We all know the mythology. The magical land of unicorns. And billions in funding. And exponential growth. But what about the reality of the dynamics of Silicon Valley and the folks who are grinding out their existence there? I just picked up Anna Wiener’s memoir, Uncanny Valley, in an effort to get some of that unvarnished context. And as luck would have it, she’ll be here in Portland at Powell’s Hawthorne location next week to provide even more insights.
In her mid-twenties, at the height of tech industry idealism, Anna Wiener – stuck, broke, and looking for meaning in her work, like any good millennial – left a job in book publishing for the promise of the new digital economy. She moved from New York to San Francisco, where she landed at a big-data startup in the heart of the Silicon Valley bubble: a world of surreal extravagance, dubious success, and fresh-faced entrepreneurs hell-bent on domination, glory, and, of course, progress. Part coming-of-age-story, part portrait of an already bygone era, Anna Wiener’s memoir, Uncanny Valley, is a rare first-person glimpse into high-flying, reckless startup culture at a time of unchecked ambition, unregulated surveillance, wild fortune, and accelerating political power. Wiener will be joined in conversation by Meaghan O’Connell, author of And Now We Have Everything.
For more information or to purchase the book, visit Powell’s.
