Abundance: The Future Is Better Than You Think

Mr. Kotler's Abundance is a good, solid read - but nothing really earth shattering. There are better business books out there (Godin, Gladwell, etc) but it's ok. Didn't love the writing style, but that's just personal preference perhaps.

Definitely two stars here for the topic and some scattered info on things that could improve life on this planet (Dean Kamen's water extracting device; urban farming;in vitro protein food). That alone could have made this book great but in actuality it could have been 30 pages long.
Here are sections that were just filler:
-Chapter Three and Four.
These sections just go on about people being too pessimistic about the future. Though sometimes that may true I dont see why it required to thick chapters on it, when it could have been two sentences.
-All of Part Six.
This was confusing. I thought there already were solutions to these problems but now Diamandis and Kotler spend a silly amount of time talking about incentives to make inventions and dealing with failure when they dont work. All valid points but at best worth a paragraph or two.
I have to say I was reminded of going to some get rich quick seminar where you find out the the secrets are being positive and not being deterred. Gee, let me make note of that.
Though well intentioned I believe the authors are just caught up in the futurism movement and see a chance to write a book on the topic without following through. They know people will read it because of the great topic.
They also go way off topic (space travel?? nice to know you worked in that area but I can't think of a more wasteful use of resources right now) and contradict themselves (well the solutions for distributing water are a ways off so in the mean time just take shorter showers).
They also tiptoe around the gorilla in the room: rich and powerful people have a long history of not only blocking advancements they cannot benefit from but also exploiting the working class and corrupting technological advancements (eg: Monsanto/UnionCarbide, Apple, and pretty much the whole free enterprise sector). There may be some steps made to advance things in the future but until we figure out this greed problem and lack of human compassion i think we are on a hamster wheel. [granted the book does make note of disruptive technologies but doesnt spend much time on it].
The tipping point for me was the authors own definition of abundance. In the first sections they point out that people won't be able to live like Donald Trump but will have enough to get by. So in other words there will still be a sliver of people living luxiourious lives while the masses will still have enough somehow to get by. I thought abundance meant you had more than enough. I guess they think differently. But calling the book "Dont worry you will survive somehow but don't expect to ever live the fancy life" would fly.

In a word, I would say this book is uninspiring. If you already think of yourself as a futurist (i do), you can get by this and just take it for a few scraps of useful info. But in general I can't see this book being enough to make people see a better future.

A refreshing book that opens your eyes to the amazing things happening in the world around you. Every chapter inspires you to want to do more to help make the world a better place for everyone to enjoy.

I'm about half through. The technologies revealed are incredibly eye-popping. I've always downplayed the mantra that technology will save us from our folly. At the least, this mantra is seriously challenged by emerging technologies and techno-philianthropists that do have credible potential to if not save the world, save millions and billions of people, water resources, and the air.

Everyone should read this uplifting and very informative book. There are much more good things around us than bad. After reading the book, I became very selective on what I read or watch in the news. The change benefited me in three ways;
1) Save time by ignoring the sometimes meaningless sensational news,
2) Much less aggravation from listening and digesting negative news and
3) Being happier and more informed by focusing on useful and important news that positively affect our every day lives.

A very interesting glimpse of the possibilities for the near future, that may solve the twin problems of population growth and poverty in the third world, a long read, but encouraging, rather than the usual gloom and doom we are served daily by the media.

A Bible of optimism in a disruptive world. Science enlightens our lives as ever, and the future of abundance is perfectly described and with more than solid arguments. Great work of Mr Diamandis. One of the brightest mind on earth nowadays with `mr Ray Kurzweil both cofounders of the `pandora box Singularity University

I bought this book after hearing the author give a speech in March, 2013. The book is a couple of years old, but it is as current as next years news stories. Peter Diamandis explains the future in a way few can - taking highly complex technologies and making them understandable AND putting them into historic perspective.

The hope for abundance should not be considered contrarian, but the case that abundance is the most likely future ahead may be considered, by too many, as such. There seem to be more than a few determined to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory at present.

A persuasive contrarian perspective on why the future is bright, why we need to create that future and all the tools and technologies we have and are about to get to build the best future we can individually and collectively dream! Most importantly it inspires me and I am ready to dream, dare and do bold and breakthrough things.

This book is logical and grounded, not just wishful thinking, in making a case for a much better possible world ahead. It is the most upbeat vision of a day ahead that can be achieved without requiring government to break gridlock because technology and demography have placed the necessary tools in the hands of us ordinary citizens. The authors do not promise that we will make the best use of them, but portray a credible path. Exciting!

The author is truly visionary. After reading the book which by the way is well written and quite readable; I found myself envisioning a greater future. I immediately emailed everyone I knew in research and development and sent them a copy. It was that good of a book.

Diamandis and Kotler have assembled an impressive amount of present facts and predictions that lend optimism for the future of mankind on this planet. The optimism of this work seems very well founded on the developing technology and the potential of the exponential growth of that technology. It is refreshing to hear a voice of optimism about the future of mankind and the ecosystem of this planet. "Abundance" is worthy of being read by everyone. Now we also need the good will and cooperation of all mankind to work together toward realizing this potential abundance.

I consider this book to be the spiritual successor to Raymond Kurzweil's, "The Singularity is Near," (also used as a source for this book) and "The Age of Spiritual Machines". Current, provocative, and illuminating, it will be a wonderful source of discussion, reference, and education for years to come. I bought the hardcover with Book Darts to mark the passages, and I've shotgunned this book with place markers to review in the future.

When I first studied economics at under-graduate level, I was taught that human innovation would always overcome the Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns. There have been many times in the recent past when I have doubted that to be possible in today's world of accelerated consumption of finite resources. However, my faith in the great micro-economic adage has been restored by reading "Abundance - The Future Is Better Than You Think" written by Peter H. Diamandis. It really gave me a booster shot of optimism and hope that we are not so close to the abyss as the nay-sayers would have it. For that reason alone it is worth the read.

Diamandis is refreshing for his optimism about the future and he reminds us that most dire predictions never come to pass. Why? Because they will only come true if we don't innovate and humans are highly innovative animals. Always have been.

Here's why I give this 5 stars:

1. Diamandis, as a venute capitalist and founder of the X Prize and Singularity University, is well positioned to see what technology may bring us within the next few decades.
2. This book has opened my own eyes to what is possible. Between robotics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology and much more, the world we live in is going away very quickly. We have the opportunity to leverage this rapid change to create a world where nobody starves, or dies of treatable disease, Where everybody has access to information, education and resources. Where the causes of war and strife shrink, while the causes of better living expand.

Does this sound too optimistic? Well this book may change your mind.

It's a must-read for business and government leaders, consultants, coaches, entrepreneurs, and anyone who plans to be alive in the next 50 years.

Peter lays out a "can do" roadmap that smacks current naysayers on the chin. We have the capacity to change the world, to feed, cloth and house all of humanity. The key is utilizing what we already know and have at our disposal.

I would recommend this to every living soul. I realized that our human spirit is always creating new possibilities, new inventions and new solutions and that we don't have to wait for the government to do it. I gave this to many of my smart friends....

What I love most about this book is the combination of unbridled belief in human potential and a concrete series of examples of transforming that possibility into reality. My father was a depression-era, WWII vet with a fundamental belief in the human condition to assess about issue, tackle it head-on and generate an economically and socially viable solutions. This book is the 21st manifestation of this belief, packaged in such a way that all people have access to a the road map showing the path to actualization.

The authors provide an interesting perspective that borders on pure optimism, on what we could achieve if we let go of the social and political constraints of the modern world. We need to reconnect with mankind's true inventive self in order to preserve our selves and the planet. Enjoy the possibilities!

Instead of reading what we are doing terribly wrong, it is wonderful for a change to read what we are doing magnificently right. I have recommended this book to many of my friends and colleagues. The time to put these ideas into practice is now.

This is an interesting book because it looks so differently at the crisis that we have put the planet into. It is hard to not look at how badly we have managed the resources, and conclude that there is no hope. Very interesting information and perspective. I don't know that I agree with it all, and by this I mean that i don't think man has the intelligence to stop the train wreck that we have started.

My brother recommend this book and I thought it was about woo-woo. Not so! It's about all the terrific things going on in the world to address our basic and driving needs.

I bought four more to pass around to my curious friends! Some people I just had read a chapter, say on education, and others the whole book.

Well written and documented!

This is an interesting book because it looks so differently at the crisis that we have put the planet into. It is hard to not look at how badly we have managed the resources, and conclude that there is no hope. Very interesting information and perspective. I don't know that I agree with it all, and by this I mean that i don't think man has the intelligence to stop the train wreck that we have started.

My brother recommend this book and I thought it was about woo-woo. Not so! It's about all the terrific things going on in the world to address our basic and driving needs.

I bought four more to pass around to my curious friends! Some people I just had read a chapter, say on education, and others the whole book.

Well written and documented!

Exceptionally enlightning and important. This book should be required reading for policy wonks and all those interested in what lies in store in the future.

By the way, the notes and bibliography are very well organized and are a great source of additional insights.

Superb reading. Five stars

Read it twice. One of the best written STEM forward looking books available. The futuristic look presented by the authors is concise with dates and reason. Highly recommend for entrepreneurs and those entering college or career.

Instead of the same media doom and gloom, ABUNDANCE looks at the quiet companies and people who are taking on the big challenges of our time. Energy, education, agriculture, and more are discussed with references to the companies on the cutting-edge. You will undoubtedly see a brighter future after reading this book.

There is so much written today that paints a very dark future for America and the world. This book takes a somewhat too optimistic view but it is generally on track. Good research and analysis. Recommended.

Very good evidence on how people live in stress anticipating bad things which have very low chance of happening to them (aircraft crash, terrorist blowing them up, etc). If you understand this, you become much happier and healthier. :)

Also very good reminder of the "drive for goodness". With the technology becoming cheaper and cheaper we finally CAN make the Earth better place to live for all. The book asks you to make the step.

The only drawback is the book is a bit long, and I'd prefer links to research papers backing different claims...