Christopher Mims

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Christopher Mims
BirthplaceUnited States
NationalityAmerican
OccupationTechnology journalist, author
EmployerThe Wall Street Journal
Known forTechnology column at The Wall Street Journal, author of Arriving Today and How to AI
Alma materEmory University
Websitehttps://www.wsj.com/news/author/christopher-mims

Christopher Mims is an American technology journalist, columnist, and author who serves as a technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal, a position he has held since 2014. Over the course of his career, Mims has written for a range of prominent publications including Scientific American, Popular Science, and Grist, establishing himself as a voice in technology reporting that bridges the gap between complex technical subjects and general audiences. He is the author of Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door — Why Everything Has Changed About How and What We Buy (2021), a book examining global supply chains and logistics, and How to AI: Cut Through the Hype. Master the Basics. Transform Your Work (2026), a guide to understanding and applying artificial intelligence. A graduate of Emory University, Mims has covered subjects ranging from semiconductor manufacturing and electric vehicles to artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, often combining historical context with forward-looking analysis of how emerging technologies reshape industries and daily life.[1][2]

Education

Mims attended Emory University, a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia.[2] Details regarding his specific field of study and year of graduation have not been widely reported in publicly available sources.

Career

Early journalism career

Before joining The Wall Street Journal, Mims contributed to several well-known science and technology publications. He wrote for Scientific American, where his work included articles exploring scientific topics for a broad readership. One such article examined the relationship between testosterone and aggression, presenting research that challenged popular assumptions about the hormone's role in violent behavior.[3]

Mims also wrote for Popular Science, covering emerging trends in technology and internet culture. His work at the publication included pieces on the intersection of science and online media, such as an article exploring the science behind viral animal videos on YouTube.[4]

Additionally, Mims was a contributor to Grist, an environmental news outlet, where he produced a substantial body of work covering the intersection of technology, energy, and environmental issues. His byline at Grist accumulated a large archive of articles over an extended period.[5]

The Wall Street Journal

Mims joined The Wall Street Journal in 2014 as a technology columnist.[1] His column has covered a wide range of topics at the intersection of technology, business, and society, and he has become one of the publication's prominent voices on how technological change affects industries, consumers, and the broader economy.

One of Mims's most notable early pieces at the Journal came in July 2014, when he published his Twitter password in a column titled "The Password Is Finally Dying. Here's Mine," arguing that passwords were becoming obsolete as a security mechanism and that two-factor authentication and other measures rendered a password alone insufficient for account access. The stunt drew significant attention and became a widely discussed moment in technology journalism. Mims subsequently wrote a follow-up detailing the lessons learned from the experiment, including the volume and variety of attacks his account received after the publication.[6][7]

Mims has continued to produce a technology column that addresses the major themes of the digital era. His reporting has covered developments in semiconductor manufacturing, including a 2026 article examining innovations in photolithography that could bring about the smallest possible silicon microchips and their implications for Moore's Law.[8] He has also written on electric vehicles, including a 2026 piece documenting a long-distance road trip in an EV to test the expanding charging infrastructure in rural and remote areas of the United States.[9]

His coverage of artificial intelligence has been a central theme in his recent work. In March 2026, Mims published a column exploring why people — including those with technical knowledge — tend to attribute sentience and genuine thought to AI systems, arguing that this tendency is a product of human evolutionary psychology rather than a reflection of the technology's actual capabilities.[10]

Books

Arriving Today (2021)

Mims's first book, Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door — Why Everything Has Changed About How and What We Buy, was published by Harper Business, an imprint of HarperCollins, in 2021. The book traces the journey of a single product from its point of manufacture through the global supply chain to a consumer's doorstep, examining the complex web of logistics, automation, shipping, and last-mile delivery that makes modern e-commerce possible. The work explores how supply chains have been transformed by technology and how they intersect with issues of labor, globalization, and environmental impact.[11]

Arriving Today received recognition from the Porchlight Business Book Awards in 2021, where it was recognized among notable business books of the year.[12]

How to AI (2026)

Mims's second book, How to AI: Cut Through the Hype. Master the Basics. Transform Your Work, was published in early 2026. The book is structured around 24 actionable "laws" and is aimed at business leaders, professionals, and general readers seeking to understand artificial intelligence and apply it in practical ways. In the book, Mims combines historical context with analysis of contemporary AI tools and trends, drawing on his reporting at The Wall Street Journal.[13][14]

In interviews promoting the book, Mims discussed his approach to demystifying AI for non-technical audiences. Speaking with IT Brew, he debunked what he described as the hype surrounding "vibe coding" — a term referring to using AI to write software through natural-language prompts — and explained his view that the tireless nature of AI systems is what makes them a particularly significant force in the workplace.[15]

A review in The Indian Express described How to AI as "perhaps the one artificial intelligence primer all of us need to read," noting that it was designed to bring general users up to speed on the state of AI.[16]

Public speaking

Mims has appeared as a speaker at public events focused on technology and its societal implications. In February 2026, he spoke at the Commonwealth Club of California — one of the oldest and largest public affairs forums in the United States — for an event titled "Christopher Mims: How to AI." The event explored questions about who benefits from artificial intelligence, whether it poses dangers, and how it can serve as a useful tool.[17]

Recognition

Mims's work has been recognized by several institutions. His book Arriving Today was recognized by the Porchlight Business Book Awards in 2021.[18] His second book, How to AI, received favorable reviews from outlets including The Indian Express, which characterized it as an essential primer on artificial intelligence.[16] SmartBrief profiled Mims as making AI "approachable for business leaders," noting his ability to balance technical depth with accessibility.[14]

Mims's reporting has also received attention through the reactions it generates. His 2014 decision to publish his Twitter password in The Wall Street Journal became one of the more widely discussed experiments in technology journalism, prompting discussion about password security, two-factor authentication, and the evolving landscape of cybersecurity.[19]

Mims is listed in the Virtual International Authority File (VIAF), an international authority file linking records from national libraries around the world, and is cataloged by the Library of Congress under its name authority records.[20][21]

Legacy

As a technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal for over a decade, Mims has contributed to public understanding of a range of subjects central to the modern digital economy, including supply chain logistics, semiconductor technology, cybersecurity, electric vehicles, and artificial intelligence. His column has provided a platform for examining how technological developments affect workers, consumers, and businesses, often moving beyond surface-level coverage to explore systemic and structural dimensions of technological change.

His 2021 book Arriving Today offered readers a detailed look at global supply chains at a time when disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic had made supply chain issues a matter of broad public concern. By tracing the journey of a single product from factory to doorstep, the book provided a narrative framework for understanding a system that, while essential to modern commerce, had previously received limited attention from general audiences.[11]

With How to AI, published in 2026, Mims positioned himself within a growing field of journalists and authors working to make artificial intelligence comprehensible to non-specialists. The book's structure — organized around 24 actionable principles — reflected an approach that combined practical guidance with the analytical perspective of a journalist who had covered the technology industry for more than a decade.[13][14]

Mims's work at The Wall Street Journal continues to cover the major technology stories of the era, from the physical limits of semiconductor manufacturing to the psychological dimensions of human interaction with AI systems.[10]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Christopher Mims". 'The Wall Street Journal}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Christopher Mims". 'WSJ+}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  3. ↑ "Strange but True: Testosterone Alone Doesn't Cause Violence". 'Scientific American}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  4. ↑ "The Science Of YouTube: Cuuute!". 'Popular Science}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  5. ↑ "Christopher Mims — Author Archive". 'Grist}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  6. ↑ "The Password Is Finally Dying. Here's Mine". 'The Wall Street Journal}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  7. ↑ "Commentary: What I Learned and What You Should Know After I Published My Twitter Password". 'The Wall Street Journal}'. 2014-07-15. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  8. ↑ MimsChristopherChristopher"This Innovation Could Make the Perfect Silicon Chip—and End Moore's Law".The Wall Street Journal.2026-03-01.https://www.wsj.com/tech/silicon-chips-moores-law-photolithography-91b9ac4f?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqduCotugfgk1StYu0wSbN14B5bTjmteDbH5D3es-0Ld1zQWypcHBhZP&gaa_ts=69c1977a&gaa_sig=A_CPRng0Dgn9isyc3pDC5rn8v36_ssZCTeuAuQReHnwxUfH5ZizQN-eUMAFhOD_Nj6VjvbBakZneERic83NLDg%3D%3D.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  9. ↑ MimsChristopherChristopher"I Drove an EV Deep Into the Wilderness. I Never Feared Running Out of Juice.".The Wall Street Journal.2026-03-17.https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/electric-cars/i-drove-an-ev-deep-into-the-wilderness-i-never-feared-running-out-of-juice/ar-AA1L3zaZ?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=DCTS&cvid=457c3a86cf6d4a61a2703bf372193dbb&ei=21&apiversion=v2&domshim=1&noservercache=1&noservertelemetry=1&batchservertelemetry=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 MimsChristopherChristopher"Why Even Smart People Believe AI Is Really Thinking".The Wall Street Journal.2026-03-20.https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/ai-tools-sentience-b98fc6e6?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqcqVw52oO0-V9kEtaeG3wdRwk0EM5GArVrpJ199NGqobtwTuyoSq5Si&gaa_ts=69c1977a&gaa_sig=Q6brWKKYaMBIXuJIGb8Kgl5hoi-GvdEr2LeymtfRDbIsQaua89I4Yk1yc_azB0ox49RwiN1xXo5fgOZRXn34Ug%3D%3D.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Arriving Today — Christopher Mims". 'HarperCollins}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  12. ↑ "Porchlight Business Book Awards 2021". 'Porchlight Books}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "How to AI by Christopher Mims".Storizen Magazine.2026-03-21.https://www.pressreader.com/india/storizen-magazine/20260321/282046218624984.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 ""How To AI" author Christopher Mims makes AI approachable for business leaders". 'SmartBrief}'. 2026-02-20. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  15. ↑ "What's the best way to adapt to AI? A new book offers ideas".IT Brew.2026-03-06.https://www.itbrew.com/stories/2026/03/06/what-s-the-best-way-to-adapt-to-ai-a-new-book-offers-ideas.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "'How to AI' is perhaps the one artificial intelligence primer all of us need to read".The Indian Express.2026-03-17.https://indianexpress.com/article/books-and-literature/how-to-ai-artificial-intelligence-christopher-mims-10577084/.Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  17. ↑ "Christopher Mims: How to AI". 'Commonwealth Club World Affairs}'. 2025-12-09. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  18. ↑ "Porchlight Business Book Awards 2021". 'Porchlight Books}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  19. ↑ "Commentary: What I Learned and What You Should Know After I Published My Twitter Password". 'The Wall Street Journal}'. 2014-07-15. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  20. ↑ "VIAF Record — Christopher Mims". 'VIAF}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.
  21. ↑ "Library of Congress Name Authority — Christopher Mims". 'Library of Congress}'. Retrieved 2026-03-23.

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