Sebastian Mallaby

Biography

Sebastian Mallaby is the Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). A two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, he is the author of influential and acclaimed books covering the how money, markets and key individuals are shaping the world in new, often under-reported ways. Alongside writing, Sebastian co-hosts The Spillover, a weekly CFR podcast examining the ripple effects of global events across policy, geopolitics, economics, technology and financial markets.

Amongst Sebastian's books are The Infinity Machine: Demis Hassabis, DeepMind, and the Quest for Superintelligence,  in which examines AI and the pursuit of artificial general intelligence, exploring DeepMind's 'arms race' with Silicon Valley competitors and what it means for humanity's future. It's one title amongst a number that explore innovation, venture capital and markets, examining how most attempts at discovery fail but a few succeed at such a scale that they more than make up for everything else. Themes he also analysed in In The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Making of the New Future, and More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite, which have become required reading in investment and entrepreurship circles. With unprecedented access to investors, founders and many others, he addresses the extreme ratio of success and failure that drives Silicon Valley, the tech sector and the world, revealing how the industry relies on gut instinct and personality rather than spreadsheets and data. His further insights span the technology sector, central banks, financial markets, the implications of emerging powers, and the intersection of economics and international relations.

Before joining the CFR, Sebastian spent eight years as a columnist and editorial board member at The Washington Post, and 13 years with The Economist, covering foreign policy and international finance, in Africa covering Nelson Mandela's release and the collapse of apartheid, and in Japan covering the breakdown of political and economic consensus. He served as The Economist's Washington bureau chief, and wrote the paper's Lexington column on American politics and foreign policy. He also helped found InFacts.org, a web publication making the fact-based case for Britain to remain in the European Union. Sebastian's other books include The World's Banker, a portrait of the World Bank under James Wolfensohn named an 'Editor's Choice' by The New York Times, and After Apartheid, cited as a 'notable book' by The New York Times.