Emergence: A Memoir of Boyhood, Computation, and the Mysteries of Mind

For fans of Educated and Invisible Child, David Sussillo combines memoir and cutting-edge neuroscience to tell the story of his unlikely journey from group homes and drug-addicted parents to the scientific elite--exploring why, and how, he managed to succeed against all odds.

David Sussillo has made a career at the cutting edge of neuroscience and technology--yet his path there was anything but a straight line. Born to drug-addicted parents in New Mexico, he navigated a childhood marked by violence and neglect. But a seed was planted at the unlikeliest of places--the local arcade.

What follows is a remarkable journey of resilience and transformation, from the chaotic corridors of group homes to the halls of Columbia and Stanford. Along the way, Sussillo takes readers on an illuminating tour of the century-long dance between neuroscience, physics, and computation that has laid the groundwork for neural networks--the technology that drives modern artificial intelligence. As he advances in the field, working to demystify these networks, he also begins to pursue an answer to a more personal question: why, and how, did he succeed against all odds?

Emergence radiates heartbreak, humor, and scientific wonder, inviting readers on an unforgettable journey that bridges the personal and the profound, revealing how intricate complexities arise from simple beginnings.

Author: David Sussillo
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Published: 03/17/2026
Pages: 384
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.21lbs
Size: 9.19h x 6.34w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9781538768570


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/01/2026
Publishers Weekly 01/05/2026

About the Author
David Sussillo spent five years in the Albuquerque Christian Children's Home and four years at the Milton Hershey School as a child. After graduating high school, he ultimately received a Ph.D. from Columbia University in Computational Neuroscience. Now David is an adjunct professor at Stanford University and has been a scientist at the Google Brain group (recently featured in the book Genius Makers) and Meta Reality Labs. In his professional pursuits, David researches brain-machine interfaces to develop the next generation of computers. David was the recipient of a Fulbright research grant and is an internationally recognized neuroscientist with over 40 publications. He works to understand the ghost in the machine - how cells in our brain collectively give rise to the computations that determine behavior. David has been happily married these last 17 years to his wife, Robin.