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Vinod Khosla

Vinod Khosla Recommended Books

Vinod Khosla has recommended 55 books. Browse the complete reading list with quotes and sources below.

Vinod Khosla is an Indian American billionaire businessman and venture capitalist.

(Read more on Wikipedia)

Online Presence

55 Books Recommended

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Life on the Edge

The Coming of Age of Quantum Biology

by Johnjoe McFadden
"Each chapter illustrates one of life’s puzzles and makes you think differently about the world." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Blitzscaling

The Lightning-Fast Path to Building Massively Valuable Companies

by Reid Hoffman
"An insightful book on how to scale at a very fast pace​ and more importantly WHEN." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Bill Gates recommended this book
  • Brian Chesky recommended this book
  • Sam Altman recommended this book
  • Eric Schmidt recommended this book
  • Anthony Pompliano recommended this book
  • Changpeng Zhao recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

    • Sheryl Sandberg
      "Shows how companies can build value for customers and shareholders in the digital age." - Sheryl Sandberg

Lying

by Sam Harris
"One of my favorite one hour reads about intellectual honesty. I wish more people were this honest!" - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people

Range

Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World

by David J. Epstein
"Discovers that in most fields , generalists, not specialists, are primed to excel. [...] Every high school and college student should read it." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

6 people

Behave

The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst

by Robert M. Sapolsky
"Among the best insights into our brain and behavior." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

5 people

The Brand Flip

Why customers now run companies and how to profit from it

by Marty Neumeier
"A very well done book on branding and new brand values. It will be the death of many incumbents." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Eating the Big Fish

How Challenger Brands Can Compete Against Brand Leaders

by Adam Morgan
"Brand building for entrepreneurs trying to upset the incumbents." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Lifespan

Why We Age—and Why We Don't Have To

by David Sinclair
"Reveals incredible scientific breakthroughs about aging and ways we can slow down, or even reverse, the process." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

5 people
  • Peter Diamandis recommended this book
  • Jason Fried recommended this book
  • David Friedberg recommended this book
  • Blake Scholl recommended this book
  • Ryan Shea recommended this book

The Inflamed Mind

A Radical New Approach to Depression

by Edward Bullmore
"Reveals the new breakthrough on the link between depression and inflammation of the body and brain." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Scale

The Universal Laws of Growth, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Pace of Life in Organisms, Cities, Economies, and Companies

by Geoffrey West
"The physics behind biology, cities, economics and companies." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people
  • Stewart Brand recommended this book
  • Marc Benioff recommended this book
  • Nassim Taleb recommended this book
  • Bill Miller recommended this book

Sapiens

A Brief History, Book 1

by Yuval Noah Harari
"A previous favorite." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

31 people
  • Joe Rogan recommended this book
  • Bill Gates recommended this book
  • Naval Ravikant recommended this book
  • Lex Fridman recommended this book
  • Mark Zuckerberg recommended this book
  • Peter Attia recommended this book
  • +25

    More recommendations

    • Ashton Kutcher
      "The brainy book I seem to be sharing or talking about the most lately." - Ashton Kutcher
    • Whitney Cummings
      "A great book about [how] we’ve evolved and why we have anxiety." - Whitney Cummings
    • Richard Branson
      "I just love the style of his writing." - Richard Branson
    • Ray Dalio
      Ray Dalio mentioned this book on "The Tim Ferriss Show" podcast.
    • James Cameron
      "It explains human behavior and why we are the way we are in human civilization from soup to nuts. And I’ve read it now a couple of times. It’s a pretty astonishing book." - James Cameron
    • Demis Hassabis
      "There's not many times where I read a book and come out with 20 new ideas I hadn't thought about before, and [this book] made me think like that." - Demis Hassabis
    • Keith Rabois
      Keith Rabois recommended this book on a Medium blog post.
    • Daniel Ek
      "Both sobering and conservatively optimistic in equal measure." - Daniel Ek
    • Reid Hoffman
      "A grand theory of humanity." - Reid Hoffman
    • Sam Kass
      Sam Kass recommended this book in the "Tools of Titans" book.
    • Sebastian Junger
      "I’m going to give [this book] over and over again to everyone I know." - Sebastian Junger
    • Kishore Biyani
      "Fascinating because of its multi-disciplinary approach towards understanding human society, our behaviour and our future." - Kishore Biyani
    • Ryan Shea
      One of Ryan Shea's 4 answers to "what is the book (or books) you’ve given most as a gift?"
    • Melinda Gates
      Melinda Gates recommended this book on Likewise.com.
    • Bill Gurley
      "I really enjoyed [this book]." - Bill Gurley
    • Karlie Kloss
      "An amazing book on the beginning of humanity." - Karlie Kloss
    • Anthony Pompliano
      "[One of the] best books I read in 2017." - Anthony Pompliano
    • Changpeng Zhao
      "Gives me a greater perspective about how humans emerged and why we behave the way we do." - Changpeng Zhao
    • PewDiePie
      "Tells the major revolutions of human history." - PewDiePie
    • Patrick O'Shaughnessy
      "Provides a concise history of humankind and outlines why we have the psychology we do today." - Patrick O'Shaughnessy
    • Chris Evans
      "Truly mind-blowing. It’s changed the way I look at almost everything. I can’t endorse it enough." - Chris Evans
    • Simon Mayo
      "Love this book still." - Simon Mayo
    • Penn Jillette
      Penn Jillette mentioned this book in a New York Times interview.
    • Mark Manson
      Mark Manson recommended this book on his website.
    • James Clear
      "[One of] the 10 best nonfiction books of all-time." - James Clear

Deep Learning

by Ian Goodfellow
"For a slightly more technical read [on AI]." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

3 people
  • Elon Musk recommended this book
  • Satya Nadella recommended this book
  • Nassim Taleb recommended this book

The Jungle Grows Back

America and Our Imperiled World

by Robert Kagan
"A powerful, urgent essay into why American withdrawal would be the worst possible response." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

McMafia

A Journey Through the Global Criminal Underworld

by Misha Glenny
"Fun though older book." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Loonshots

How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas That Win Wars, Cure Diseases, and Transform Industries

by Safi Bahcall
"A key to understanding why Silicon Valley culture is changing the world." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people
  • Keith Rabois recommended this book
  • Brian Armstrong recommended this book
  • Changpeng Zhao recommended this book
  • Daniel Kahneman recommended this book

The Case Against Sugar

by Gary Taubes
"Not surprising but explicit description of the American psych on sugar and fat by the sugar industry. I would not have believed this much influence is possible." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Joe Rogan recommended this book

From Bacteria to Bach and Back

The Evolution of Minds

by Daniel C. Dennett
"Long but worth every page." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people
  • Ray Dalio recommended this book
  • Esther Dyson recommended this book

What You Do Is Who You Are

How to Create Your Business Culture

by Ben Horowitz
"Shows the value of having principles an organization and its leaders believe in and can stick with when it gets hard to do so and real tradeoffs are involved." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people

The Future of Capitalism

Facing the New Anxieties

by Paul Collier
"Outlines ethical ways of healing the deep new rifts that are tearing apart the fabric of the United States and other Western societies." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Bill Gates recommended this book

The Formula

The Universal Laws of Success

by Albert-László Barabási
"This book transforms how our success-obsessed society approaches their professional careers and long-term goals." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Nassim Taleb recommended this book

Troublemakers

Silicon Valley's Coming of Age

by Leslie Berlin
"Tells the story of the world I have always lived, loved and believed in, despite the recent techlash." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people

Against Empathy

The Case for Rational Compassion

by Paul Bloom
"A good case against too much empathy." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

The Last Days of Night

A Novel

by Graham Moore
"I don’t read fiction, but this almost historical fiction is fun especially for Silicon Valley types." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people
  • Mark Zuckerberg recommended this book
  • Chris Dixon recommended this book

An Elegant Defense

The Extraordinary New Science of the Immune System: A Tale in Four Lives

by Matt Richtel
"Explains for the lay reader the intricate biology of our immune system." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people

The Third Pillar

How Markets and the State Leave the Community Behind

by Raghuram Rajan
"Provides a solid framework as to why things begin to deteriorate, and how society can successfully find their way back to a secure and stable plane." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

The Uninhabitable Earth

Life After Warming

by David Wallace-Wells
"A look into the future and how global warming will impact everything." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Tim Urban recommended this book

21 Lessons for the 21st Century

by Yuval Noah Harari
"An important examination into today’s most pressing political, technological, social, and existential issues as we move into the unchartered territory of the future." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people

The Coddling of the American Mind

How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure

by Greg Lukianoff
"Dives into the new problem on college campuses, Safetyism." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Bryan Johnson recommended this book
  • Max Levchin recommended this book
  • Michael Mauboussin recommended this book
  • Richard Dawkins recommended this book
  • Tom Bilyeu recommended this book
  • Derren Brown recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

    • Glenn Beck
      "Not only correctly identifies what ails us but also gives practical steps to cure. MUST READ." - Glenn Beck

Friday Black

by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
"Reveals the violence, injustice, and painful absurdities that black men and women contend with every day in this country." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Homo Deus

A Brief History, Book 2

by Yuval Noah Harari
"Not that I agree with all of it, but it is still mind-bending speculation about our future." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people

Drunk Tank Pink

And Other Unexpected Forces That Shape How We Think, Feel, and Behave

by Adam Alter
"Fun read about our biases and how our brain functions." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Patrick O'Shaughnessy recommended this book

Mindfulness in Plain English

by Henepola Gunaratana
"Easy access to meditation." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person

The $12 Million Stuffed Shark

The Curious Economics of Contemporary Art

by Donald N. Thompson
"A look at the economics and the marketing strategies that enable the modern art market to generate such astronomical prices." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people

Atomic Habits

An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

by James Clear
"A decent book on self-help tools, not a category I am generally a fan of." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people

This Is Your Brain on Music

The Science of a Human Obsession

by Daniel J. Levitin
"Fascinating though older book." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Justin Boreta recommended this book

Other People's Money

Inside the Housing Crisis and the Demise of the Greatest Real Estate Deal Ever Made

by Charles V. Bagli
"Not very far from the truth on the financial services industry though the authors biases come through." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Winners Take All

The Elite Charade of Changing the World

by Anand Giridharadas
"While today’s rich and powerful are fighting for equality and justice, [this book] argues that it is being done in a way that will preserve their position at the top of society." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

4 people
  • Tristan Harris recommended this book
  • Alexis Ohanian recommended this book
  • Jason Calacanis recommended this book
  • Kat Cole recommended this book

The Breakthrough

Immunotherapy and the Race to Cure Cancer

by Charles Graeber
"Guides readers through the scientific research transforming immunotherapy." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Keith Rabois recommended this book

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power

by Shoshana Zuboff
"Dives into the largest act of capitalist colonisation ever attempted - the colonisation of our minds, our behaviour, our free will, our very selves." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person

The Line Becomes a River

Dispatches from the Border

by Francisco Cantú
"Provides a different world view for those of us protected from some 'reality'." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry

by Neil deGrasse Tyson
"Great, very quick overview of astrophysics." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person

The Peacemaker's Code

by Deepak Malhotra
"Based on [the author's] class at HBS, War & Peace & lessons on leadership, negotiation, strategy & the human condition." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

The Master Algorithm

How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our World

by Pedro Domingos
"If you want speculation about what the master AI might need (one view)." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Mark Cuban recommended this book

The Seventh Sense

Power, Fortune, and Survival in the Age of Networks

by Joshua Cooper Ramo
"I like the author but wish there were more causality/details." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people

Only the Paranoid Survive

How to Exploit the Crisis Points That Challenge Every Company

by Andrew S. Grove
"One of favorite books on entrepreneurship." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Steve Jobs recommended this book
  • Marc Andreessen recommended this book
  • Charlie Munger recommended this book
  • Ben Horowitz recommended this book
  • Bill Gates recommended this book
  • Balaji Srinivasan recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

The Checklist Manifesto

How to Get Things Right

by Atul Gawande
"Very good; definitely worth reading." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

8 people

The Score Takes Care of Itself

My Philosophy of Leadership

by Bill Walsh
"Among the best books! A way of living, working & commitment to excellence." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Jack Dorsey recommended this book
  • Keith Rabois recommended this book
  • Sam Altman recommended this book
  • Ryan Holiday recommended this book
  • Noah Kagan recommended this book
  • Ron Conway recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

The Success Equation

Untangling Skill and Luck in Business, Sports, and Investing

by Michael Mauboussin
"Important investing, business, sports." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people

The Invisible Gorilla

And Other Ways Our Intuitions Deceive Us

by Christopher F. Chabris
"Rigorously written (unlike many pysch books), fun, funny,surprising, enlightening." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

1 person
  • Nassim Taleb recommended this book

Jonathan Livingston Seagull

by Richard Bach
"One of my favorite books when I was a teenager! I still keep it around the house and periodically look at it." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Peter Attia recommended this book
  • Wim Hof recommended this book
  • Laird Hamilton recommended this book
  • Ev Williams recommended this book
  • Mike Maples, Jr. recommended this book
  • Fred Wilson recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

Why We Sleep

Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams

by Matthew Walker
"Best book on the subject [of sleep]." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

6 people
  • Bill Gates recommended this book
  • Bryan Johnson recommended this book
  • Keith Rabois recommended this book
  • Alexis Ohanian recommended this book
  • Michael Mauboussin recommended this book
  • Jason Fried recommended this book

Skin in the Game

Incerto, Book 5

by Nassim Taleb
"I like his ideas a lot, especially in Antifragile and the first half of this book. I've always complained about pundits relative to doers." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

7 people
  • Marc Andreessen recommended this book
  • Ben Horowitz recommended this book
  • Peter Mallouk recommended this book
  • Keith Rabois recommended this book
  • Changpeng Zhao recommended this book
  • Chris Dixon recommended this book
  • +1

    More recommendations

    • Ryan Shea
      Ryan Shea recommended this book on Twitter.

Negotiating the Impossible

How to Break Deadlocks and Resolve Ugly Conflicts (without Money or Muscle)

by Deepak Malhotra
"I recommend to every entrepreneur, investor, & CEO - and anyone else who deals with difficult negotiations." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

2 people
  • Bill Gurley recommended this book
  • Patrick O'Shaughnessy recommended this book

How to Change Your Mind

What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence

by Michael Pollan
"A fun exploration of psychedelic drugs, especially for someone who has never tried them." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

11 people
  • Amelia Boone recommended this book
  • Aubrey Marcus recommended this book
  • Hamilton Morris recommended this book
  • Michael Mauboussin recommended this book
  • Naval Ravikant recommended this book
  • Paul Stamets recommended this book
  • +5

    More recommendations

    • Peter Attia
      "Excellent." - Peter Attia
    • Stewart Butterfield
      "A great overview of research into the therapeutic uses of psychedelics." - Stewart Butterfield
    • Tim Ferriss
      "One of my favorite books of the last five years." - Tim Ferriss
    • Yuval Noah Harari
      "Changed my mind, or at least some of the ideas held in my mind." - Yuval Noah Harari
    • Kara Swisher
      "Wonderful." - Kara Swisher

Antifragile

Incerto, Book 3

by Nassim Taleb
"I recommend everybody read [this book] if they're setting off on a career as a personal philosophy." - Vinod Khosla (Source)

Also recommended by

8 people
  • Ev Williams recommended this book
  • James Altucher recommended this book
  • Vlad Tenev recommended this book
  • Tobi Lütke recommended this book
  • Changpeng Zhao recommended this book
  • Patrick O'Shaughnessy recommended this book
  • +2

    More recommendations

    • Shane Parrish
      "Changed how I see the world." - Shane Parrish
    • Tom Bilyeu
      Tom Bilyeu recommended this book on his website.

Edited by

Richard Reis

Software engineer whose passion for tracking book recommendations from podcasts inspired the creation of MRB.

Anurag Ramdasan

Lead investor at 3one4 Capital whose startup expertise and love for books helped shaped MRB and its growth.

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