Jared Cohen Books
Jared Cohen is the founder and CEO of Jigsaw (formerly Google Ideas) and a former advisor to the U.
Known for: The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
Books by Jared Cohen
The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
What happens when nearly every person, institution, and government becomes connected to a shared digital infrastructure? In The New Digital Age, Eric Schmidt and Jared Cohen argue that this question will define the twenty-first century. Far more than a book about gadgets or social media, it is a broad exploration of how connectivity is reshaping politics, business, security, identity, and human relationships. The authors examine a world in which smartphones, cloud computing, social platforms, and data networks do not simply support modern life—they reorganize it. The book matters because it treats technology as a force that changes power itself. Digital tools can empower dissidents, entrepreneurs, students, and citizens, but they can also strengthen surveillance, cyberwarfare, extremism, and corporate influence. Schmidt and Cohen write with unusual authority: Schmidt led Google during one of the most transformative periods in internet history, while Cohen worked at the intersection of technology, diplomacy, and global conflict. Together, they offer a view that is both optimistic and cautionary. Their central message is clear: the future will belong to those who understand that technology is not separate from society, but the environment in which society now evolves.
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Connectivity Changes the Human Condition
The most powerful technology shift is not any single device, platform, or app, but the fact that billions of people are now connected at once. Schmidt and Cohen present connectivity as a civilizational force: once people can communicate instantly, access vast stores of information, and participate i...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
States Must Rethink Sovereignty and Control
In a hyperconnected world, the old idea of sovereignty becomes harder to enforce. Governments still control territory, laws, and institutions, but they no longer control information flows in the same way. Schmidt and Cohen argue that digital networks undermine the ability of states to isolate their ...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
Revolutions Gain Speed Through Networks
Political unrest no longer spreads only through underground meetings, printed pamphlets, or television broadcasts. In the digital age, revolutions and rebellions can gain momentum through mobile phones, social media, messaging apps, and shared visual evidence. Schmidt and Cohen argue that digital to...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
Conflict and Terrorism Become Digitally Enhanced
Technology does not make humanity automatically wiser; it also makes conflict more networked, decentralized, and hard to contain. Schmidt and Cohen explain that terrorist groups, insurgents, criminal networks, and hostile states all benefit from the same digital tools that empower entrepreneurs and ...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
Privacy and Security Are in Tension
One of the defining dilemmas of the new digital age is that the same data that makes life more efficient also makes people more visible. Schmidt and Cohen explore how digital systems generate detailed records of movement, communication, preferences, and behavior. These records help companies persona...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
Economic Value Flows to Digital Platforms
The digital revolution does not simply create new companies; it changes how value is created across entire economies. Schmidt and Cohen show that digital networks lower transaction costs, expand market access, and allow small actors to operate at scales once reserved for large institutions. Entrepre...
From The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business
About Jared Cohen
Jared Cohen is the founder and CEO of Jigsaw (formerly Google Ideas) and a former advisor to the U.
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Jared Cohen is the founder and CEO of Jigsaw (formerly Google Ideas) and a former advisor to the U.
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