

Dating apps and VR porn aren't built for your satisfaction. They want you predictable.

3.62

🏭 Platform Capitalism 📡 Media Studies 🛋️ Lacanian Psychoanalysis 🎮 Gamification Critique ⚖️ Algorithmic Bias

Dream Lovers

Dating apps and VR porn aren't built for your satisfaction. They want you predictable.

by Alfie Bown 2022

3.62

42 ratings

🏭 Platform Capitalism 📡 Media Studies 🛋️ Lacanian Psychoanalysis 🎮 Gamification Critique ⚖️ Algorithmic Bias

Algorithms of Oppression

by Safiya Umoja Noble • 2018

The search results you trust are shaped by profit, not truth, and they quietly reinforce racism.

3.89

4k+

🖥️ Algorithmic Bias 📚 Critical Race Theory ⚖️ Data Justice 🏛️ Platform Accountability 📺 Race And Media

Algorithms of Oppression

The search results you trust are shaped by profit, not truth, and they quietly reinforce racism.

by Safiya Umoja Noble 2018

3.89

4k+ ratings

🖥️ Algorithmic Bias 📚 Critical Race Theory ⚖️ Data Justice 🏛️ Platform Accountability 📺 Race And Media

Anatomy of Fake News

by Nolan Higdon • 2020

Censorship backfires against fake news. Tech fixes flop. The only cure is a skill schools abandoned.

4.00

📰 Media Literacy 📋 News Literacy 🔍 Disinformation Studies 📢 Propaganda Analysis 💰 Attention Economy

Anatomy of Fake News

Censorship backfires against fake news. Tech fixes flop. The only cure is a skill schools abandoned.

by Nolan Higdon 2020

4.00

35 ratings

📰 Media Literacy 📋 News Literacy 🔍 Disinformation Studies 📢 Propaganda Analysis 💰 Attention Economy

Global Civil War

by William I. Robinson • 2022

Tech giants, banks, and the military used Covid to fuse into a global surveillance order.

4.13

📊 Political Economy 🌐 Global Capitalism 📈 Marxist Economics 💻 Digital Capitalism 🤖 Labor And Automation

Global Civil War

Tech giants, banks, and the military used Covid to fuse into a global surveillance order.

by William I. Robinson 2022

4.13

32 ratings

📊 Political Economy 🌐 Global Capitalism 📈 Marxist Economics 💻 Digital Capitalism 🤖 Labor And Automation

Addiction by Design

by Natasha Dow Schüll • 2012

Machine gambling is engineered to dissolve the self. Winning is just a chance to keep playing.

4.18

1k+

🎰 Machine Gambling 🏛️ Casino Design 🧠 Addiction Studies 🧩 Behavioral Design 📊 Predictive Analytics

Addiction by Design

Machine gambling is engineered to dissolve the self. Winning is just a chance to keep playing.

by Natasha Dow Schüll 2012

4.18

1k+ ratings

🎰 Machine Gambling 🏛️ Casino Design 🧠 Addiction Studies 🧩 Behavioral Design 📊 Predictive Analytics

Antisocial Media

by Siva Vaidhyanathan • 2018

Facebook promised connection; it delivered surveillance, outrage, and a gift to authoritarians.

3.86

590

📱 Social Media Criticism 👀 Attention Economy 🦠 Disinformation 🫧 Filter Bubbles 🗳️ Democratic Erosion

Antisocial Media

Facebook promised connection; it delivered surveillance, outrage, and a gift to authoritarians.

by Siva Vaidhyanathan 2018

3.86

590 ratings

📱 Social Media Criticism 👀 Attention Economy 🦠 Disinformation 🫧 Filter Bubbles 🗳️ Democratic Erosion

Bóg techy. Jak wielkie firmy technologiczne przejmują władzę nad Polską i światem

by Sylwia Czubkowska • 2025

Big tech colonized Poland without firing a shot. Here is the playbook.

4.24

938

🏴 Digital Colonialism 💰 Big Tech Monopoly 🔧 Techno-Skepticism 🤖 Algorithmic Labor 🏛️ Regulatory Capture

Bóg techy. Jak wielkie firmy technologiczne przejmują władzę nad Polską i światem

Big tech colonized Poland without firing a shot. Here is the playbook.

by Sylwia Czubkowska 2025

4.24

938 ratings

🏴 Digital Colonialism 💰 Big Tech Monopoly 🔧 Techno-Skepticism 🤖 Algorithmic Labor 🏛️ Regulatory Capture

Lurking

by Joanne McNeil • 2020

Quiet observers were the heart of the early web. Then the internet turned them into data.

3.75

889

🕰️ Internet History 💻 Digital Culture 🌐 Online Communities ⚖️ Algorithmic Bias 🪪 Digital Identity

Lurking

Quiet observers were the heart of the early web. Then the internet turned them into data.

by Joanne McNeil 2020

3.75

889 ratings

🕰️ Internet History 💻 Digital Culture 🌐 Online Communities ⚖️ Algorithmic Bias 🪪 Digital Identity

The Lonely Century

by Noreena Hertz • 2021

Loneliness harms like smoking, and the cause is not personal weakness but political design.

3.85

2k+

😔 Loneliness Epidemic 🧱 Social Capital 📉 Neoliberal Critique 🏙️ Urban Isolation 📱 Digital Alienation

The Lonely Century

Loneliness harms like smoking, and the cause is not personal weakness but political design.

by Noreena Hertz 2021

3.85

2k+ ratings

😔 Loneliness Epidemic 🧱 Social Capital 📉 Neoliberal Critique 🏙️ Urban Isolation 📱 Digital Alienation

Muskism

by Quinn Slobodian • 2026

Apartheid's high-tech logic, repackaged for the 21st century: the ideology powering Elon Musk.

3.77

765

🏛️ State Capture 📱 Attention Economy 🧠 Transhumanism 📖 Ideology Studies 🗳️ Right-Wing Movements

Muskism

Apartheid's high-tech logic, repackaged for the 21st century: the ideology powering Elon Musk.

by Quinn Slobodian 2026

3.77

765 ratings

🏛️ State Capture 📱 Attention Economy 🧠 Transhumanism 📖 Ideology Studies 🗳️ Right-Wing Movements

Previous 1 2

Compare Features	Free	Pro
📖 Read Summaries Read unlimited summaries. Free users get 3 per month
🎧 Listen to Summaries Listen to unlimited summaries in 40 languages	—
❤️ Unlimited Bookmarks Free users are limited to 4	—
📜 Unlimited History Free users are limited to 4	—
📥 Unlimited Downloads Free users are limited to 1	—

People love SoBrief

Join our global community of 600,000+ readers

★★★★★

This site is a total game-changer. I've been flying through book summaries like never before. Highly, highly recommend.

— Dave G

Worth my money and time, and really well made. I've never seen this quality of summaries on other websites. Very helpful!

— Em

Highly recommended!! Fantastic service. Perfect for those that want a little more than a teaser but not all the intricate details of a full audio book.

— Greg M

👁️ Surveillance Capitalism

Payment successful