Brian Merchant doesn't just list the best tech books of 2025; he curates a manifesto for understanding how a specific class of oligarchs captured the levers of power and why the resulting machinery is grinding down the working class. While most year-end lists celebrate innovation, Merchant's selection exposes the "deep vanity and omnipresent insecurity" driving the industry, reframing the AI boom not as a technological inevitability but as a political project designed to extract value and slash oversight.
The Architecture of Oligarchy
Merchant begins his curation with a sharp critique of Sarah Wynn-Williams' memoir, Careless People. He acknowledges the book's value as an insider account of Facebook's executive suite but sharply notes its failure to hold the author accountable. "The book helps us better grasp the deep vanity and omnipresent insecurity that wracks Zuck, a man who views himself as a modern-day Roman emperor yet who is childish and petulant," Merchant writes. This framing is crucial because it strips away the myth of the visionary genius, revealing a leadership culture driven by ego rather than strategy. Merchant argues that the book's true value lies in its documentation of how Facebook ignored early warnings about data privacy and the platform's role in the Rohingya genocide, where a military dictatorship used the site to foment violence.
"We see opportunities Facebook had early on to consider data privacy... and the looming dangers of its hands-off policy in Myanmar, where the UN later determined a military dictatorship used Facebook to help foment a genocide."
This connection to the Rohingya crisis is not merely historical context; it serves as a grim reminder of the real-world consequences of "hands-off" platform policies. Critics might argue that focusing on one executive's memoir limits the scope of the critique, but Merchant uses it effectively to illustrate how individual negligence within a corporate structure can lead to systemic human rights abuses. The narrative shifts from the "naive" employee to the "amoral enterprise," a distinction that forces the reader to confront the institutional nature of the harm.
Merchant then pivots to the political rise of the tech right, using Max Chafkin's biography of Peter Thiel and Jacob Silverman's Gilded Rage to trace the lineage of current power dynamics. He highlights how figures like David Sacks, now the White House's AI and crypto czar, and JD Vance, whose career was mentored by Thiel, have moved from the fringes of Silicon Valley to the center of government. Merchant observes that these leaders are not just powerful but "angry," practicing a "politics of pitched persecution and extreme resentment."
The argument here is that the tech elite are a distinct class with unified goals: "Slashing regulations and oversight, lowering taxes, extracting value from the state, and concentrating power." This reframing is essential for busy readers trying to make sense of the current political landscape. It moves beyond personality cults to analyze the structural ambitions of a group that, as Silverman puts it, "had the world at their fingertips and they couldn't stand the touch." This sentiment echoes the historical dynamics of the PayPal Mafia, where early disruptors eventually sought to dominate not just markets, but the political order itself.
The Human Cost of the Algorithm
Moving from the boardroom to the workforce, Merchant champions Notes Toward a Digital Workers' Inquiry by the Capacitor Collective and The AI Con by Emily Bender and Alex Hanna. He positions these works as antidotes to the pervasive hype surrounding artificial intelligence. "The AI Con... is an ideal primer for the layperson about how large language models really work, and a nice dissection of how the industry manufactures then exploits misconceptions about AI for profit," Merchant notes.
This focus on demystification is a strong counter-narrative to the breathless coverage of AI capabilities. Merchant emphasizes that the fear of AI is not about "some undefinable future" but about the immediate economic realities of "surveillance, wage suppression, mass automation." He cites Hagen Blix and Ingeborg Glimmer, who argue that AI is "an attack from above on wages." This perspective aligns with the broader theme of the list: technology is not neutral, and its deployment is often a tool for class warfare.
"Our nightmares about getting crushed by an all-powerful Skynet are really nightmares about getting crushed by the ruling class."
This insight cuts through the sci-fi tropes that often dominate the conversation. By grounding the fear of AI in the tangible realities of capitalism, Merchant provides a framework that resonates with the working class. The inclusion of Cory Doctorow's Enshittification further reinforces this, offering a theoretical framework for how platforms inevitably degrade to extract value from users and workers. "Cory unloads his signature blend of sagacity and snark, and imbues the enshittification coinage with a sturdy theoretical framework," Merchant writes, highlighting the book's ability to explain why digital services become unusable over time.
The Cultural and Ethical Reckoning
The list concludes with a focus on the cultural and ethical dimensions of the tech boom. Merchant recommends Liz Pelly's Mood Machine to understand the impact of streaming platforms on musicians, and Karen Hao's Empire of AI for a definitive account of the AI industry's labor and environmental costs. He notes that Hao's book covers "reporting trips to Kenya and Chile to shed light on the labor and environmental issues incurred by AI development."
This global perspective is vital. It reminds readers that the "AI boom" is built on a foundation of exploited labor and environmental degradation in the Global South. Merchant also includes Omar El Akkad's One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, a book about the genocide in Gaza, to underscore the importance of confronting brutal realities. "Brutal, beautiful book about confronting the genocide in Gaza back here in the states," he describes it, linking the cultural conversation to the urgent need for human rights advocacy.
"The book carries a little extra weight since it was authored by scientists working in the field, not Jacobin columnists... and all in all, I found it compelling and persuasive."
This emphasis on authorship—preferring the voices of scientists and insiders over outside commentators—adds credibility to the critique. It suggests that the most damning evidence comes from those who understand the technology from the inside out. Merchant's selection of The Mechanic and the Luddite by Jathan Sadowski further cements the argument that a "ruthless criticism of technology and capitalism" is necessary. The reference to the "Luddite renaissance" serves as a historical anchor, reminding readers that resistance to exploitative technology is not new, but a recurring thread in the struggle for workers' rights.
Bottom Line
Merchant's curation is a powerful indictment of the tech oligarchy, successfully reframing the conversation from technological wonder to political and economic exploitation. The strongest part of his argument is the clear link between the personal ambitions of tech billionaires and the systemic erosion of labor rights and democratic institutions. However, the list's heavy focus on critique might leave readers wondering about viable pathways forward beyond resistance. As the industry continues to consolidate power, the most critical question remains: how do we build institutions that serve the public good rather than the private interests of a few?