Project Maven

“The best book on AI and war I have read for many years” – Defence Editor Shashank Joshi - The Economist
”[O]ne of the most important books on war and technology in many years… [A] scintillating account.” – The Economist
“Deeply researched and breezily written.” – Fred Kaplan - The New York Times
”[Project Maven] tells a hugely important story that the Pentagon, for one, would have preferred to keep under wraps. Manson has done a wonderful job of drawing back the curtain on a chilling battlefield development with consequences for us all.” – Saul David - Literary Review
”[A] lively and at times terrifying book… Project Maven offers a fascinating case study in military innovation.” – Jonathan Boff - The Spectator
“An unflaggingly well-reported and well-sourced account of the ongoing reconfiguration of the U.S. armed forces for a new technological era” – Gideon Lewis-Kraus - The New Yorker
“Could this book be any more timely? […] This looks to be fascinating and compelling stuff—but you may need a strong stomach” – Liz Else - New Scientist, ‘The best new popular science books of March 2026’
“It is scarily fascinating to read about the US military’s journey into AI warfare in this deeply-researched book… We need to ensure the power granted by AI weapons is treated with the gravity it deserves, but Manson tells us a chilling story that suggests the reality is otherwise.” – Matthew Sparkes - New Scientist
“Killer robots have long been a hot topic for feverish science fiction writers. But as Manson explores in her impressively researched book on the Pentagon’s Project Maven, we are rapidly sleepwalking into a world of automated killing.” – John Thornhill - Financial Times, ‘Best summer books of 2026: Environment, Science and Technology’
“A tour de force of reporting” – NPR’s “Books We Love”
“A well-told and definitive account” – Prof Sir Lawrence Freedman - Foreign Affairs
“Meticulously researched and engagingly narrated, Project Maven traces the secret history of the Pentagon’s effort to apply AI to war, from Afghanistan to the Taiwan Straits. Essential reading.” – Chris Miller, author of Chip War
“Anyone worried about AI systems making life-or-death decisions on the battlefield will be captivated and dismayed by Katrina Manson’s urgent and deeply reported book.” – Brad Stone, author of The Everything Store and Amazon Unbound
“Katrina Manson sorts hype from reality in chilling and up-to-the-minute history of algorithms that are starting to go to war—long before they have been fully debugged.” – Gary Marcus, author of Taming Silicon Valley
“An urgent exposé on the perils and promise of algorithmic warfare. With journalistic flair and insider access, Katrina Manson reveals how the Pentagon is racing to ‘enable lethality’ at machine speed.” – Patrick McGee, author of Apple in China
“A secrecy-busting account of America’s development of AI in intelligence and weapons systems. Project Maven is a movie trailer of the future of warfare.” – Lionel Barber, former editor of the Financial Times and author of Gambling Man
“Katrina Manson has achieved a rare feat: explaining a potentially world-changing technology through a gripping, page-turning narrative. From the battlefields of Afghanistan to the AI labs of Silicon Valley, Project Maven fires on all cylinders.” – Matthew Campbell, co-author of Dead in the Water
“A gripping story of the most important secret military project of the twenty-first century. A band of revolutionaries smashed through the Pentagon bureaucracy to usher in a new age of AI warfare. An important book for understanding the future of war.” – Paul Scharre, author of Army of None
“A revelatory examination of the future of war. Project Maven is meticulously reported yet reads like a thriller. If you want to understand the military applications of AI, read this book.” – Elliot Ackerman, author of Sheepdogs
“One of five of “The best books on the AI industry”” – Lois Becket, 17 September 2026 - The Guardian

Katrina Manson is an award–winning Bloomberg reporter who covers cyber, emerging tech, and national security. Her investigations exposed details of the US military’s AI use and US–China rivalry. She was previously the Financial Times US foreign policy and defense correspondent.

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