To Be a Machine

To Be a Machine is a 2017 non-fiction work by Irish author and journalist Mark O'Connell that investigates the transhumanist movement and its adherents' efforts to overcome human limitations through technology. O'Connell travels the world interviewing key figures in transhumanism, cryonics, and life-extension research, examining both the philosophical underpinnings and practical pursuits of those seeking to transcend biological humanity.

The book explores themes including digital consciousness uploading, cryonic preservation, artificial intelligence, and the ethics of radical life extension. O'Connell brings a skeptical but empathetic journalistic lens to these often-dismissed movements, treating his subjects with respect while questioning the feasibility and desirability of their goals.

To Be a Machine became a significant popular introduction to transhumanist thought and the people driving it, bridging academic philosophy and mainstream discourse about humanity's technological future. It has been widely reviewed and discussed in both tech and literary circles.