It is tough to overestimate Big Tech’s influence on the modern world. But how did we get here? The best tech books unravel the rise and, occasionally, fall of some of the dominant companies and characters that created the gadgets and software we spend so much of our lives using.
You’ll find intensely detailed biographies, in-depth company histories, and plenty of drama and enlightenment in these tech tomes, and they also make great gifts for the techy folks in your life. You may also be interested in our Gifts for Book Lovers, Best Cookbooks, and Best Kindles guides.
Updated October 2026: I added five books, including Apple in China, More Everything Forever, Gouged, The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State, and The Nerd Reich.