Wired for Thought

Jeffrey M. Stibel

• 08 september 2009
• 9781422146644

Samenvatting:

Shows how companies are using their understanding of the Internet's brain like powers to create competitive advantage - such as building more effective Web sites, predicting consumer behavior, leveraging social media, and creating a collective consciousness.

A Bold Theory on How the Internet Will Evolve—and What It Will Mean for Business If you want to succeed on the Internet, forget trying to understand how the latest Web phenomenon works. Instead, you need to understand how the mind works. According to Jeffrey Stibel, the Internet is evolving into a brain—and the Web sites, communities, networks, and companies that leverage this insight will own the future. A brain scientist and serial entrepreneur, Stibel has made an impressive career translating his knowledge of neuroscience into successful Internet ventures. In Wired for Thought, he takes readers on an exhilarating journey into the world of “neuron hunters” who are using their knowledge of the Internet’s brainlike powers to create online businesses. Viewing Web sites as the “neural networks” of the Internet, Stibel describes how ideas live, die, and spread like genetic material across the Web, quickly transforming the Internet from a mere repository of information to a “prediction machine” that can recognize patterns and intuit meaning. Through intriguing examples from Google, MySpace, The Search Agency, and others, Wired for Thought shows how this evolution is playing out—and offers practical advice and compelling predictions for innovators, including: • How online networks grow, and how to manage each stage • What looming dangers threaten social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter • Why the Internet won’t grow forever—and what will happen when it hits the wall • How advancements in artificial intelligence will impact businesses and consumers • Why an “intelligent” Internet is closer than you think—and what it will be able to do Science and business are converging to create the future of the Internet. This eye-opening and authoritative book will help you avoid the pitfalls and embrace the opportunities of this exciting new world.

In this age of hypercompetition, the Internet constitutes a powerful tool for inventing radical new business models that will leave your rivals scrambling. But as brain scientist and entrepreneur Jeffrey Stibel explains in Wired for Thought, you have to understand its true nature. The Internet is more than just a series of interconnected computer networks: it's the first real replication of the human brain outside the human body. To leverage its power, you first need to understand how the Internet has evolved to take on similarities to the brain. This engaging and provocative book provides the answer. Stibel lays out: - How networks have changed and what that implies for how people connect and form communities - What the Internet-and online business opportunities-will look like in the future - What the next stage of artificial intelligence will be and what opportunities it will present for businesses Stibel shows how exceptional companies are using their understanding of the Internet's brainlike powers to create competitive advantage-such as building more effective Web sites, predicting consumer behavior, leveraging social media, and creating a collective consciousness.