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

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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.

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Recent Editions

Art by Clark Miller

Employer.com Offers to Buy Shuttered Startup Level

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jan 6, 2025 9:08pm PST

Employer.com, part of a San Francisco–based company pursuing buyouts of human resources companies, recently offered to acquire troubled benefits startup Level, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal. The talks, which are ongoing, come just days after Level said it was shutting down because a different acquisition fell... Employer.com, part of a San Francisco–based company pursuing buyouts of human resources...

Disney CEO Bob Iger. Photo via Getty.

Disney-Fubo Tie-Up and Uber Speedy Buyback Signal Smarter Dealmaking

By Martin Peers · Jan 6, 2025 5:00pm PST

Dealmaking in 2025 is off to a good start. Walt Disney’s deal on Monday to offload its Hulu+Live TV business—the clunky name for the part of Hulu that offers a cable TV–like package of old-fashioned TV channels—to smaller rival FuboTV is a smart move. Disney comes out of the transaction with 70% of a larger FuboTV, one that is making money... Dealmaking in 2025 is off to a good start. Walt Disney’s deal on Monday to offload its Hulu+Live...

Art by Clark Miller.

How Much Should Consumers Pay For AI?

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jan 6, 2025 7:00am PST

If the last month of AI product updates has demonstrated anything, it’s that AI firms are diverging meaningfully in their pricing strategies.On one hand, we have companies like Google, whose new “Flash” model drew droves of price-sensitive developers looking for an uber-cheap yet still high-quality alternative. And on the other hand, we have ... If the last month of AI product updates has demonstrated anything, it’s that AI firms are...

Photo via Getty

Google Plays Catch-Up in Video Ad Tech as Streaming Ads Take Off

By Catherine Perloff · Jan 6, 2025 6:00am PST · 3 comments

Photo via Getty

Google Plays Catch-Up in Video Ad Tech as Streaming Ads Take Off

By Catherine Perloff · Jan 6, 2025 6:00am PST · 3 comments

Google is good at operating the technology independent websites use to sell their ads—so good that the U.S. says it has a monopoly in that area. But it has been surprisingly poor at developing streaming TV ad technology—advertisers, TV ad sellers and former Google employees say its technology lag those of rivals. Buyers say... Google is good at operating the technology independent websites use to sell their ads—so...

SES AI CEO Qichao Hu. Photo: Courtesy SES AI

Exclusive From The Electric: After a Topsy-Turvy Year, SES AI Surprises With a Silicon-Based Battery

By Steve LeVine · Jan 6, 2025 4:30am PST

Last year was tough for Western makers of electric vehicles and batteries. Industry leader Tesla sold fewer cars than in 2023. Upstart battery makers declared bankruptcy and shifted their attention to solar panels or smartphones. Last year was tough for Western makers of electric vehicles and batteries. Industry leader Tesla...

Protestors gather on Las Americas Highway in San Juan, Puerto Rico to decry the island's power crisis in 2021. (Getty Images)

An Island That Needs an Elon

By Abram Brown · Jan 4, 2025 7:00am PST

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• Predictions: 18 things we think will happen in 2025 • Predictions: What happened with our guesses about 2024 • How to transform your productivity in the year ahead • Plus: Holmes at home; spilling tea on the Town; and Taylor Sheridan strikes againElon Musk already keeps a pretty full... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• Predictions: 18 things we think will happen in...

How to Transform Your Productivity in 2025

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 4, 2025 4:46am PST · 12 comments

As a new year dawns, I always spend a lot of time thinking about what I worked on in the one that has just ended—the people I hired, the stories we broke, the experiments we tried. Reflecting on 2024, it’s also clear to me that how I work changed a lot. In some respects, my expanding job responsibilities and my family forced my... As a new year dawns, I always spend a lot of time thinking about what I worked on in the one that...

Photo via Getty.

Don’t Blame Car-Sharing Site Turo for Vehicle Attacks

By Theo Wayt · Jan 3, 2025 3:00pm PST · 3 comments

Photo via Getty.

Don’t Blame Car-Sharing Site Turo for Vehicle Attacks

By Theo Wayt · Jan 3, 2025 3:00pm PST · 3 comments

Our hearts go out to the victims of Wednesday’s horrific vehicle attacks in New Orleans and Las Vegas. In the days since, people have understandably been grasping to find ways the violence could have been prevented. One detail that’s gotten significant attention over the past 24 hours is that both vehicles used in the attacks were rented... Our hearts go out to the victims of Wednesday’s horrific vehicle attacks in New Orleans and Las...

Art by Clark Miller

OpenAI’s Next Departure, Amazon’s New Product—and 16 Other Things We Think Will Happen in 2025

By The Information Staff · Jan 3, 2025 9:03am PST · 4 comments

** Mystical chanting ** Through wires and streams, the future flies, where vision soars and dreams arise, As twenty-twenty-five arrives, show us what will spark and change our lives! ** Chanting continues ** Holy moly! We’re clearly in for another wild year ahead, or so the careful study of our beats—and the omens around them—would... ** Mystical chanting ** Through wires and streams, the future flies, where vision soars and...

Art by Clark Miller. Ma screenshot via YouTube.

Databricks, Snowflake Discussed Buying Same AI Search Startup

By Kevin McLaughlin, Natasha Mascarenhas and Stephanie Palazzolo · Jan 3, 2025 8:33am PST

Databricks and Snowflake, already embroiled in a fierce rivalry over software that manages companies’ data, are now jockeying for position in generative artificial intelligence—particularly AI that helps businesses search their own data. Those goals have led both companies to consider buying the same startups. In recent weeks,... Databricks and Snowflake, already embroiled in a fierce rivalry over software that manages...

Photo by Getty

Pro Weekly: Tech Crashes the Sports Streaming Party

By Akash Pasricha · Jan 3, 2025 8:00am PST

An exciting addition to The Information Pro in 2024 was our Sports Rights Database, which we launched in May. Between the NBA’s latest contract negotiations and the developments regarding Venu, the planned joint venture of ESPN, Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox, the database has kept us on our toes.In line with The Information’s other predictions... An exciting addition to The Information Pro in 2024 was our Sports Rights Database, which we...

Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom. Photo by Getty

Why Marvell Will Overtake Broadcom As Nvidia’s AI Challenger

By Anita Ramaswamy · Jan 3, 2025 6:00am PST · 7 comments

Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom. Photo by Getty

Why Marvell Will Overtake Broadcom As Nvidia’s AI Challenger

By Anita Ramaswamy · Jan 3, 2025 6:00am PST · 7 comments

Specialized chip designers Broadcom and Marvell Technology have been getting a lot of investor love lately. Both companies’ shares have surged more than 30% over the past three months as their revenues have soared, thanks to their efforts helping tech giants including Google and Amazon build their own artificial intelligence chips. ... Specialized chip designers Broadcom and Marvell Technology have been getting a lot of investor...

Elad Gil. Photo via Getty

Culling of Money-Losing Startups is Well Underway

By Martin Peers · Jan 2, 2025 5:00pm PST

A week before Christmas, venture capitalist Elad Gil tweeted, “Lots of year end company shutdowns…happening right now,” offering a tantalizing hint of behind-the-scenes drama. Gil’s tweet appears to have been on the money: At least three companies have closed their doors since then—accounting firm Bench last week, LinkedIn rival Polywork earlier... A week before Christmas, venture capitalist Elad Gil tweeted, “Lots of year end company shutdowns...

Photo by Getty

Startup Deadpool

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jan 2, 2025 3:04pm PST · 3 comments

I first met Peter Johnston, the founder of consumer social website Polywork, in 2022 when he had just raised $28 million from former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and other investors. Johnston was eager to tell me how Polywork would connect people with different professional opportunities, such as a coder who wanted to make angel investments or a... I first met Peter Johnston, the founder of consumer social website Polywork, in 2022 when he had...

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew leaves a meeting in the Russell Senate Office building in March 2024. Photo via Getty.

Creator Economy

Four Predictions for the 2025 Creator Economy

By Kaya Yurieff · Jan 2, 2025 2:00pm PST

Welcome to the first edition of Creator Economy in 2025! With a new U.S. presidential administration and TikTok’s future in the country hanging in the balance, this year is already off to a busy start. Here’s what I’m forecasting will happen over the next 12 months: • The Supreme Court will uphold a U.S. law that could ban TikTok. After... Welcome to the first edition of Creator Economy in 2025! With a new U.S. presidential...

Art by Clark Miller.

Fintech Startup Level Abruptly Shuts Down

By Cory Weinberg and Michael Roddan · Jan 2, 2025 11:46am PST · 3 comments

Art by Clark Miller.

Fintech Startup Level Abruptly Shuts Down

By Cory Weinberg and Michael Roddan · Jan 2, 2025 11:46am PST · 3 comments

Benefits startup Level has told its clients that it is shutting down after an effort to sell the company fell through, marking another abrupt closure of a fintech that has left users in the lurch. Level, which was founded in 2018 and raised a $27 million Series A round in 2021 led by Khosla Ventures and Lightspeed Venture Partners, told the... Benefits startup Level has told its clients that it is shutting down after an effort to sell the...

Photo by AP.

TikTok Promises Ban Refunds to Keep Advertisers Spending

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan, Sahil Patel and Catherine Perloff · Jan 2, 2025 9:22am PST

As some advertisers start to pull back from buying ad space on TikTok, the Chinese-owned app is telling big ad buying firms how they could get out of ad agreements if the app is banned in the U.S. in January. TikTok said in an email to big ad buying firms that it would return any principal payments—down payments on agencies’ spending... As some advertisers start to pull back from buying ad space on TikTok, the Chinese-owned app is...

Art by Clark Miller

Predictions 2025: Amazon Will Buy Lyft

By Anita Ramaswamy · Jan 2, 2025 8:14am PST · 2 comments

Robotaxis are quickly gaining ground, largely thanks to Alphabet-backed Waymo, which announced in October that it was completing more than 100,000 paid rides for passengers per week. Waymo plans to enter new regions next year. And everything in the market is sure to intensify further as Tesla tries to begin mass-producing its own robotaxis in... Robotaxis are quickly gaining ground, largely thanks to Alphabet-backed Waymo, which announced in...

Left to right: Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch, Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez, Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Sam Altman. Photos via Getty.

How Artificial Intelligence Will Change in 2025

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jan 2, 2025 7:00am PST · 1 comment

Welcome to the first AI Agenda issue of 2025! We’re expecting a lot in AI this year, given an impressive reasoning model from OpenAI, a new administration and likely lots more multi-billion-dollar funding rounds on the way. Welcome to the first AI Agenda issue of 2025! We’re expecting a lot in AI this year, given an ...

Photo via Getty.

Morgan Stanley’s E-Trade Explores Offering Crypto Trading

By Yueqi Yang · Jan 2, 2025 6:00am PST

Photo via Getty.

Morgan Stanley’s E-Trade Explores Offering Crypto Trading

By Yueqi Yang · Jan 2, 2025 6:00am PST

Morgan Stanley’s online stock-trading arm, E-Trade, is exploring adding crypto trading in anticipation of a more favorable crypto regulatory environment under the incoming Donald Trump administration, according to two people familiar with the firm’s plans. If Morgan Stanley goes ahead with the launch, E-Trade would become one of the... Morgan Stanley’s online stock-trading arm, E-Trade, is exploring adding crypto trading in...