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

Nvidia CEO, Jensen Huang, in June. Photo by AP.

Nvidia Blows Competitors Out of the Water in New Test

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 28, 2024 8:00am PDT · 1 comment

All eyes are on Nvidia’s quarterly earnings report today (there’s apparently even a watch party for it at a New York City bar if you want to partake in some nonsense), so it’s a good time to share a new example of the company’s technological dominance.This morning, MLCommons, a nonprofit that evaluates artificial intelligence software and... All eyes are on Nvidia’s quarterly earnings report today (there’s apparently even a watch party...

Art by Clark Miller.

Coinbase’s Alumni Network Boosts Its Blockchain Ambitions

By Yueqi Yang · Aug 28, 2024 7:00am PDT

For years, Coinbase dominated the U.S. market as the go-to place for buying and selling bitcoin. Now the crypto exchange is trying to forge a new identity as the backbone of an entire financial system, using its Base blockchain, which it launched last year. To catch on with users and make money, Coinbase needs to attract outside apps offering... For years, Coinbase dominated the U.S. market as the go-to place for buying and selling bitcoin....

Daniel Gross. Art by Clark Miller. Screenshot of Gross via YouTube.

The Superintelligence of AI Investor Daniel Gross

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Aug 28, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Over the past decade, investor Daniel Gross has written checks for over 150 startups, including Cruise, Coinbase and Rippling. If there’s one deal that could define his legacy, though, you’ll find it a short walk away from his investment office in Palo Alto, Calif., at the headquarters of Safe Superintelligence Inc. The artificial... Over the past decade, investor Daniel Gross has written checks for over 150 startups, including...

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce after the Super Bowl in February. Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images.

Amazon’s Swiftie Moment

By Martin Peers · Aug 27, 2024 5:00pm PDT

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce after the Super Bowl in February. Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images.

Amazon’s Swiftie Moment

By Martin Peers · Aug 27, 2024 5:00pm PDT

Here’s a question that’s sure to divide your household: Is Amazon’s $100 million podcast deal with the Kelce brothers a bet on Travis Kelce marrying Taylor Swift? The consensus here at The Information is yes, for sure. While the Kelce brothers’ podcast, “New Heights,” was popular before Travis and Taylor became a thing, it really took off... Here’s a question that’s sure to divide your household: Is Amazon’s $100 million podcast deal...

Telegram founder Pavel Gurov in 2016. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Sand Hill Road Dodges Telegram Crisis

By Kate Clark · Aug 27, 2024 3:55pm PDT

Typically when something bad happens to the founder of a highly valued private tech startup, the venture investors are at the front lines of the fallout—and in some cases can influence the outcome. I know this from reporting on FTX’s collapse (a wipeout for investors like Sequoia Capital and Paradigm) and then the firing of OpenAI CEO Sam... Typically when something bad happens to the founder of a highly valued private tech startup, the...

Photo by NurPhoto via Getty

Creator Economy

TikTok Head of Content Strategy to Leave: Memo

By Kaya Yurieff and Erin Woo · Aug 27, 2024 2:16pm PDT

It’s been a tumultuous year for TikTok employees, between a looming potential ban of the app in the U.S. to its first widespread layoffs earlier this year. Those changes have included the departures of long-time staff and senior leaders.The latest: Nicole Iacopetti, head of content strategy and policy, is leaving the company effective September... It’s been a tumultuous year for TikTok employees, between a looming potential ban of the app in...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photos via Getty/Shutterstock.

OpenAI Shows ‘Strawberry’ AI to the Feds and Uses It to Develop ‘Orion’

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Aug 27, 2024 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

In case you were wondering why Sam Altman cryptically posted a picture of strawberries earlier this month, the answer almost certainly has to do with Strawberry, a mysterious technical breakthrough that could help OpenAI’s models complete complex tasks such as math problems that conversational AI has traditionally struggled with. (If this sounds... In case you were wondering why Sam Altman cryptically posted a picture of strawberries earlier...

Art by Mike Sullivan/ Midjourney

OpenAI Races to Launch ‘Strawberry’ Reasoning AI to Boost Chatbot Business

By Erin Woo, Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Aug 27, 2024 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan/ Midjourney

OpenAI Races to Launch ‘Strawberry’ Reasoning AI to Boost Chatbot Business

By Erin Woo, Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Aug 27, 2024 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

As OpenAI looks to raise more capital, its researchers are trying to launch a new artificial intelligence product they believe can reason through tough problems much better than its existing AI. Researchers have aimed to launch the new AI, code-named Strawberry (previously called Q*, pronounced Q Star), as part of a chatbot—possibly within... As OpenAI looks to raise more capital, its researchers are trying to launch a new artificial...

Telegram founder, Pavel Durov, in 2015. Photo by TechCrunch via Flickr.

Tech’s Premature Telegram Freakout

By Martin Peers · Aug 26, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 3 comments

There’s nothing like a billionaire’s arrest as they get off their private jet to alarm other rich people. The apprehension of Telegram founder Pavel Durov by French police as he deplaned over the weekend has more than a few techies worked up, particularly Elon Musk and other like-minded folks. Their message: This is a threat to free speech.Well,... There’s nothing like a billionaire’s arrest as they get off their private jet to alarm other rich...

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Ex-Googlers Discover That Startups Are Hard

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Rocket Drew · Aug 26, 2024 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Dozens of former artificial intelligence researchers from Google who struck out on their own are learning that startups are tricky.The latest example is French AI agent developer H, which lost three of its five cofounders (four of whom are ex-Googlers) just months after announcing they had raised $220 million from investors in a “seed” round, as... Dozens of former artificial intelligence researchers from Google who struck out on their own are...

Instacart CEO, Fidji Simo, and Uber CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi. Photos via Getty.

Why Instacart’s Future May Hinge on Uber

By Cory Weinberg and Theo Wayt · Aug 26, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

In the nearly one year since Instacart went public, it has had an unlikely cheerleader: Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. He extolled his grocery-delivery rival’s “very strong advertising product” at an investor conference in March. He admired Instacart's “very high quality” suburban customer base in comments made... In the nearly one year since Instacart went public, it has had an unlikely cheerleader: Uber CEO...

Industrial conglomerate Huntsman Corp. says it halted a $50 million battery investment after Chinese companies flooded the market with the component it planned to manufacture. Photo: Courtesy Huntsman.

The Electric: A Battery Chemical Company Falls Victim to the China Playbook

By Steve LeVine · Aug 26, 2024 4:30am PDT

Industrial conglomerate Huntsman Corp. says it halted a $50 million battery investment after Chinese companies flooded the market with the component it planned to manufacture. Photo: Courtesy Huntsman.

The Electric: A Battery Chemical Company Falls Victim to the China Playbook

By Steve LeVine · Aug 26, 2024 4:30am PDT

In 2021, Peter Huntsman, CEO of industrial conglomerate Huntsman Corp., decided to invest $50 million in the expansion of a chemicals plant in Conroe, Texas. The move would significantly boost the plant’s production of ethylene carbonate, an essential ingredient in the batteries that power electric vehicles, at the time viewed as a juggernaut of... In 2021, Peter Huntsman, CEO of industrial conglomerate Huntsman Corp., decided to invest $50...

The Information's Martin Peers. Art by Shane Burke

The Information’s Martin Peers Honored with Loeb Editing Award

By Nick Wingfield · Aug 24, 2024 8:30am PDT · 9 comments

This week, The Information's Co-Executive Editor Martin Peers was announced as a winner of a Loeb award—one of the highest honors in business journalism—for his career in editing. The Loeb Foundation asked The Information to write an article about Martin's impact on the industry. We were delighted to do so and hope you enjoy... This week, The Information's Co-Executive Editor Martin Peers was announced as a winner of a...

Art by Clark Miller

An Anti-DEI Crusader to Pay Attention To

By Abram Brown · Aug 24, 2024 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Inside an AI nightmare that tore apart a school• The Top 5: Our favorite THC drinks Plus: A chaotic AI bill; the philosophers with advice for childless millennials; and Shyamalan and the Swifties.Say, have you heard about a young fellow named Robby Starbuck? If you haven’t, write... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Inside an AI nightmare that tore apart a...

Art by Clark Miller

THC Drinks Are a Fizzy Market. They Taste Pretty Good, Too

By Ryan Sutton · Aug 24, 2024 5:00am PDT · 1 comment

Jake Bullock, a former Bain consultant in San Francisco turned cannabis entrepreneur, has bet tens of millions in venture capital on his bold vision for making drinks that get you just a little bit high. “I hope one day you’ll walk into a Costco and you’ll see the liquor, the wine and the beer, and maybe there’s some hard... Jake Bullock, a former Bain consultant in San Francisco turned cannabis entrepreneur, has bet...

Nvidia CEO, Jensen Huang. Photo via Shutterstock.

All Eyes on Nvidia’s Numbers

By Martin Peers · Aug 23, 2024 3:30pm PDT

Nvidia CEO, Jensen Huang. Photo via Shutterstock.

All Eyes on Nvidia’s Numbers

By Martin Peers · Aug 23, 2024 3:30pm PDT

Summer is winding down—Labor Day is just a week away! But we’ve still got plenty of business news. Next week is particularly important: Nvidia will report earnings for its July fiscal quarter on Wednesday. In a note to clients yesterday, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives described the Nvidia report as “the most important tech earnings in years,” one... Summer is winding down—Labor Day is just a week away! But we’ve still got plenty of business...

The Venture Capital Reset Era

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 23, 2024 12:33pm PDT · 4 comments

"This is a time for serious people, people who take this business seriously." The gang was back to business this week discussing the latest in the venture shakeout. Plus, the energy is back in the Bay again. And a fierce debate over the Starlink Mini. Also, we continue to experiment with transcripts and chapters for subscribers... "This is a time for serious people, people who take this business seriously." The gang...

Coatue founder, Philippe Laffont, at The Information Private Capital Conference in April. Photo by Nicole Pereira.

Coatue Considers Selling Part of ByteDance Stake as IPO Remains Uncertain

By Jing Yang, Erin Woo and Juro Osawa · Aug 23, 2024 9:53am PDT · 1 comment

New York investment firm Coatue Management, an early and substantial backer of ByteDance that has a seat on the TikTok parent’s board, is discussing selling part of its stake, according to three people with knowledge of the talks. The firm has talked to brokers in the secondary market for private stocks to gauge the interest of potential... New York investment firm Coatue Management, an early and substantial backer of ByteDance that has...

Art by Clark Miller

Welcome to Fakesville: Inside an AI Nightmare That Tore Apart a School

By David Kushner · Aug 23, 2024 9:10am PDT · 6 comments

On January 17, @murder_ink_bmore, a Baltimore-based Instagram account with 240,000 followers, posted what it said was a voice recording of Eric Eiswert, principal of Pikesville High School outside Baltimore, denigrating Black students and faculty as well as Jews. “I seriously don’t understand why I have to constantly put up... On January 17, @murder_ink_bmore, a Baltimore-based Instagram account with 240,000...

An attendee of an event by The Washington AI Network tries out the Meta Quest 3 in April. Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images.

Meta Cancels High-End Mixed-Reality Headset

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Wayne Ma · Aug 23, 2024 8:15am PDT · 3 comments

An attendee of an event by The Washington AI Network tries out the Meta Quest 3 in April. Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images.

Meta Cancels High-End Mixed-Reality Headset

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Wayne Ma · Aug 23, 2024 8:15am PDT · 3 comments

Meta Platforms has canceled plans for a premium mixed-reality headset intended to compete with Apple’s Vision Pro, according to two Meta employees. Meta told employees at the company’s Reality Labs division to stop work on the device this week after a product review meeting attended by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Technology... Meta Platforms has canceled plans for a premium mixed-reality headset intended to compete with...