The Pentagon's Brain

An Uncensored History of DARPA, America's Top-Secret Military Research Agency

By: Annie Jacobsen

Narrated by: Annie Jacobsen

Discover the definitive history of DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, in this Pulitzer Prize finalist from the author of the New York Times bestseller Area 51.
No one has ever written the history of the Defense Department's most secret, most powerful, and most controversial military science R&D agency. In the first-ever history about the organization, New York Times bestselling author Annie Jacobsen draws on inside sources, exclusive interviews, private documents, and declassified memos to paint a picture of DARPA, or "the Pentagon's brain," from its Cold War inception in 1958 to the present.

This is the book on DARPA -- a compelling narrative about this clandestine intersection of science and the American military and the often frightening results.

Critic reviews

Pulitzer Prize Finalist in History

One of The Washington Post's Notable Nonfiction Books of 2015

One of The Boston Globe's Best Books of 2015

One of Amazon's Top 100 Books of 2015

"A brilliantly researched account of a small but powerful secret government agency whose military research profoundly affects world affairs."—The Pulitzer Prize Committee

"Filled with the intrigue and high stakes of a spy novel, Jacobsen's history of DARPA is as much a fascinating testament to human ingenuity as it is a paean to endless industrial warfare and the bureaucracy of the military-industrial complex."—Kirkus Reviews

"A fascinating and unsettling portrait of the secretive U.S. government agency....Jacobsen walks a fine line in telling the story of the agency and its innovations without coming across as a cheerleader or a critic, or letting the narrative devolve into a salacious tell-all. Jacobsen's ability to objectively tell the story of DARPA, not to mention its murky past, is truly remarkable, making for a terrifically well-crafted treatise on the agency most Americans know next to nothing about."
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Jacobsen offers a definitive history of the clandestine agency.... She explores the implications of DARPA work on technology that will not be widely known to the public for generations but will certainly impact national security and concepts of war."—Vanessa Bush, Booklist (starred review)

"Jacobsen's account will serve as the model for histories of military research and development and is likely to lead to more works and articles about DARPA.... Engrossing, conversation-starting read..."—Library Journal

"Annie Jacobsen's considerable talents as an investigative journalist prove indispensable in uncovering the remarkable history of one of America's most powerful and clandestine military research agencies. And she is a great storyteller, making the tantalizing tale of The Pentagon's Brain -- from the depths of the Cold War to present day -- come alive on every page."—Gerald Posner, author of God's Bankers

"A fascinating and sometimes uneasy exploration of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency...."—Dina Temple-Raston, The Washington Post

"In this fascinating and terrifying account, Annie Jacobsen regales us with the stories behind the agency's 'consequential and sometimes Orwellian' innovations, including autonomous weapons systems--killer robots that could decide, without human intervention, who lives and who dies."—Bryan Schatz, Mother Jones

"Annie Jacobsen has a gift for unearthing secret, long-buried information."—Mary Ann Gwinn, Seattle Times

Great story, but...

This was a fantastic store, but the author read the audiobook herself and so badly mangled the pronunciation of basic military words and acronyms that at times it made it difficult for me to consider her research credible.

I Am The Walrus

Wow. Eye opening.

Some of the crazy schemes and even crazier names dreamed up for these schemes was the big takeaway for me.

The fact that we have completely ignored Eisenhower's warning about the MIC and the fact that, in many cases, ill-informed twenty-somethings were shaping nuclear and civil defense policies if beyond insane,

If you want to be left with a warm fuzzy feeling about the direction of the military, this is not your book. AI and military robotics is setting the tone for our new Matrix-like reality. We are headed toward Coppertop Town.

This book could have been titled something along the lines of, How To Blow Billions in Taxpayer Dollars on Crazy, Insane Technology and War.

Narration was OK, but was not the best.

nice

it was a nice book. the first half better than the second. at a times sounded like a shopping list but all the same very illuminating.

Great Book

A very in liteing book. Goes hand in hand with area 51 book the author wrote. I grew up in the time frame that this book was written in. I Now understand what was really going on. I grew up in the 1960s and seventies so this explains a lot about what was going on in the military and the government that the public was not aware of. it he is a very good book.

Very good, makes you think.

I think everyone needs to read this book it's very eye opening to say the least.