Zero to One
Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future
by Peter Thiel
10 more
More Recommenders
Co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
Author, essayist, mathematical statistician, and risk analyst
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
Investor and podcast host
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
Co-founder of PayPal, Tesla, SpaceX, and Neuralink
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
Technology executive and investor
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
CEO of OpenAI
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →
Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of Meta Platforms
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
Source →Recommended by 12 notable people, including Nat Eliason and Derek Sivers
Check price on AmazonProof-backed recommendation
Amazon availability
Reading Profile
Should I read this?
A contrarian manifesto on building startups that create new categories rather than competing in existing ones. Thiel draws from PayPal and his investments in Facebook to argue that the best businesses are monopolies that avoid competition entirely. The book revolves around one question—What important truth do you believe that very few people agree with?—and uses it to interrogate everything from sales culture to the energy crisis. It reads like a sharp dinner argument with someone often right in a way that is uncomfortable to admit.
Read this if...
- •A technical founder who has spent years iterating on a SaaS product that is incrementally better than competitors—this book may convince you to scrap it and start over with a genuinely different thesis.
- •A VC analyst frustrated by portfolio companies that all pitch the same incremental improvements—Thiel gives language for why copycat startups fail and what monopoly thinking actually means.
- •An engineering student weighing a startup against a FAANG job offer—the contrast between indefinite optimism and definite optimism may reframe the entire decision.
Skip this if...
- •You will lose interest early if you need evidence beyond anecdotes—Thiel makes bold claims with case-study support but no systematic data, and readers expecting academic rigor will feel baited-and-switched.
- •You will put it down when the contrarianism tips into dogma—the certainty that there is one right answer on every question starts to feel like a personality trait rather than a methodology.
- •Skip if you are looking for a playbook on running a company day-to-day; this is a book of provocative principles, not operations, and it says almost nothing about hiring, firing, or managing teams.
Before You Buy
Reading Specifications
Difficulty:medium
Length:225 pages (Short)
Audience Fit
- A technical founder who has spent years iterating on a SaaS product that is incrementally better than competitors—this book may convince you to scrap it and start over with a genuinely different thesis.
- A VC analyst frustrated by portfolio companies that all pitch the same incremental improvements—Thiel gives language for why copycat startups fail and what monopoly thinking actually means.
- An engineering student weighing a startup against a FAANG job offer—the contrast between indefinite optimism and definite optimism may reframe the entire decision.
- You will lose interest early if you need evidence beyond anecdotes—Thiel makes bold claims with case-study support but no systematic data, and readers expecting academic rigor will feel baited-and-switched.
- You will put it down when the contrarianism tips into dogma—the certainty that there is one right answer on every question starts to feel like a personality trait rather than a methodology.
- Skip if you are looking for a playbook on running a company day-to-day; this is a book of provocative principles, not operations, and it says almost nothing about hiring, firing, or managing teams.
Check formats, pricing, and availability options for Kindle, physical print, or audiobooks directly.
View available editions on AmazonKey themes
Why recommended
Recommended by 62 sources and appears in Business Development, Information Technology, and Venture Capital.
Recommended by notable people
People and public figures who have recommended this book.
Recommendation Signals
Recommendation proof is sourced from public posts, interviews, reading lists, and cited references.
Trevor Ncube
“18/ Zero to One. @peterthiel challenges the assumption that competition is the essence of business. Rather, innovate and execute in ways that create value where currently exists. Overcome the tendency to chase the same things everyone else does. @bgmasters | Brilliant, bold, and clear thoughts about how to make a big Silicon Valley size company. Other great insights like definite/indefinite optimism/pessimism. | Enjoying brilliant, often provocative, Peter Thiel book, Zero to One. Will buy many and distribute to all senior execs. | I love Zero to One. | If I could hand any five books to a would be entrepreneur, I’d pick 1. Positioning by Ries + Trout 2. Zero to One by Thiel 3. 7 Powers by Helmer 4. The Outsiders by Thorndike 5. Creativity, Inc. by Catmull Bonus: Nobody Wants to Read Your ShT by Pressfield | If you really understand something that the rest of the world is confused about, and it’s an important truth, Zero to One says here are all the ways you might want to make that work. | Just finished @peterthiel's Zero to One. A must read. | Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how. | Q. What's your favourite business book you'd advise to young entrepreneurs and why M.L. Some good ones from the "pure business" category: Zero to One, The Hard Thing About Hard Things, The Innovator's Dilemma, Good to Great, etc. Personally, I prefer less advice, more history. From my favorite business segment: Too Big To Fail, Ascent of Money, When Genius Failed, etc. Books on applied psychology (Influence, Predictably Irrational, etc) are another way to round out primarily technological education :) | Some of my favorite business books, comment one book that changed your life | The first book any working or aspiring entrepreneur must read—period. | The first is “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel, a very good book that gives an overview of entrepreneurship and innovation. | There?s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | There’s a lot of business books out there. 99% of them are BS. Read this one. So many concepts really changed my attitude about not only business but capitalism. | This book was excellent. | This week I finished reading these two books. Grateful to @ChadMhako who recommended Zero to One a must read for all thinking of starting a business. @staffordmasie recommended Life After Google a tour de force. Please share what book you are reading for the benefit of others | Top 5 Must Read #Business Books of All Time #startup #mindset | Zero to One is a great business book.”
View sources (20) ▾80%
Appears In
Not sure if this is the right fit?
Consider The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz. Recommended by 60 sources.
“A blunt, conversational tour through the worst parts of building a company. Horowitz shares personal stories from his own startup failures and recoveries, offering practical wisdom on layoffs, pivots, CEO loneliness, and managing when times are bad. The value is in the honest, experience-based insight you won't get from business school. The limitation is its narrow focus on venture-backed tech startups—if you're not in that world, some advice may feel irrelevant. Reads like a wise mentor telling you what nobody else will.”
Similar books
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Ben HorowitzGood To Great
Jim CollinsHigh Output Management
Andrew S. GroveEssentialism
Greg McKeownCrossing the Chasm
Geoffrey A. Moore
Creativity, Inc.
Ed CatmullDeep Work
Cal Newport
Getting Everything You Can Out of All You've Got
Jay AbrahamHow recommendation signals are reviewed
Each recommendation is collected from a public source — interviews, articles, or curated lists — and linked to its original URL. Books with many verifiable recommendations from respected people rank higher.