The Top 10 Books The Richest Man In The World Recommends You Read [Elon Musk Book Recommendations]

The Top 5 Books The Richest Man In The World Recommends You Read

Elon Musk has been competing with Jeff Bezos, and more recently Bernard Arnault, to be crowned 'the richest man in the world.'

Over the past few months, as Tesla stocks have exploded and the company kept growing, Elon Musk's net worth had reached an incredible all-time high of over $300 billion but has now consolidated at around $263 billion.

This net worth has only been achieved by a few that have come before Elon Musk and it's unlikely that there will be many others who achieve this level of 'success.'

To become successful, a lot of people suggest that you learn from those that have come before us.

Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk - these are all great examples for people who we 'should' look up to if we're looking to build massively successful companies.

These people must read 1000s of business books, have taken the most comprehensive business courses, and pay millions for mentors and coaching.

From what we're about to Discuss, we may see that Elon Musk may not follow these 'traditional business' teachings to a T.

I've compiled a list of the top 10 books the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, recommends you read.

A *TON* of research went into the writing of this article, and so a share on social media would be massively appreciated!

Let's begin!

Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies (+ 5 more)

Starting the list is, surprisingly, not a business-related book.

This might seem like a common theme the further down this list we find ourselves.

Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies is a 2014 book by the Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom.

The entire book hypothesizes over the possibility that man-made machines will someday take over the human race.

The author argues that the future of humanity might be dictated by the intelligent machines that we eventually create.

As humanity develops these machines further and further, there is a chance that the machines can continue to advance each other's intelligence, leaving humanity in the dust.

Elon Musk has taken such a liking to this book, that he's even gone beyond the book itself and funded the author's, Nick Bostrom, research.

Elon's love for technology spans further than only reading - he also invests in technology companies, not for profit, but for the chance to keep up to date with what is happening in the field.

He understands there could be an outcome, either positive or negative, depending on how we choose to advance with technology.

Instead of writing a complete section on similar books, here are some more books along the same lines that speak on artificial intelligence and a dystopian future, which Elon Musk has read and recommended.

Similar AI/tech books:

• The Machine Stops,
• Surface Detail, 2010.

Story-based, Dystopian books which you might recognise from movies and shows:

• Dune (6 books),
• A Song Of Ice And Fire (5 books),
• The Lord of the Rings (4 books).

Let me know in the comments if you get around to exploring any of these books!

Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography

Steve Jobs was one of Elon Musk's heroes, and for good reason.

Jobs was an entrepreneur and visionary who revolutionized 6 major technological industries:

• PCs
• Animated film
• Music
• Phones
• Tablets
• Digital publishing

The autobiography, Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography, written by Walter Isaacson, follows the life of Steve Jobs, discussing how he went from an adopted kid to one of the world's most successful entrepreneurs.

It was written as a request by Steve Jobs himself and is based on over 40 interviews with Jobs along with conversations and insights from over 100 of his close family members, friends, competitors, and peers.

Steve Jobs started Apple in 1976 along with his co-founder Steve Wozniak, who he met while still a student, and built it into arguably the most successful companies in the world.

But what principles made Jobs one of the greatest inventors and product visionaries of the 21st century?

This is all fully explored throughout the biography.

Elon Musk, sharing similar goals and aspirations as Jobs, found this book extremely eye-opening, hence the reason he recommended it.

The book outlines the story, as well as Job's thought process and inspiration for starting Apple as well as running it.

The book is not only a good read for those interested in the life of Steve Jobs, but even those who are interested in picking his brain as he built Apple from the ground up.

Benjamin Franklin: An American Life

Another one of Elon Musk's heroes is the inventor and US founding father, Benjamin Franklin.

It's no surprise he looks up to him as they both share similar goals - to improve the world and find solutions to build a better society.

Elon highly recommends reading Benjamin Franklin's biography, written, once again, by Walter Isaacson.

He says the book helped him understand Benjamin Franklin's entrepreneurial drive, saying that he was an entrepreneur who started from nothing and managed to create massive value, nonetheless.

The book discusses how Franklin's earlier life plans of becoming a minister shifted as he discovered a passion for reading and writing.

This led to many events unfolding throughout his life, such as taking over The Pennsylvania Gazette from Keimer, who he had worked for previously, and turning it into a successful publication with tools from London.

Throughout the mid-1700s, Franklin was responsible for many inventions, like the Franklin Stove, and projects including the fire brigade, the police force, the University of Pennsylvania, along with some other small projects.

Following this, it discusses how he transitioned into science where he conducted experiments with kites and lightning, resulting in inventions like the lightning rod and bifocal lenses.

While the autobiography remains unfinished after 1757, it's still an eventful and educational book to delve into - one that Musk definitely recommends.

Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Although this book is not much different from the first, it takes a unique spin on AI technology which I believe is currently in action.

The author, Max Tegmark, discusses how AI technology could eventually replace humans through automation.

Being heavily invested in technology, Elon highly recommends this book to anyone interested in the same.

It seems as though, rather than reading business books, Elon suggests that one stays in the loop with technology as it is also the most lucrative and fast-growing industry.

Humans are currently responsible for a lot of jobs around the world - drivers, customer assistants, chefs, warehouses, and so on.

However, in many industries, we are slowly seeing technology taking over some major labor-intensive jobs.

Amazon and even Tesla are heavily dependant on AI automation in order to streamline some of the more tedious, repetitive tasks that need to be done.

I believe that all the new technology coming out, like NFTs and the blockchain, are only a chance for people to replace what they currently do to earn an income.

This is so that people are not so heavily reliant on their 9-5 day jobs given the off-chance that they may lose it to automation, which again, is already happening on a much smaller scale.

The idea that AI replacing humans in day-to-day jobs has always been something many have feared, and it seems as though we're closing in on that future.

The book, 'Life 3.0' goes on to say that this event would either give humans the opportunity to flourish and experience freedom like never before or the power to destroy ourselves entirely.

The Art Of War (+ 1 more)

The Art Of War is a book I've suggested on my blog before.

I've previously outlined a list of the  5 books every entrepreneur must read to become successful, and The Art Of War, was one of them.

War is a natural part of life - with humans, we see this happen in battles, on sporting fields, in business, in games, on social media, and so much more.

The book, The Art Of War, was written over 2500 years ago by a Chinese military strategist and general, Sun Tzu.

It composes of 13 chapters written in a unique, lesson-by-lesson style, that are devoted to the strategic and tactical aspects of warfare.

It was then passed down over generations from leader to leader, covering all walks of life, and over the past few decades or so, has been a book adopted by the masses in the business and entrepreneurial landscape.

The book talks all about how leaders must act in war, and how to win.

Sun Tzu argues that war shouldn't be taken lightly.

He goes on to say that the highest form of warfare is defeating the enemy without fighting or with minimal casualties.

Hence, all lessons in the book are aimed at training the leader to essentially win the battle while making the least amount of movements.

Another book, closely related to The Art Of War, is On War.

On War is another book on war and military strategy by Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz.

Here is an insert taken from Wikipedia on 'On War.'

"Clausewitz analyzed the conflicts of his time along the line of the categories Purpose, Goal and Means. He reasoned that the Purpose of war is one's will to be enforced, which is determined by politics. The Goal of the conflict is therefore to defeat the opponent in order to exact the Purpose."

Given that Elon Musk owns some of the largest, most successful companies in the world, it is only right that he learns about the concepts in these books.

Seen as warfare and business can be closely related, these books should be a must-read for any entrepreneur.

Those were the top 10 books the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, recommends you read.

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Till next time,

Mohamad