Top 5 AI books to get ready for 2027

AI is becoming part of everyday work life, and it’s important to know where it can help and where people still need to take the lead. From making better decisions to using AI responsibly, these five books offer useful advice for anyone wanting to understand the technology and feel more prepared for what lies ahead in 2027.

 

Best read for: Building a responsible approach to AI

Governing the Machine

Ray Eitel-Porter, Paul Dongha and Miriam Vogel

£22.50, Bloomsbury Publishing

 

AI offers huge opportunities for businesses, but realising its potential also requires understanding the risks. In Governing the Machine, Ray Eitel-Porter, Paul Dongha and Miriam Vogel explore how organisations can adopt AI responsibly while building trust with customers, employees and investors.

 

Drawing on their experience advising leading global companies, the authors offer a practical framework for developing AI principles, assessing risks, putting safeguards in place, and choosing the right technical tools and training. They also look at the evolving regulatory landscape, including the EU AI Act and developments in the US, UK, and other key regions.

 

The book recently won the Specialist Business Book category at the Business Book Awards, recognising its contribution to an increasingly important area of business leadership. For leaders preparing their organisations for 2027, Governing the Machine offers a useful guide to balancing innovation with accountability, helping businesses make the most of AI while reducing the risk of harm.

 

Best read for: Combining AI with stronger negotiation skills

Magnetic Influence

Tim Castle

£16.99, Kogan Page

 

As AI transforms the way businesses operate, negotiation is becoming about more than having the right information. With AI becoming a bigger part of business, knowing how to build trust and connect with people is still key to successful negotiations.

 

In Magnetic Influence, Tim Castle explores how AI can help professionals negotiate more effectively without losing the human touch. He shares practical ways to speed up sales and build trust with clients and partners, while showing why empathy, clear communication and staying calm matter when negotiations get difficult.

 

For professionals looking to get more out of AI, Magnetic Influence shows how to embrace new technology while keeping the human side of negotiation firmly in focus.

 

Best read for: Developing critical thinking and better decision-making with AI

The Human Edge: Smarter Decisions in the Age of AI

Cheryl Strauss Einhorn

£14.99, Cornell University Press

 

AI can help us process information, explore new ideas and solve complex problems, but making good decisions still requires human judgement. As AI becomes more embedded in everyday life and work, knowing how to use it to broaden our thinking, rather than narrow our perspective, is an increasingly valuable skill.

 

In The Human Edge: Smarter Decisions in the Age of AI, Cheryl Strauss Einhorn explores how people can combine AI’s capabilities with their own curiosity, experience and critical thinking. She offers practical tools to help readers frame problems, consider different perspectives and make more confident decisions, showing how AI can support better reasoning without taking over the process.

 

For anyone looking to make the most of AI in 2027, the book offers a useful guide to thinking more clearly, evaluating options and making informed choices. It demonstrates how technology can enhance human decision-making while leaving people firmly in control of the conclusions they reach.

 

Best read for: Keeping human potential at the heart of AI adoption

Mind Your Self

Katie Muldoon

£16.99, Rethink Press

 

AI is changing how we live and work, but the benefits of greater efficiency can come at a cost if we lose sight of the human qualities that help people thrive. In Mind Your Self, Katie Muldoon explores how leaders can embrace AI without losing the human qualities that matter, from creativity and emotional intelligence to meaningful relationships.

 

Drawing on military experience and psychoanalytic insight, she looks at how AI can affect people at work and shares practical ways to help teams stay connected, think clearly, and handle change.

 

For leaders bringing AI into their organisations, Mind Your Self is a reminder to make technology work for people, not the other way around.

 

 

Best read for: Making AI a strategic advantage

The AI-Driven Leader

Geoff Woods

£19.19, John Murray Business

 

Leaders know AI has the potential to transform their businesses, but finding the time to explore its possibilities can be difficult when day-to-day demands take priority. In The AI-Driven Leader, Geoff Woods examines how leaders can move beyond operational pressures and use AI to think more strategically.

 

Woods shows how leaders can use AI to handle day-to-day tasks, make better-informed decisions, and spend more time planning for the future of their business. For those looking to make better use of AI in 2027, the book offers simple, useful ideas for putting the technology to work.

 

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Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com and skynesher