Samsung Rising: The Inside Story of the South Korean Giant That Set Out to Beat Apple and Conquer Tech by Geoffrey CainMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
A fascinating look into a fascinating company and its history, from its founding under BC Lee, to the legal scandals and travails of his grandson, Jay Y.
There were quite a few points that amazed it. I think Samsung's international forays were the most interesting, highlighting the clash of cultures. It's crazy how the founder of Android wanted to sell to Samsung, and they laughed him out of the office (later purchased by Google, which apparently said it was their "best purchase ever")
Then Waze approached them for a sale, but again they didn't take it seriously, so Google bought that too, and it's now our Google Maps.
Then Whatsapp! Although apparently Whatsapp decided early on it wouldn't sell to Samsung (Facebook bought them).
Still, crazy to see some lay-ups it let go. At the same time, however, it had some immense wins (Ellen DeGeneres's selfie)
I confess it seems to cut off abruptly at the end, since Jay Y was on trial the second time, and we were awaiting an outcome as of the printing of the book. Seems like a supplement could have been added, given that he was convicted (and then later pardoned because he could help the US government apparently. Sort of like Lucky Luciano).
Still, a great look into an interesting company, with some very interesting characters (many of whom, btw, seem to be on Linkedin!)
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