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Incorruptible

Incorruptible by Eric Ries

by Eric Ries

Hacker Approved

Ranked 3 of 24 business books by recommenders

Recommended for its account of how companies lose their principles and what to do about it. Critics say it is thin on evidence.

Recommended for its account of how companies lose their principles and what to do about it. Critics say it is thin on evidence.

34 people gave an opinion

recommend it
23
criticize it
11
approval share
68%
Each figure is one person. RecommendsCriticizes

Recommended in 4 of 13 months

  1. November 2025: not recommended
  2. December 2025: not recommended
  3. January 2026: not recommended
  4. February 2026: not recommended
  5. March 2026: not recommended
  6. April 2026: not recommended
  7. May 2026: not recommended
  8. June 2026: recommended
  9. July 2026: recommended
  10. August 2026: not recommended
  11. September 2026: recommended
  12. October 2026: recommended
  13. November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)

Why it carries the badge

  • 23 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
  • 2.1 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
  • Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.

The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works

What people say about it

The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.

Why people recommend it

Each mark is one comment

  • Explains how companies drift from principles

    “It is a fascinating read as to how most companies start with good intentions but end up so far away from their principles.”

    Comment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?”

    “At the very end of the book, I call these companies "addicts creating more addicts."”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”
  • Practical fixes and ideas for change

    “you will not only know the answer to this question, you will even know what we can do about it”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “ideas in the new book might be useful in helping us reorganize our economy afterwards”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “There is a whole chapter on that "hack" and how (and why) to implement it.”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”
  • Argument feels rigorous and convincing

    “I think the book gives a pretty clear and convincing answer”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “the much more detailed and (I hope) rigorous argument”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “I think it is both more effective and more long-term.”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”
  • Emotionally resonant beyond founders

    “I think this one is more emotionally resonant for folks, and has applicability way beyond founders or even product people.”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “I applaud writing a book on the challenges of making a business that is net good for society”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

What people warn about

Each mark is one comment

  • Claims lack scientific basis

    “full of platitudes that sound relevant to people's problems and desires, that pretend to be based on science but have no actual basis in facts”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “feels like heavy selection bias.”

    Comment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”
  • Content and format disappoint readers

    “I was disappointed in the content and format of the book.”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “Why is the scrolling hijacked (in a super frustrating way) on incorruptible.co?”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”
  • Framing seen as out of touch

    “what you're selling is illusions for entrepreneurs that want to delude themselves away from personal responsibility”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

    “It's about how out of touch this kind of book is.”

    Comment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

Other business books people recommend

The four most recommended other business books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.

Incorruptible by Eric Ries compared with 4 alternatives
ProductRecommendCriticizeApprovalMonthsOwnedBadge
The Gervais Principleby Venkatesh Rao32684%7—Approved
The Lean Startupby Eric Ries32684%510 yrs5 ownersApproved
Incorruptibleby Eric RiesThis page231168%4—Approved
The Goalby Eliyahu Goldratt21388%8—Approved
Never Split the Differenceby Chris Voss13287%6—Approved
See all 24 business books, ranked

What people said

40 of the 53 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.

“one addressed by mission-lock implements (Eric Ries's recent book Incorruptible is great here)”

RecommendsComment from 28 Oct 2026 in “Wealth Inequality in America drawn to scale”

“In there he tells the story of the Vectura Group, a pharma company that was developing treatments for asthma”

RecommendsComment from 21 Oct 2026 in “Anthropic's Public Benefit Charter”

“It is a fascinating read as to how most companies start with good intentions but end up so far away from their principles.”

RecommendsComment from 30 Sep 2026 in “Ask HN: What are you reading?”

“The book Incorruptible covers how to avoid that”

RecommendsComment from 16 Sep 2026 in “Nike exits the S&P 100 after 18 years and a $200B market-cap wipeout”

“it makes it clear that shareholder primacy is a relatively recent phenomena”

RecommendsComment from 9 Sep 2026 in “iPhone Duo”

“There is a whole chapter on that "hack" and how (and why) to implement it.”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I think it is both more effective and more long-term.”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I was disappointed in the content and format of the book.”

CriticizesComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“what you're selling is illusions for entrepreneurs that want to delude themselves away from personal responsibility”

CriticizesComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“the much more detailed and (I hope) rigorous argument”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“Excited to read the new book (arriving tomorrow)!”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“it actually is hard for me to separate decisions like these from my assessment of whether a book like this is worth my time”

CriticizesComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“Why is the scrolling hijacked (in a super frustrating way) on incorruptible.co?”

CriticizesComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“It's about how out of touch this kind of book is.”

CriticizesComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I'll be passing it around on the work Slack.”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I think the book gives a pretty clear and convincing answer”

RecommendsComment from 11 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I think this one is more emotionally resonant for folks, and has applicability way beyond founders or even product people.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I'm curious to see how much that maps with what you identified in your new book”

MixedComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“At the very end of the book, I call these companies "addicts creating more addicts."”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I hope you'll read the book and judge for yourself.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I enjoyed the book during "solve.it" course (Closed reading). Reading it again second time.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“It feels very mission driven which perfect.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I tried really hard to make this book different.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“To be clear: yes, it's possible, it's not too late. Read the book.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I hope you'll read the book and then come back and let me know”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“from your description here, I now realize I'm going to love this book!”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“you will not only know the answer to this question, you will even know what we can do about it”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“full of platitudes that sound relevant to people's problems and desires, that pretend to be based on science but have no actual basis in facts”

CriticizesComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“ideas in the new book might be useful in helping us reorganize our economy afterwards”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I included a version of that story in chapter 12 of the new book.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“the best way to support any author is to buy the book from your local independent bookstore”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“There's a whole chapter on this question in the new book, so I won't try to summarize it here, but just encourage you to check it out.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I'm confident you're going to like the book a lot as it gets into precisely those topics.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“feels like heavy selection bias.”

CriticizesComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I already have a copy of the book and intend to dig in more on these themes specifically.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“your argument (structure being the dominant term) is even stronger”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I applaud writing a book on the challenges of making a business that is net good for society”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“I'm about halfway through Incorruptible and loving it so far.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“so that future leaders will know what to ask for when and if they have the opportunity to try”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

“You can also see the various accolades, reviews, and awards that it's accumulated so far.”

RecommendsComment from 10 Jun 2026 in “AMA: I'm Eric Ries (The Lean Startup) & Author of New Bestseller Incorruptible”

Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.