Globalisation often seems to be an impersonal and abstract phenomenon. Whether in everyday culture or matters of policy, its force has been experienced as something at once general and monolithic. By contrast, From Silk to Siliconis the first book to tell the history of globalisation through the lens of the people who shaped it. Taking ten extraordinary individuals, this book examines what these men and women did, how they did it, and how their combined will and vision continue to influence our world today.

Drawing together their various stories, Jeffrey E. Garten finds the common links between these figures. Placing the individual at the forefront of history, Garten explores some critical issues, including: How does the growing power of international trade affect nations' sovereignty? How much influence can any one person have in transforming our society? He argues that, in our increasingly globalised world, our progress and growth will come to be guided by many more such leaders and innovators. From Silk to Silicon presents a future full of human possibility.