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About the Book

WHEN AI TRIES TO RUIN YOUR LIFE...

A US shipping giant bets big on data centres and AI, but when an ambitious executive is sent over to the UK to slash the local operations and development workforce, she gets more than she bargained for.

“Absolutely gripping! A must-read” - LOVDEEP PANNU, CTO at Epicenter

“Could not be more of the moment. A proper page turner, part thriller, part whodunnit and a fine dystopian parable.” - CHARLES HUMBLE, Tech consultant & Journalist at Conissaunce

“Vivid world-building and well-rounded characters. I found myself completely hooked.” - RUSSELL MCLEAN, Emmy and BAFTA award-winning Producer of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch

WHEN THE 3 A.M. CALL COMES… DO YOU TAKE IT?

For anyone who’s ever shipped flaky code, knowingly increased technical debt or sat through another pointless stand-up, HUMAN SOFTWAREd is a razor-sharp dystopian thriller that highlights the absurdities and dangers of modern software engineering and our AI-driven future.

HUMAN SOFTWARE is the story of two women battling the pressures of corporate life and expectation, set against the backdrop of a savage downsizing at the major employer of a small UK town. Exploring themes of always-on tech culture, burnout, mental health, globalisation, AI, climate change and the dehumanisation of work.

SOFTWARE RUNS OUR WORLD. IT DOESN’T HAVE TO RULE OUR LIVES

Contemporary and technological, HUMAN SOFTWARE explores how software engineering and IT are fast becoming a blue-collar ghetto in the corporate world. When AI lowers the barrier to entry, those on the front line come under increasing pressure to justify their existence. Beth is an overworked British engineer, and Chrissie is the American executive sent to fire her. They will have to form an unlikely alliance to save more than just their own jobs.


About the Author

Richard Bown’s avatar Richard Bown

@bown_rw

Software engineering is rife with contradictions—roles that shouldn’t exist, people who do things that they shouldn’t. Having worked in the industry for thirty years, I thought it was time I started writing about it. Human Software is my first novel, inspired by the work I've done for dozens of different global corporations in the UK, the Netherlands and further afield over my career. It's set in a part of the world I know well, but with a twist, and it features characters inspired by those I've met along the way.

As a programmer, I’ve contributed to the world of Open-Source Software since the mid-’90s. I’ve also worked as a technology journalist and continue contributing to the discussion about how we build more humane software engineering organisations. I regularly publish on my blog and I have an occasional podcast. I’m also active over on LinkedIn.

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