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

Five times/week

The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica 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.

By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy

Recent Editions

Art by Mike Sullivan

The Big Idea That Drove a Strong Year in Tech Dealmaking

By Valida Pau · Dec 18, 2025 2:25pm PST

It’s a no-brainer these days to say AI is driving tech mergers. As I wrote earlier this month, big AI deals and a deal-friendly presidential administration have pushed the value of U.S. announced tech mergers to more than $543 billion this year, the highest level since 2021. To Morgan Stanley bankers, the deals this year and over the next... It’s a no-brainer these days to say AI is driving tech mergers. As I wrote earlier this month,...

Juliana Yamada/LA Times via Getty Images.

Can UCLA Replace Teaching Assistants with AI?

By Aaron Holmes · Dec 18, 2025 10:30am PST

Universities grappling with slowing enrollment and imperiled federal funding are looking for new ways to cut costs. How much will artificial intelligence help? The management school at the University of California, Los Angeles has been developing AI applications for its 500 faculty and staff members, including tools that might automate the... Universities grappling with slowing enrollment and imperiled federal funding are looking for new...

Art by Mike Sullivan

OpenAI’s ChatGPT Problem

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Dec 18, 2025 7:00am PST

OpenAI has a problem and, unfortunately for it, that problem is also how it makes most of its money: ChatGPT.In this story that Sri, Amir and I published this morning, we revealed that over the past year OpenAI staffers had noticed that improvements to the company’s models weren’t necessarily lifting ChatGPT usage. Their quandary is that... OpenAI has a problem and, unfortunately for it, that problem is also how it makes most of its...

OpenAI executives Fidji Simo, Sam Altman and Mark Chen. Images via Getty. Art by Clark Miller.

How OpenAI’s Organizational Problems Hurt ChatGPT

By Stephanie Palazzolo, Sri Muppidi and Amir Efrati · Dec 18, 2025 6:00am PST · 8 comments

OpenAI executives Fidji Simo, Sam Altman and Mark Chen. Images via Getty. Art by Clark Miller.

How OpenAI’s Organizational Problems Hurt ChatGPT

By Stephanie Palazzolo, Sri Muppidi and Amir Efrati · Dec 18, 2025 6:00am PST · 8 comments

Over the past year, some OpenAI staffers noticed a concerning change in the way people who used ChatGPT were reacting to improvements in the chatbot. In prior years, every time OpenAI made a big upgrade to the artificial intelligence that powers the chatbot, usage surged as people easily found ways to get useful responses out of it, one employee... Over the past year, some OpenAI staffers noticed a concerning change in the way people who used...

Beta's conventionally flying electric aircraft. Photo: Courtesy Beta

The Electric: The First Flying Electric Taxis Next Year Are Likely to Act More Like Planes Than Helicopters

By Steve LeVine · Dec 18, 2025 4:30am PST

For years, electric air taxi startups have flaunted prototypes of futuristic aircraft that look like space ships and fly like helicopters. They are supposed to fly streams of passengers from downtowns to airports and other nearby places quickly and quietly. For years, electric air taxi startups have flaunted prototypes of futuristic aircraft that look...

Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon. Getty Images.

OpenAI's Funding Advantage Over Rivals Grows

By Martin Peers · Dec 17, 2025 5:00pm PST

Talk about an endorsement! For all the talk about OpenAI falling behind Google, the ChatGPT maker doesn’t seem to be having any problems attracting big backers. Last week it was Disney, putting in $1 billion, and soon it’s likely to be Amazon, judging from The Information’s scoop on Tuesday night that Amazon was in talks to invest more than $10... Talk about an endorsement! For all the talk about OpenAI falling behind Google, the ChatGPT maker...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images.

OpenAI Has Discussed Raising Tens of Billions at Valuation Around $750 Billion

By Sri Muppidi and Katie Roof · Dec 17, 2025 4:15pm PST · 11 comments

OpenAI has held preliminary discussions with some investors about raising new funding at a valuation of around $750 billion, according to three people with knowledge of the discussions. It could raise tens of billions of dollars, and as much as $100 billion, according to two of the people. Talks are early and nothing has been finalized. A... OpenAI has held preliminary discussions with some investors about raising new funding at a...

Artwork by Clark Miller

How Prediction Markets Are Reshaping Valuation for Both Private Unicorns and Public Tech Giants

By The Information Staff · Dec 17, 2025 1:52pm PST

Artwork by Clark Miller

How Prediction Markets Are Reshaping Valuation for Both Private Unicorns and Public Tech Giants

By The Information Staff · Dec 17, 2025 1:52pm PST

The rapid ascent of prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket is introducing a volatile, real-time, and largely unregulated signal for valuing companies and forecasting performance. This disruptive trend forces new scrutiny onto both private valuations and public corporate expectations. Crucially, their growth is shadowed by significant... The rapid ascent of prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket is introducing a volatile,...

Photo by Joe Burbank/Getty Images

The Information Finance

Private Tech Giants Could Lose Scarcity Premium in IPOs

By Ken Brown · Dec 17, 2025 8:00am PST · 4 comments

Scarcity creates value in everything from precious metals to giant private tech companies. That accounts for some portion of the stunning prices investors are paying to get into SpaceX, OpenAI and other companies while they are still private. An army of wealth managers, fund executives and other go-betweens have made a lucrative living... Scarcity creates value in everything from precious metals to giant private tech companies. That...

Chart by Shane Burke

The Memory-Chip Rally Lifting Micron Isn’t Done

By Anita Ramaswamy · Dec 17, 2025 8:00am PST · 1 comment

When Micron Technology reports its fiscal first-quarter earnings on Wednesday afternoon, investors will be listening for the memory chip maker’s outlook in the next few quarters. Micron is one of three companies, along with Samsung and SK Hynix, that make high-bandwidth memory, a key component of AI chips. Surging demand for AI chips has lifted... When Micron Technology reports its fiscal first-quarter earnings on Wednesday afternoon,...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why Turing Is Buying Up Failed Startups’ Codebases

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Dec 17, 2025 7:00am PST

Last night The Information broke the news that Amazon was in talks to invest at least $10 billion in OpenAI at a valuation of more than $500 billion. As part of the deal under discussion, OpenAI would agree to use Amazon’s Trainium chips, we reported. It's the latest in a string of deals OpenAI has done to raise the money it needs to pay for its... Last night The Information broke the news that Amazon was in talks to invest at least $10 billion...

Sam Altman. Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images

OpenAI, Anthropic Discuss Data Deals With Biotech and Other Companies

By Valida Pau and Stephanie Palazzolo · Dec 17, 2025 6:30am PST

Sam Altman. Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/ Getty Images

OpenAI, Anthropic Discuss Data Deals With Biotech and Other Companies

By Valida Pau and Stephanie Palazzolo · Dec 17, 2025 6:30am PST

OpenAI, Anthropic and Google have been on the prowl for specialized data to train their AI models, discussing deals with startups and public companies to license datasets on topics such as genomics. In the last several months, for instance, staff at OpenAI spoke to life sciences diagnostics vendor Revvity, accounting software firm Xero and... OpenAI, Anthropic and Google have been on the prowl for specialized data to train their AI...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Banks Pitching Mega IPOs Like SpaceX Seek to Limit Mass Selling

By Cory Weinberg and Valida Pau · Dec 17, 2025 6:00am PST · 1 comment

Wall Street is gearing up for three potentially record-setting initial public offerings over the next 18 months. The talk among bankers is not about what SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI will do on their big days but about what happens after that, when the companies’ existing shareholders try to unload their multibillion-dollar stakes. Each of the... Wall Street is gearing up for three potentially record-setting initial public offerings over the...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, left and Amazon CEO Andy Jassy via Getty. Collage by Clark Miller.

OpenAI in Talks to Raise At Least $10 Billion From Amazon and Use Its AI Chips

By Anissa Gardizy, Sri Muppidi, Cory Weinberg and Amir Efrati · Dec 16, 2025 6:19pm PST · 1 comment

Amazon is in talks to invest $10 billion or more in OpenAI, according to three people familiar with the discussions. The valuation would be higher than $500 billion, one of the people said. The Amazon investment would help OpenAI afford some of the commitments it has made to rent servers from cloud providers, including from Amazon Web Services.... Amazon is in talks to invest $10 billion or more in OpenAI, according to three people familiar...

George Osborne. Jack Taylor/Getty Images.

OpenAI Lands Its British Politician

By Martin Peers · Dec 16, 2025 5:00pm PST

What is it about former British government ministers that makes them so appealing to U.S. tech firms? Former U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne is joining OpenAI to be head of OpenAI for Countries, based in London. The title is a little vague, but according to OpenAI’s chief global affairs executive, Chris Lehane, Osborne will be... What is it about former British government ministers that makes them so appealing to U.S. tech...

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Waymo to Join the $100 Billion Club

By Katie Roof · Dec 16, 2025 4:45pm PST

Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Waymo to Join the $100 Billion Club

By Katie Roof · Dec 16, 2025 4:45pm PST

The boom times for startup fundraising are likely to roll into the new year. As I scooped earlier Tuesday, self-driving car service Waymo is expected to raise billions of dollars at a $100 billion valuation, more than double its last valuation.It’s the latest sign that while public markets quake, private investors are still eager to put money... The boom times for startup fundraising are likely to roll into the new year. As I scooped earlier...

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Waymo Discusses Raising Billions at More Than $100 Billion Valuation

By Katie Roof · Dec 16, 2025 2:29pm PST · 7 comments

Waymo is in early talks with potential investors to raise more money at a valuation of at least $100 billion, according to people familiar with the company’s plans. The size of the round will at least be several billions of dollars, possibly even more than $10 billion, one of the people said. The exact valuation has not been set and the funding... Waymo is in early talks with potential investors to raise more money at a valuation of at least...

Getty Images

Corporate Chatbots Gone Wild

By Kevin McLaughlin and Aaron Holmes · Dec 16, 2025 10:46am PST

Businesses such as IBM and Salesforce have long used chatbots to greet their website visitors and offer them assistance with getting more information about their products. In recent years, generative AI has livened up these chatbots so they are no longer confined to a small set of canned responses. But some technology providers are having... Businesses such as IBM and Salesforce have long used chatbots to greet their website visitors and...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Inside Apple’s iPhone Road Map, From Foldable Screens to Curved Glass Cases

By Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu · Dec 16, 2025 8:00am PST

The iPhone family is growing again. Over the next two years, Apple is planning a major expansion of its smartphone product line that could see it selling at least seven new models of its flagship device by fall 2027, up from five iPhone models today, according to multiple people working directly on the products at both Apple and its suppliers. ... The iPhone family is growing again. Over the next two years, Apple is planning a major expansion...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why Alien Hunters Want Jensen Huang to Fund Their AI Telescope

By Rocket Drew · Dec 16, 2025 7:00am PST

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why Alien Hunters Want Jensen Huang to Fund Their AI Telescope

By Rocket Drew · Dec 16, 2025 7:00am PST

While alien hunting is often associated with tinfoil hats and flying saucers, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute has established itself as a leading scientific organization since it was founded 41 years ago. As it scans the cosmos for alien life, it has published research in peer-reviewed astronomy journals and collaborated... While alien hunting is often associated with tinfoil hats and flying saucers, the Search for...