Book SummaryThe Four, by Scott Galloway

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Four

In The Four, entrepreneur and marketing professor Scott Galloway takes a hard look at four technology companies that dominate the modern marketplace: Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google (“the Four”). He argues that the success of the Four has had a profound and decidedly negative impact on our society, affecting everything from our privacy and our opportunities for career advancement to our free-market economy and the very...

The Four Summary Part 1: The Success of the Four

The Four are among the largest companies in the US, and their products and services infiltrate every aspect of American life. In this section, we’ll first explore just how pervasive these companies are. Then, we’ll explore two factors that Galloway highlights as major contributors to their continuing success: 1) each started with a simple vision that attracted major capital investment, and 2) each appeals to one of our deepest human desires—to accumulate goods (Amazon), to attract prospective mates (Apple), to foster loving relationships (Facebook), and to worship a god (Google).

The Size and Pervasiveness of the Four

As of 2018, Apple, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Amazon, and Facebook were the first, second, third, and fifth-largest companies in the US, respectively (the fourth was Microsoft). They all had market caps in the hundreds of billions—$888, $773, $748, and $534 billion, respectively.

(Shortform note: Market cap, short for market capitalization, means “the total dollar market value of a company’s outstanding shares of stock” (in other words, the price per share multiplied by the total...

The Four Summary Part 2: The Four’s Negative Impacts on Society

While the Four are hugely successful, Galloway argues that they’ve come by some of their success unfairly, harming society and the economy in the process. In this section, we’ll explore five ways in which the Four have negatively impacted our society in their fight for market dominance: 1) job destruction; 2) prioritizing profit over privacy, national security, and democracy; 3) tax avoidance; 4) elimination of competition; and 5) contributing to the decline of the middle class.

Negative Impact #1: Job Destruction

While the Four’s products and services fulfill some of our deepest human needs, they’re also taking away our livelihoods, says Galloway. The Four destroy more jobs than they create. In particular, he notes, Amazon’s emphasis on automation and Facebook and Google’s massive advertising capabilities are eliminating jobs in their own and their competitors’ workplaces.

For example, Amazon eliminates jobs by automating its warehouses. One of Amazon’s core competencies is actually robotics, but Amazon doesn’t talk about this publicly because it would be bad PR to advertise technology that eliminates jobs. Galloway predicts that eventually, stores like Walmart...

The Four Summary Part 3: Limiting the Outsized Power of the Four

Galloway says that the Four’s unchecked size and power, along with their negative effects on the economy—job destruction, tax avoidance, privacy and national security issues, and efforts to eliminate competition—all make the case for treating the Four like monopolies and breaking them up to allow other companies the opportunity to compete.

He claims that one way to do this is by suing the Four in antitrust lawsuits alleging that they take advantage of their outsized market power to engage in illegal, anticompetitive practices. This could force them to sell off their subsidiaries, creating smaller companies.

Galloway contends that antitrust lawsuits can lead to strong markets, increased competition, and a larger middle class. For example, in 1998, the federal government sued Microsoft for anticompetitive practices because Microsoft was using Windows to improperly promote its own search engine (Internet Explorer) over Netscape’s search engine. The lawsuit resulted in a settlement agreement in which Microsoft agreed to curb its monopolistic practices, leading to increased competition and...

The Four Summary Part 4: Who Will Be the Next Tech Giant?

The Four have dominated the marketplace for years, but even in the absence of efforts to break them up, Galloway says the Four won’t always be on top. While Galloway believes it will be some time before the Four lose their position as leaders in the tech world, he says history demonstrates that even the most successful companies can’t stay on top forever.

Who will be the next trillion-dollar tech company? In this section, we’ll first explore the factors Galloway claims are necessary for a company to be the next tech giant. Then, we’ll look at some potential candidates for that position.

Factors Necessary to Be the Next Tech Giant

Galloway identifies eight factors that define the Four and are likely to be present in the next mega-successful company:

1) A unique product: The next tech giant must have a unique product. One way to make a product unique, notes Galloway, is to consider where technology can add value to the process of making, selling, and using the product. For example, Amazon products themselves may not be any different than other sellers’ products, but Amazon can get them to customers faster than anyone else. Another way to differentiate a product is by...

The Four Summary Part 5: How to Make It in the Cutthroat Economy Created by the Four

In addition to all the other ways in which they’ve impacted society, the Four have fundamentally altered the job market, says Galloway—and the era of Big Tech is here to stay, regardless of who the next tech giant is.

Not only have the Four contributed to job destruction and the decline of the middle class, but they’ve also created a highly-competitive environment in which average workers have a hard time competing and succeeding. You need to be exceptional to make it in the new digital world. In this section, we’ll first take a look at how you can develop the personal qualities that Galloway says are necessary for career success in the cutthroat economy created by the Four. Next, we’ll explore Galloway’s advice for landing a great career. Finally, we’ll examine his recommendations for getting ahead in your career.

Develop Personal Qualities That Foster Career Success

Galloway advocates developing four personal qualities in order to get and keep the best jobs:

1) Emotional maturity: You’ll need to be able to appropriately express and control your emotions to manage the constantly changing responsibilities of the digital age.

(Shortform note:...

Shortform Exercise: Consider How the Four Have Affected Your Life

Galloway argues that the Four have had an outsized influence on our personal lives as well as on society at large. Consider how the Four have affected your own life, either directly or indirectly.

Galloway claims that the Four have eroded our privacy and undermined our opportunities for career advancement. Do you believe that these practices have affected you personally? If so, explain how.