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

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ChatGPT’s New ‘Research’ Feature: The Good and the Bad

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Feb 4, 2025 7:00am PST

It’s been barely a day since OpenAI released Deep Research, a new ChatGPT feature that helps customers conduct multi-step research. And already it’s gotten at least one rave review.Derya Unutmaz, a professor of immunology at the Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine who’s been testing the feature since he was granted early access on Friday,... It’s been barely a day since OpenAI released Deep Research, a new ChatGPT feature that helps...

Big Tech’s Capex Gusher Tops Last Oil Spree

By Anita Ramaswamy · Feb 4, 2025 6:00am PST

The tech industry’s project to build out artificial intelligence is proving even more capital intensive than the peak of the last investment supercycle by oil and gas firms in the mid-2010s. Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Amazon and Alphabet spent an estimated average of 17.2% of their revenues on capital expenditures in 2024, up from 12.7% in... The tech industry’s project to build out artificial intelligence is proving even more...

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What Trump’s Order Means for Temu and Shein

By Theo Wayt · Feb 3, 2025 5:00pm PST

If you’re planning on buying your significant other a Valentine’s Day gift on Temu, Shein or Amazon’s low-cost rival to those services, Haul, make sure you have a backup plan so you don’t wind up in the doghouse. A (perhaps unintended) consequence of a Trump administration executive order issued over the weekend means packages from the... If you’re planning on buying your significant other a Valentine’s Day gift on Temu, Shein or...

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OpenAI’s DeepSeek Response: Catch Us If You Can

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Rocket Drew · Feb 3, 2025 7:17am PST · 1 comment

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OpenAI’s DeepSeek Response: Catch Us If You Can

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Rocket Drew · Feb 3, 2025 7:17am PST · 1 comment

OpenAI’s release on Friday of o3-mini, its latest artificial intelligence reasoning model, wasn’t a surprise. CEO Sam Altman had previously said it would drop by then.But it was impossible to ignore the coincidence of the release coming a few days after a blaze of news erupted over DeepSeek R1, a Chinese reasoning model that has matched or even... OpenAI’s release on Friday of o3-mini, its latest artificial intelligence reasoning model, wasn’t...

Art by Clark Miller

How Google Cleaned Up Its Cloud Act

By Kevin McLaughlin and Catherine Perloff · Feb 3, 2025 6:00am PST · 5 comments

In the months after Thomas Kurian became CEO of Google Cloud in early 2019, he made a discovery: Another Google team that oversaw the company’s centrally managed information technology services had been overcharging the cloud unit for its use of software and other computing resources, according to a former Google Cloud manager who saw the... In the months after Thomas Kurian became CEO of Google Cloud in early 2019, he made a discovery:...

Inside Natron Energy's Holland, Mich. factory. Photo: Courtesy Natron.

The Electric: Why This Next-Gen Battery Startup Isn’t Afraid of DeepSeek

By Steve LeVine · Feb 3, 2025 4:30am PST

The DeepSeek earthquake shook developers of nuclear and natural gas power plants, pummeling their share prices and triggering doubts about billions of dollars of existing and planned investments to power artificial intelligence data centers. The DeepSeek earthquake shook developers of nuclear and natural gas power plants, pummeling their...

Art by Clark Miller

Why Debanking Fears Could Benefit Trump

By Abram Brown · Feb 1, 2025 7:01am PST

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: As Microsoft and Google move in, a battle over hallowed ground erupts• The Arena: The NFL and Netflix likely share a supersize dream• Artificial Intelligence: our new Glossary of AI Jargon • Plus, our Recommendations: Trackers of Gilded Age glam; requiem for the rock stars;... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: As Microsoft and Google move in, a ...

Art by Clark Miller

What the NFL and Netflix Could Both Want: An Overseas Super Bowl

By Sara Germano · Feb 1, 2025 5:00am PST

Art by Clark Miller

What the NFL and Netflix Could Both Want: An Overseas Super Bowl

By Sara Germano · Feb 1, 2025 5:00am PST

When selecting the venue for next weekend’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles, the NFL went with a traditional choice: New Orleans. It’ll be the 11th time the Big Easy has hosted the Big Game, tying it with Miami for hosting the most Super Bowls ever. Recently, however, the world’s richest... When selecting the venue for next weekend’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and...

Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

ChatGPT Subscribers Nearly Tripled to 15.5 Million in 2024

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Jan 31, 2025 4:41pm PST · 8 comments

Paid subscribers to ChatGPT nearly tripled to 15.5 million last year from 5.8 million a year earlier, OpenAI recently told some shareholders, despite competition from chatbots made by Google, Anthropic and Meta Platforms. Based on what OpenAI charges for the chatbot subscriptions, the increase means ChatGPT was likely generating at least $4... Paid subscribers to ChatGPT nearly tripled to 15.5 million last year from 5.8 million a year...

Art by Clark Miller; Images via Getty.

The Zuckerberg-Musk Double Act

By Martin Peers · Jan 31, 2025 3:23pm PST

Is Mark Zuckerberg auditioning for the role of Elon Musk’s Mini-Me? We’re kidding, but it is uncanny how much Zuckerberg seems to be following Musk’s lead lately. In the latest example, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Meta Platforms is considering moving its legal incorporation to Texas, out of Delaware, just as Tesla did last... Is Mark Zuckerberg auditioning for the role of Elon Musk’s Mini-Me? We’re kidding, but it is...

China’s DeepSeek Shakes the Tech World

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 31, 2025 2:29pm PST

This week on More or Less: DeepSeek, memes and Dave quits social media. Apple Spotify This week on More or Less: DeepSeek, memes and Dave quits social media. Apple Spotify YouTube ...

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Meta Taps Ad Agencies to Help Devise AI Ad Tools

By Catherine Perloff · Jan 31, 2025 1:25pm PST · 2 comments

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Meta Taps Ad Agencies to Help Devise AI Ad Tools

By Catherine Perloff · Jan 31, 2025 1:25pm PST · 2 comments

As Meta Platforms sets about turning its massive investment in artificial intelligence into ways to make money, it’s asking ad agencies for help. Meta has been sending its engineers to work with ad agencies on developing AI tools designed to do everything from tweaking videos and static images in ads to evaluating the effectiveness of such... As Meta Platforms sets about turning its massive investment in artificial intelligence into ways...

Art by Clark Miller

With Google and Microsoft Moving In, a Battle Over Hallowed Ground Erupts

By Theo Wayt · Jan 31, 2025 9:14am PST

In 1862, from a hill in northern Virginia, troops under Confederate General Stonewall Jackson rained artillery fire upon a column of Union soldiers on a dirt road about a thousand feet away, in the opening shots of the Second Battle of Manassas. When I visited a farmhouse on the site on a frigid day earlier this month, I saw the signs of a... In 1862, from a hill in northern Virginia, troops under Confederate General Stonewall Jackson...

Left to right: Atomicwork's founders Kiran Darisi, Vijay Rayapati and Parsuram Vijay. Photo via Atomicwork.

Pro Weekly: Freshly Funded AI Founders Go Deep on DeepSeek

By Akash Pasricha · Jan 31, 2025 8:00am PST

China’s DeepSeek rocked the technology world this week with its innovative and cheaper large language model. The founders of companies we’ve newly added to our Generative AI Database tell me they’ve been studying DeepSeek’s approach and thinking about how it could help their businesses.Geraldo Ramos, co-founder and CEO of Music AI—which... China’s DeepSeek rocked the technology world this week with its innovative and cheaper large...

Art by Mike Sullivan

DeepSeek’s Success Contrasts With China AI Startups’ Struggles

By Juro Osawa · Jan 31, 2025 6:00am PST · 4 comments

DeepSeek has shaken up Silicon Valley and Wall Street with its stunning advances in artificial intelligence. But its technological success doesn’t mean China’s AI industry has figured out how to make money. The rise of DeepSeek contrasts with the struggles of other Chinese competitors, especially the best-known AI unicorns dubbed the... DeepSeek has shaken up Silicon Valley and Wall Street with its stunning advances in artificial...

An Apple Store in Shanghai decorated for Lunar New Year. Photo via Getty.

Apple’s China Syndrome

By Martin Peers · Jan 30, 2025 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

An Apple Store in Shanghai decorated for Lunar New Year. Photo via Getty.

Apple’s China Syndrome

By Martin Peers · Jan 30, 2025 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

Apple had good news and bad news when it reported December-quarter results on Thursday. The bad news was that revenues from China—Apple’s second-biggest market—shrank 11%, almost certainly a result of Apple losing share in smartphones to local rivals such as Huawei. Indeed, iPhone revenues globally shrank 0.8% in the quarter. The good news... Apple had good news and bad news when it reported December-quarter results on Thursday. The bad...

Peter Deng at South by Southwest 2024. Photo via YouTube/SXSW.

A Former OpenAI Leader Jumps to Felicis; SoftBank Doubles Down

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jan 30, 2025 3:01pm PST

Hi - Before we get into today’s column, some breaking news: OpenAI is in talks to raise another giant round, of about $40 billion, led by SoftBank, which would value the ChatGPT maker at $300 billion including the investment—nearly double its valuation late last year in a Thrive Capital-led round. OpenAI will use some of the money to fund its... Hi - Before we get into today’s column, some breaking news: OpenAI is in talks to raise another...

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Creator Economy

Why Creator Funds Are Back

By Kaya Yurieff · Jan 30, 2025 2:00pm PST

As TikTok’s future remains in turmoil, competitors are trying to take advantage of the situation. One way is bringing back a tried-and-true tactic from 2021: creator funds. This month, companies including creator commerce app Flip, which competes with TikTok Shop, and newsletter publisher Substack announced programs that offer cash... As TikTok’s future remains in turmoil, competitors are trying to take advantage of the situation....

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Goldman Sachs Is Interested In DeepSeek Too

By Jon Victor · Jan 30, 2025 10:00am PST

How fast is DeepSeek open source artificial intelligence taking over the business world? Look no further than Meta Platforms, which is evaluating whether to use the Chinese-made AI in its advertising products despite spending the past two years developing its own Llama open-source models, my colleague Kalley reported Wednesday. Also this... How fast is DeepSeek open source artificial intelligence taking over the business world? Look no...

Art by Clark Miller

Can’t Compute It All? Introducing The Information’s Glossary of AI Jargon

By Rocket Drew · Jan 30, 2025 7:16am PST · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller

Artificial Intelligence

Can’t Compute It All? Introducing The Information’s Glossary of AI Jargon

By Rocket Drew · Jan 30, 2025 7:16am PST · 2 comments

The only thing coming at us faster these days than advances in artificial intelligence’s capabilities is the amount of industry jargon we’re all needing to decipher. Don’t know the difference between open weights and open source? Still trying to distill the meaning of AI distillation, the process DeepSeek may have used to... The only thing coming at us faster these days than advances in artificial intelligence’s...