In the year 2035, robots, artificial intelligences, and neural implants have become commonplace. The Institute for Ethics keeps the peace, using social reputation to ensure that robots and humans don't harm society or each other. But a powerful AI named Adam has found a way around the restrictions.
Catherine Matthews, nineteen years old, has a unique gift: the ability to manipulate the net with her neural implant. Yanked out of her perfectly ordinary life, Catherine becomes the last firewall standing between Adam and his quest for world domination.
PRAISE FOR THE LAST FIREWALL
"Awesome near-term science fiction." - Brad Feld, Foundry Group managing director
"An insightful and adrenaline-inducing tale of what humanity could become and the machines we could spawn." - Ben Huh, CEO of Cheezburger
"A fun read and tantalizing study of the future of technology: both inviting and alarming." - Harper Reed, former CTO of Obama for America, Threadless
"A fascinating and prescient take on what the world will look like once computers become smarter than people. Highly recommended." - Mat Ellis, Founder & CEO Cloudability
"A phenomenal ride through a post-scarcity world where humans are caught between rogue AIs. If you like having your mind blown, read this book!" - Gene Kim, author of The Phoenix Project: A Novel About IT, DevOps, and Helping Your Business Win
About the Author: William Hertling is the author of Avogadro Corp: The Singularity Is Closer Than It Appears, A.I. Apocalypse, and The Last Firewall. Brad Feld, cofounder of TechStars, called his first novel, Avogadro Corp, "a tremendous book everyone must read." A twenty year veteran of the technology industry, he holds ten patents on software and internet technology and is a frequent speaker at technology and writing conferences. When not writing, he works on web and social strategy. He's been building online communities since 1986 when he ran seven phones lines into the back of his Apple //e to create an online chat system. An active blogger since 2002, his website, williamhertling.com, receives more than 50,000 visitors a year. He resides in Portland, Oregon.
