Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

WOW! This was a thought provoking book. A1 is the next human enemy. I wonder if it can fight Covid19? This is a slow start but hang on in there, to discover how A1 can do creativity: including drawing and design better than the human genius!
We need to be aware of how this will impact lives (and jobs) in the future.
A fabulous read and I highly recommend it.
Thank you to Net galley for an ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

A great read, and a fascinating journey into AI.
A slow start but well worth hanging on and getting to the end.
Highly recommended.

An incredible, amazing book about AI, creativity, human input, and more...not at all dry, one of the best books I've read in a long time on the subject, and will inform more of my PHD work as I move towards my own work with AI.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for a review by the publisher, via Netgalley

The Creativity Code is a look at artificial intelligence, how it works, and what it might be able to do. Starting with what Ada Lovelace said about computing machines and creativity, Marcus du Sautoy goes through the achievements of AI so far, the mathematics that underpins machine learning, and explores the meaning of 'creativity', in order to look at whether computers will ever be able to be truly 'creative'.

What unfolds is a book that crosses disciplines, touching upon computer science and programming, mathematical proofs and the storytelling nature of them, how art works and how it relates to chaos theory, and whether music can be computed, amongst other things. Written in a way that is open and accessible, The Creativity Code is not bogged down in technical jargon and only describes actual algorithms or other mathematical concepts where necessary. Instead, it focuses on crosses boundaries (describing a theorem like an adventure narrative, for example) and on looking at what AI can do and whether this is creative. Some of the most interesting parts are larger questions about where coders and computers have the control, knowledge, or creativity, and the kind of opposition to AI in areas such as art, music, and mathematics.

Deeply engrossing and informative, The Creativity Code takes a complex topic (AI and machine learning) and gives an interdisciplinary look at its past and future. Despite what the title and blurb imply, it isn't only about whether AI can be 'creative', but also about what creativity is, how disciplines are creative, what AI can currently do, and what this means for the future and for how AI can be developed further. Anyone interested in crossover between arts and sciences should give it a read, as well as those who care about the creative side of science or how automation is going beyond simple instructions. It is an accessible book on machine learning, but also a thoughtful look at the meaning of creativity, and this makes it quite remarkable.

This was a fascinating, informative and engaging book.
I'm fascinated by AI and hear about it every day as work in a tech company.
This book help to have a better understanding of the potential and how it could be used in the creative field.
The book is well written, the explanations are clear and it was enthralling to read the analysis of the different fields of application.
Even if there are no solutions, just a look at what it could, this was a great read, one those book that you must read to have a look at the the future could be.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to HarperCollins UK and Netgalley for this ARC

A fascinating journey into art, how it intersects with mathematical algorithms, and whether we could take that one step further in having machines create it for us.

The book covers all things creative: from board games and paintings to music, books and even journalism. The author set these sections up well with relevant background on the subject and details of the attempts that we (as humans) have made to use computer programming to help us go further.

I got a bit lost when it went heavily into how music is composed but that's perhaps because I'm not a musician by any stretch. The book overall was very interesting for me to read. I've not studied mathematics primarily but touched on it during my Computer Science degree. It was nice to recognise some of the theorems mentioned (mainly by Fermat and Euclid) and understand them in the context.

I wouldn't say this is a book that provides any firm answers or has a definitive ending. It's a rather a study with a promise of what the future could one day hold (hopefully not Skynet).

P.S. I recommend the author and fans of this area watch the TV show 'Person of Interest'. It tells an incredible story with AI at it's core. It starts slow but it's totally worth it!