American Kingpin
by Nick Bilton
The rise and fall of Ross Ulbricht and the Silk Road darknet market: libertarian ideals, a startup playbook applied to drugs, and the multi-agency hunt. Fast-paced and well reported.
Read it if…
you want a true-crime startup story.
See the book →
Skip it if…
you want business lessons you can use.
Try instead: An Ugly Truth →
Three things you will actually use
- Ideals do not excuse harm.
- Operational discipline fails under growth.
- Every startup playbook has an ethics line.
Do this first
Read the chapters on the operational security mistakes.
Our verdict
A startup, criminal.
See the book →
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