The Arab Spring was a series of protests against the autocratic regimes in Arab countries, which started in Tunisia in 2010 and spread to other countries in the region, such as Egypt, Bahrain, Libya, and Syria. In some cases, the protests were successful, forcing much-needed reforms. Nevertheless, in Syria, the protests descended into a bloody civil war, in which Syrian president Bashar al-Assad, backed militarily by Russia, repressed the uprising by killing close to half-a-million Syrians. In Autocracy, Inc., Applebaum examines how the Arab Spring demonstrated both the potential for popular resistance against autocracy and the lengths to which autocratic leaders will go, through repression, manipulation, and external alliances, to preserve their authority and suppress democratic aspirations.

Anne Applebaum uses the term “autocracy” to describe a system of government where power is centralized in the hands of a single ruler or a group, often without regard for democratic principles. Autocracies are characterized by the suppression of dissent, the control of media and information, and the manipulation of legal systems to maintain power. Applebaum examines how modern autocracies collaborate across borders, forming networks that protect and reinforce one another, creating a global challenge to liberal democracy.