AIQ by Nick Polson and James Scott is a book I would have loved to have written. I often give talks to non-engineers on the core ideas behind machine learning, deep learning, and artificial intelligence. It took me many months to refine the material but I think it is possible to convey the core ideas behind these technologies in a fun, engaging way that enables non-practitioners to understand the incredible impact they will have on all of our lives, while also grounding them in their limitations of the technologies, in contrast to the often wild claims in the media and by unscrupulous software and service vendors.
Polson and Scott have done a fantastic job of this at an obviously much greater scale. I love the historical stories they have woven into the explanations. Storytelling can be a great way to communicate information but sometimes all you remember is the basic plot line. The authors deftly used historical precedents to build a foundation for the technologies they were explaining, giving the reader an easier context in which to understand newer and more complex concepts. And for that reason, I would also strongly recommend this book to engineers and even to experienced practitioners, because the stories are also pretty damn interesting.