The rise of private power may be the most important and least understood trend of our time. Power, Inc. provides a fresh, timely look at how we have reached a point where thousands of companies have greater power than all but a handful of states. It follows the rise and fall of kings and empires, the making of great fortunes, and the chaos of bloody revolutions—right up to today’s financial crises, growing inequality, broken international system, and battles over the proper role of government and markets. Rothkopf argues that these developments, coupled with the rise of powers like China and India, may not lead to a triumph of American capitalism. Instead, he considers a contest among competing capitalisms offering different visions for how the world should work. Here is an important look at the power struggle that is defining our times.