Review: The Coming Wave by Mustafa Suleyman

A clear, sober look at the technologies that will reshape business, governance and everyday work

Technology books tend to fall into two categories: speculative futurism or practical handbooks. The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-First Century’s Greatest Dilemma sits somewhere in between. Mustafa Suleyman — co-founder of DeepMind and now a senior figure in Microsoft’s AI leadership — offers neither a doomsday prophecy nor a triumphalist vision of artificial intelligence. Instead, he delivers a measured, strategically informed examination of the forces that will define the next decade of global change.

For readers trying to understand not just where AI is going but how it will alter business models, power structures and the nature of work, this is one of the clearer accounts available.

What the Book Argues

Suleyman’s central claim is that we are entering a period of rapid technological diffusion driven by two primary engines: advanced AI systems and breakthroughs in synthetic biology. Together, he calls these developments “the coming wave”—a convergence of capabilities that will accelerate faster than societies can comfortably absorb.

The book emphasises four characteristics that make this wave notably different from previous technological shifts:

1. Autonomy – the ability of systems to act without direct human supervision.

2. Omni-use – technologies that can be applied across many domains, including unintended ones.

3. Hyper-evolution – unprecedented speed of iteration and improvement.

4. Asymmetry – small groups or individuals gaining capabilities once reserved for nation-states.

These features collectively create both opportunity and risk, and Suleyman’s argument is that businesses, governments and institutions must confront this reality with new frameworks of responsibility, governance and strategy.

The Containment Challenge

The book’s most significant theme is what Suleyman calls “the containment problem.” If technologies diffuse faster than regulatory or institutional structures can adapt, traditional mechanisms of oversight become significantly less effective. The result is a world in which managing capability, not just developing it, becomes the primary challenge.

Rather than prescribing sweeping solutions, Suleyman frames containment as an ongoing task — a combination of governance, design principles, cultural norms and institutional reform. For business leaders, this section reads as both a warning and a prompt: plan for a world where advanced capability is widespread, not centralised.

Relevance for Creators, Marketers and Business Leaders

While the book is broad in scope, many of its insights apply directly to the kinds of audiences Techenova serves.

Shifting Value Chains

As AI systems become more autonomous, tasks that once required specialist labour become available through general-purpose models. This changes how value is created in marketing, creative industries and digital services. The implication is that differentiation will depend less on technical capacity and more on judgment, storytelling, distribution and trust.

Business Model Pressure

The convergence of AI and synthetic biology accelerates competitive disruption. Suleyman argues that companies built around manual processes or slow decision cycles will struggle. For entrepreneurs and marketers, this reinforces the importance of agility, experimentation and adopting new tools early.

Decision-Making Under Uncertainty

Creators and business leaders must navigate an environment where technologies evolve faster than traditional strategic planning models. The book encourages readers to treat adaptability as a core competency.

Strengths

The Coming Wave succeeds because it’s written by someone who has spent years inside the field’s most consequential institutions. Suleyman brings a practical understanding of both technological capability and the organisational realities that shape deployment.

The writing is clear, concise and grounded. It avoids sensationalism and remains focused on strategic implications rather than technical minutiae. Readers looking for an accessible but serious analysis will find it valuable.

What the Book Assumes About Its Reader

The book is not a technical manual, nor is it aimed at beginners looking for AI tutorials. Instead, it assumes a reader who wants to understand the structural forces shaping the next decade — someone who thinks in terms of systems, incentives and long-term consequences.

It also assumes a willingness to entertain complexity. Suleyman does not offer quick solutions or “playbooks.” This is a strategic text, not an operational one. Readers expecting concrete guidance on tools or implementation may find it broad, but those seeking clarity on the broader landscape will find it insightful.

How It Fits Into the 2025 AI Landscape

In a market saturated with tool-first discourse, The Coming Wave provides a valuable counterweight. Rather than focusing on specific apps or trends, it explains the underlying mechanics of technological change: diffusion, autonomy, misuse, governance and institutional stress.

For Techenova — a platform built around practical AI adoption — the book serves as a contextual anchor. It helps situate today’s tools and workflows within a larger narrative about where the world is heading, and why the systems we build today must anticipate effects well beyond the immediate productivity gains.

Final Verdict

The Coming Wave is a thoughtful, serious and timely examination of the technologies that will define the next era of global change. Its strength lies not in forecasting precise outcomes but in helping readers understand the structural forces behind them.

For creators, marketers, founders and executives navigating AI-driven transformation, this book provides a calm, informed vantage point — the kind of framing that supports better decisions, sharper strategy and more resilient business models.

It is not a manual for how to use AI, but it is one of the clearest guides to understanding the environment in which AI will operate. For that reason alone, it deserves a place on the reading list of anyone preparing for the decade ahead.