The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

Get smarter about the day’s news in tech, media and finance by following Silicon Valley’s most-read executive newsletter.

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Recent Editions

Art by Clark Miller; Image via Getty.

LeBron’s AI Blunder, Tech’s Fortunate Bet on Trump

By Abram Brown · Jul 26, 2025 7:00am PDT

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Sports execs’ favorite pastime? Venture capital• The Top 5: The best new startup accelerators • Plus, our Recommendations: “Autocracy in America,” “I Regret Almost Everything” and “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” LeBron James would like the internet to behave itself. Of course, it won’... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Sports execs’ favorite pastime? Venture...

Art by Clark Miller

The Best New Startup Accelerators

By Alex Perry · Jul 26, 2025 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Need a mentor to jolt your thinking—or need to lock yourself away from the world for 20 days? A whole new generation of startup accelerators has proliferated in recent years, each one promising to turbocharge a founder’s ambitions. Many of the best are from the most prominent names in Silicon Valley, including Sequoia Capital, Andreessen... Need a mentor to jolt your thinking—or need to lock yourself away from the world for 20...

Larry Ellison and David Ellison in 2013. Photo via Getty

Larry Ellison’s New Hollywood Drama Is About to Debut

By Martin Peers · Jul 25, 2025 4:00pm PDT

Oracle chair Larry Ellison's power in American business is about to expand. The Federal Communications Commission’s approval on Thursday of Ellison-backed Skydance’s takeover of film and TV icon Paramount Global cleared the last major hurdle standing in the way of the $8 billion deal. It’s expected to close on Aug. 7, when Larry Ellison’s son... Oracle chair Larry Ellison's power in American business is about to expand. The Federal...

Image via Getty.

Ramp in Talks to Raise at $21 Billion Valuation, Up 30% From June Financing

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Cory Weinberg and Amir Efrati · Jul 25, 2025 3:50pm PDT

Image via Getty.

Ramp in Talks to Raise at $21 Billion Valuation, Up 30% From June Financing

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Cory Weinberg and Amir Efrati · Jul 25, 2025 3:50pm PDT

Ramp, a six-year-old corporate card and expense management startup, is in discussions with investors to raise $350 million at a valuation of about $21 billion with the investment, according to three people with direct knowledge of the fundraising, just a month after raising at a $16 billion valuation. Existing investor Iconiq is in talks to lead... Ramp, a six-year-old corporate card and expense management startup, is in discussions with...

Art by Clark Miller

Sports Leagues Hunt for Startup Investments in a Chummy Style of Venture Capital

By Sara Germano · Jul 25, 2025 9:04am PDT

A couple weeks ago, LeBron James was in Las Vegas, seated courtside at the Thomas and Mack Center to watch his team, the Los Angeles Lakers, scrimmage against their crosstown rivals, the Clippers. The game was a highlight of the NBA’s annual off-season Summer League tournament, where rookies and rising stars—like James’ son,... A couple weeks ago, LeBron James was in Las Vegas, seated courtside at the Thomas and Mack Center...

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OpenAI’s GPT-5 Shines in Coding Tasks

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 25, 2025 7:00am PDT

GPT-5 is almost here, and we’re hearing good things. The early reaction from at least one person who’s used the unreleased version was extremely positive.That’s good news for OpenAI. The ChatGPT creator has been under pressure to show major gains from its next big artificial intelligence model since we first broke the news last November that it... GPT-5 is almost here, and we’re hearing good things. The early reaction from at least one person...

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Inside Tesla’s Secretive Optimus Robot Program

By Theo Wayt and Rocket Drew · Jul 25, 2025 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Elon Musk says humanoid robots will be the future of Tesla. The company has a long way to go. Tesla is well behind the pace necessary to meet Musk’s publicly stated goal of producing at least 5,000 of its Optimus humanoid robots this year, according to two people with knowledge of the program. So far, the number of robots it has made is in the... Elon Musk says humanoid robots will be the future of Tesla. The company has a long way to go. ...

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo via Getty

Why Google Should Combine Gemini and the Search Bar

By Martin Peers · Jul 24, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo via Getty

Why Google Should Combine Gemini and the Search Bar

By Martin Peers · Jul 24, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Here’s a question: If Google was started today, would it have a search bar on its website separate from its artificial intelligence chatbot, Gemini? I asked Gemini that question earlier today, and the chatbot thought that was “extremely unlikely” and that a “unified interface would be the almost certain choice.” As Gemini said, “the fundamental... Here’s a question: If Google was started today, would it have a search bar on its website...

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Creator Economy

TikTok’s Canada Problem

By Kaya Yurieff · Jul 24, 2025 2:00pm PDT

As TikTok’s future in the U.S. continues to be in limbo, the company is trying to quell a different regulatory threat north of the border.In November, the Canadian government told TikTok to wind down its operations in the country due to national security concerns, but curiously has allowed the app to remain available to the 14 million users in... As TikTok’s future in the U.S. continues to be in limbo, the company is trying to quell a...

Art by Clark Miller; Gil screenshot via YouTube.

Elad Gil Plots $1.5 Billion Fund, Stretching Definition of a Solo GP

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jul 24, 2025 12:23pm PDT · 1 comment

Venture capital firms are under pressure to make rapid-fire decisions about big checks in the frenzied world of artificial intelligence investing, straining partnerships that need a unified front. It helps sometimes to have just one decision-maker.That makes a case for Elad Gil, a prolific investor who made early investments in Perplexity,... Venture capital firms are under pressure to make rapid-fire decisions about big checks in the...

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AWS Took its Time Disclosing Security Flaw in AI Coding Tool

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jul 24, 2025 11:19am PDT · 1 comment

While artificial intelligence-powered coding is jet fuel for developer productivity, a string of incidents in recent months shows why customers should tread carefully in this version of the Wild West. In the latest worrisome development, a hacker recently found a way to upload malicious code to an Amazon Web Services’ AI coding assistant, Q... While artificial intelligence-powered coding is jet fuel for developer productivity, a string of...

Northvolt's plant in Skellefteå, Sweden. Photo via Getty.

Battery Industry Scavenger Lyten Hit by Cash Crunch

By Steve LeVine · Jul 24, 2025 8:43am PDT

Northvolt's plant in Skellefteå, Sweden. Photo via Getty.

Battery Industry Scavenger Lyten Hit by Cash Crunch

By Steve LeVine · Jul 24, 2025 8:43am PDT

Lyten, a tiny California battery startup, turned heads by snapping up assets from one of the industry’s most high-profile failures—but Lyten is now struggling itself. Lyten this week laid off its chief battery strategist, just three weeks after it bought a battery factory from bankrupt Northvolt. It also let go 45 of its 300 employees,... Lyten, a tiny California battery startup, turned heads by snapping up assets from one of the...

Donald Trump. Photo by Getty

The Winners and Losers of Trump’s AI Plan

By Rocket Drew and Anissa Gardizy · Jul 24, 2025 6:40am PDT · 1 comment

President Donald Trump’s 23-page AI Action Plan, released on Wednesday, won’t transform the AI industry overnight, but it offers a sense of who stands to gain or lose under the current administration’s agenda. Big winners include those developing open-source models, such as Meta Platforms, while a requirement for plugging AI chip export... President Donald Trump’s 23-page AI Action Plan, released on Wednesday, won’t transform the AI...

Targets to Watch as AI Dealmaking Picks Up

By Valida Pau · Jul 24, 2025 6:00am PDT

Google’s and Meta Platforms’ unconventional multibillion-dollar deals to obtain artificial intelligence talent have dominated headlines in recent weeks. But large technology companies including Meta, Amazon, Nvidia, Snowflake and cloud provider CoreWeave have gone beyond recruiting talent: Each has recently acquired at least one AI startup for... Google’s and Meta Platforms’ unconventional multibillion-dollar deals to obtain artificial...

QuantumScape shares are up 203% over the last month. Photo: QuantumScape

The Electric: Long-Suffering Battery Startups Are Among the Best-Performing Stocks

By Steve LeVine · Jul 24, 2025 4:30am PDT

Everyone has a different theory about why batteries are a thing again, and almost none of them overlap. What’s indisputable is that investors once again have battery fever. Everyone has a different theory about why batteries are a thing again, and almost none of them...

Photo via Getty

Musk Giggles as Tesla Tanks

By Theo Wayt · Jul 23, 2025 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Photo via Getty

Musk Giggles as Tesla Tanks

By Theo Wayt · Jul 23, 2025 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Most CEOs reporting a 12% decline in quarterly revenues would adopt a sober attitude on their earnings call. Not Elon Musk, who opened Tesla’s analyst call on Wednesday with what sounded suspiciously like a penis joke, and then proceeded to make the rather, er, ambitious prediction that Tesla’s robotaxis would be available to half the U.S.... Most CEOs reporting a 12% decline in quarterly revenues would adopt a sober attitude on their...

Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

YouTube Makes Strong Start to Social Media Earnings

By Erin Woo and Kaya Yurieff · Jul 23, 2025 4:14pm PDT

Alphabet kicked off earnings season for social media companies with good news from YouTube: the video juggernaut’s advertising revenue rose 13% year over year in the second quarter, beating its growth rate in the first quarter and calming fears that President Trump’s tariffs would be a headwind for social media revenues. Another positive... Alphabet kicked off earnings season for social media companies with good news from YouTube: the...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

Founders Fund, Dragoneer Each Commit $1 Billion–Plus to OpenAI Deal

By Sri Muppidi · Jul 23, 2025 1:20pm PDT

As OpenAI tries to raise a record-breaking $40 billion in equity funding this year, it’s getting help from more of its existing investors. Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund and Dragoneer Investment Group have committed to investing more than $1 billion each in the second, $30 billion installment of the round, according to a person who spoke to OpenAI... As OpenAI tries to raise a record-breaking $40 billion in equity funding this year, it’s getting...

Photo via Getty

The Enterprise Data War Hits OpenAI

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 23, 2025 7:00am PDT

Slack is the glue that holds OpenAI together: Everyone at the 3,000-person company constantly uses the messaging app to discuss their work, former employees have said.So perhaps it’s no surprise that as OpenAI tried to turn ChatGPT into a core enterprise productivity app that connects to all the other apps people use for work, it wanted... Slack is the glue that holds OpenAI together: Everyone at the 3,000-person company constantly...

Crusoe co-founder and CEO, Chase Lochmiller. Photo via Getty

Upstart Crusoe’s Audacious Plan to Take On Cloud Giants

By Anissa Gardizy and Cory Weinberg · Jul 23, 2025 6:09am PDT

Crusoe co-founder and CEO, Chase Lochmiller. Photo via Getty

Upstart Crusoe’s Audacious Plan to Take On Cloud Giants

By Anissa Gardizy and Cory Weinberg · Jul 23, 2025 6:09am PDT

Crusoe, the startup developing a giant data center for OpenAI’s $500 billion Stargate effort, is raising around $1 billion in a bid to join the race to provide computing power for artificial intelligence. The company burst into AI by promising quick access to electricity for power-hungry data centers. Its new effort will leverage that position... Crusoe, the startup developing a giant data center for OpenAI’s $500 billion Stargate effort, is...