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Zero to One: Notes on Start Ups, or How to Build the Future Hardcover – 18 Sep 2014

by
Blake Masters (Author)
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Blake Masters (Author), Peter Thiel (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 175 customer reviews
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Product details

  • Hardcover: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Virgin Books (18 Sept. 2014)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0753555182
  • ISBN-13: 978-0753555187
  • Product Dimensions: 14.4 x 2.4 x 22.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (175 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 168,681 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Review

"Crisply written, rational and practical, Zero to One should be read not just by aspiring entrepreneurs but by anyone seeking a thoughtful alternative to the current pervasive gloom about the prospects for the world" (The Economist)

Book Description

A ground-breaking and thought-provoking book on innovation and what it takes for a new company to prosper, from the co-founder of one of the most successful tech start-ups in history

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 starsA mix of brilliant, infuriating and self-indulgent
By Athan TOP 1000 REVIEWER on 4 Nov. 2014
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
A better title for this book would have been "Six ideas Peter Thiel wants to put out there" but that admittedly sounds less catchy than "Zero to One"

Two of the ideas are HUGE and the rest are filler. The first infuriated me and the second inspired me. The remaining four ideas were not exactly news to me because I once founded and ran a startup. There's also a couple rants, one against biotechnology and one against green tech, which to my ears sounded tribal.

After the ideas and the rants comes some rather embarrassing stuff that probably should not have made it into print. For example "we never invest in entrepreneurs who turn up for the interview in a suit" or "four of the founders of PayPal had built bombs as children." Memo to Peter Thiel: you are successful despite your prejudice against people who don't share your sartorial taste, and your partners made it to adulthood despite having been poorly supervised as children.

Idea number one is that "Monopolies are Good"

Not just for the monopolist (that would hardly have been a contribution) but also for everybody else. The general idea is that competition hurts profits and the lack of profits leads firms to an existential battle which does not allow them the scope to innovate. Monopolies are good because they have the power and scope to bring innovation to everybody. So Bill Gates brought the computer to every home. He was not beaten by a better provider of software, he was superseded by a shift in technology toward powerful mobile devices, tablets and the cloud, all of which, in turn, were motivated by other entrepreneurs' desire to obtain monopoly profits.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsHow and why, "Only by seeing our world anew...can we both re-create it and preserve it for the future."
By Robert Morris TOP 500 REVIEWER on 2 Jun. 2015
Format: Hardcover
In the first chapter of The Great Reset, Richard Florida explains that peaks and valleys are part of the lifecycle of any society as "obsolete and dysfunctional systems and practices" collapse, replaced by "the seeds of innovation and invention, of creativity and entrepreneurship." The First Great Reset occurred in the 1870s, the Second in the 1930s, and a Third now underway. Florida suggests, "The promise of the current Reset is the opportunity for a life made better not by ownership of real estate, appliances, cars, and all manner of material goods, but of greater flexibility and lower levels of debt, of more time with family and friends, greater promise of personal development, and access to more and better experiences. All organisms and all systems experience the cycles of life, death, and rebirth."

I recalled these observations as I began to read Peter Thiel's brilliant book, written with Blake Masters, and especially when he suggests that the entrepreneurs who stuck with Silicon Valley learned four big lessons from the dot-com crash that still guide business thinking today:

1. Make incremental advances.
2. Stay lean and flexible.
3. Improve on the competition.
4. Focus on products, not sales.

"These lessons have become dogma in the start-up world; those who ignore them are presumed to invite the justified doom visited upon technology in the great crash of 2000. And yet the opposite principles are probably more correct." Here they are:

1. It is better to risk boldness than triviality.
2. A bad plan is better than no plan.
3. Competitive markets destroy profits.
4. Sales matters just as much as profit.Read more ›
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3.0 out of 5 starsWell researched, well written but sadly not up to the hype (in my opinion)
By Robin Waite on 25 Sept. 2015
Format: Paperback
In my opinion this book wasn't up to all the hype it had received. Personally I felt it was a little flat, and didn't leave me pumped up to embark on my next startup adventure.

I also felt, as an entrepreneur, that it lacked significant tips and substance to help or inspire me to do what I do now, but better and bigger. There are perhaps better books out there; for example The Lean Startup by Eric Reis kept making my mind wander off down little entrepreneurial side roads of inspiration, which I then used to kickstart elements of my business, which I didn't find myself doing with Zero to One.

It is a good read and a good listen (the audiobook) in its own right. Well written and well researched I would say. And I got enough out of it to feel comfortable with my investment, sadly because of the hype I was expecting more.

But I was left uninspired. Basically Zero to One actually translates to you're either going to make it or you're not.
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2.0 out of 5 starsZero to…. Zero
By Far2Real on 18 Oct. 2015
Format: Paperback Verified Purchase
Disappointing is not the word, infuriating is closer.

Let’s start with the positive:
- It’s short
- It’s written is a simple and straightforward style
- 20 pages out the 200 are vaguely worth reading for some nuggets of experience Peter Thiel acquired while making billions in the Valley. Nothing remotely new, but good common sense that you may take home and rub very hard to make your first billion.

The negative: The remaining 90% of his pamphlet doesn’t make any sense on any level. Thiel offers us a mix of philosophy, history, economy, futurology, and fails in all departments. The moment he slightly gets out of his narrow area of expertise as a successful tech entrepreneur and investor, he goes off the rail. To top it all, all of that nonsense is delivered in know-it-all style, devoid of any trace of humor or humility.

Here is a quick snapshot at Thiel’s wisdom and ideas:

Monopolies: Thiel has an unhealthy fixation on monopolies that make you wonder if he is not a member of some secret society whose mission is to create monopolies that squeeze the masses and fill in the pockets of the “insiders”. Thiel teaches you that monopolies are good and competition is bad. According to Thiel, if you are not planning on creating a monopoly you shouldn’t start a business at all and you should rather seek employment in one. People like restaurant owners are wasting their time because their business cannot become a monopoly. He adds that creating a mafia like organization adds to your chances of success, proudly referring to his baby, the so-called “Paypal Mafia”

Secrets: Do you have a secret? If the answer is not, please do not waste Mr. Thiel’s time and stay quiet as an employee of one of the monopolies governed by one of his mates.Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 starsRead It And Reap

One reason why this book is important is because the entrepreneurs and money-folks of silicon valley have it as a must-read. Accessible and insightful.

Published 6 days ago by Alan Newman
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

It is a gift

Published 7 days ago by stephen schofield
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat read

The book is specific descriptive amd lays out the fundamentals of successful startups very clearly c c c c c

Published 11 days ago by SINGH
2.0 out of 5 starsNot what I was hoping for

No real tips and hints for starting a business, more just stories about his experience.
Underwhelmed.

Published 1 month ago by Max
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Must read

Published 1 month ago by NikTon
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Great read, definitely worth going through this book before setting up a company.

Published 1 month ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Great book

Published 1 month ago by Amazon Customer
2.0 out of 5 starsFluff but at least it is an easy read

A quick presentation of Peter Thiel's somewhat idiosyncratic view of the world. You won't learn much about how to run a startup but will get some amusing views about society and... Read more

Published 1 month ago by John S
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Interesting and thought provoking

Published 1 month ago by Raptor
5.0 out of 5 starsGood read. Many interesting points about startups and the ...

Good read. Many interesting points about startups and the wider world. Whether you agree with Peter's opinions or not, this book will continually be referenced in the start up... Read more

Published 2 months ago by Amazon Customer

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