Yuval Noah Harari has written some wonderful and wise books for grown-ups about humanity’s place in the world. Sapiens is about the past. Homo Deus is about the future. But they’re both actually about today. And they both provided an intellectual engine for many of the ideas that found their way into The Last Human.

But there were many other humans who played a role in making this book possible. And for that reason, I would like to offer my heartfelt thanks to—

—Sarah Burnes, who has been the superintelligent GPS technology guiding my career for nearly ten years now. I’m grateful to have you as my agent, and my friend.

—Logan Garrison Savits and Julia Eagleton, whose insight and ideas made this book better in the early stages.

—Will Roberts and Rebecca Gardner, for sharing The Last Human with the rest of the world.

—Maggie Lehrman, who has been an advocate for this book from Day[1]. You are the one who made me think more deeply about the world in The Last Human—the characters, the robot society, the journey. You are tough and supportive and everything I could ever want in an editor.

—Jeff Campbell, for going above and beyond the usual tasks of copyediting. You got super nerdy with your robot questions and comments. And that’s exactly what the book needed.

—the entire team at Abrams. A good publisher is a sophisticated machine. At its heart is an operating system comprised of smart, dedicated people, working hard on every aspect of their books. I couldn’t have found a better home for The Last Human.

—Jason Richman, for your generosity, intelligence, and ingenuity.

—Phil Lord, Chris Miller, Will Allegra, and everyone at Lord Miller, for all your efforts to bring The Last Human to the screen.

—all the librarians, educators, administrators, and parents who devote so much of themselves to sharing books with young people. Every time I visit a school or library, I am amazed by the work you do!

—Marie Matheson, for reading an early version, contributing your Googly wisdom, and bringing some authenticity to the technology in these pages. And also for being such a great friend!

—my family across the world: California, Texas, Tennessee, Germany—your support and love are the foundation for everything else.

—my FamilyUnit, Parent_1 and Parent_2 (also known as Jamie and Terry), for listening to my weird and goofy stories long before anyone else.

—my wife, Eva Bacon. My first reader. My best critic. The most remarkable human I have ever met.

This book is dedicated to my brother, Evan Bacon. I could only dream of robots. You built them. Your brilliance, humor, and friendship will always inspire me.

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