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

Tesla Model Y vehicles at a dealership in Austin. Photo by Getty

As Tesla’s Robotaxi Deadline Nears, Start of Key Testing Phase Is Uncertain

By Evan Robinson-Johnson · May 13, 2025 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Elon Musk’s deadline for launching Tesla’s first robotaxi service, in Austin, Texas, is weeks away, but the company hadn’t started testing its cars without a human safety driver as of last month, according to an engineer close to the testing and a former employee. That’s a crucial step required before Tesla can launch the pilot service for... Elon Musk’s deadline for launching Tesla’s first robotaxi service, in Austin, Texas, is weeks...

Orange Temu parcels at the United States Postal Service Los Angeles Processing and Distribution Center in Los Angeles in 2022. Photo via Getty

Temu’s Clouded Future

By Martin Peers · May 12, 2025 5:00pm PDT

You wouldn’t know it from checking out Temu’s website today—it’s as full of schlocky cheap items as ever—but the Chinese-owned shopping site is not what it was a few months ago. Thanks to changes made in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, it now lists all the items on the home page as coming from “local” warehouses rather than being... You wouldn’t know it from checking out Temu’s website today—it’s as full of schlocky cheap items...

Google CEO Sundar Pichai on stage at last year's Google I/O developer conference. Photo by Getty

Google Developing Software AI Agent, Pinterest-Like Feature Ahead of I/O

By Erin Woo · May 12, 2025 2:43pm PDT

After weeks of news about Google’s antitrust travails, the tech giant will try to reset the narrative next week by highlighting advances it is making in artificial intelligence, cloud and Android technology at its annual I/O developer conference. Ahead of I/O, Google has been demonstrating to employees and outside developers an array of... After weeks of news about Google’s antitrust travails, the tech giant will try to reset the...

Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

Altman On Dyson Spheres, Colonizing the ‘Light Cone’

By Amir Efrati · May 12, 2025 11:04am PDT

Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

Altman On Dyson Spheres, Colonizing the ‘Light Cone’

By Amir Efrati · May 12, 2025 11:04am PDT

By hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to manage OpenAI’s business, CEO Sam Altman can focus on his primary ambition: attaining artificial superintelligence. The term refers to technology that would help humans solve fundamental scientific challenges around energy and physics to become multiplanetary, colonizing other planets and eventually other... By hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to manage OpenAI’s business, CEO Sam Altman can focus on his...

An Amazon Web Services data center in Ashburn, Va. Photo via Getty

Cash-Hungry Data Centers Embrace a New Source of Debt

By Miles Kruppa · May 12, 2025 6:00am PDT

In the race to fund the buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure, data centers have turned to one of the biggest pots of money on Wall Street: the securitized lending business. It’s a $2 trillion market that could help satisfy AI’s insatiable need for cash and that would spread the risk of the unprecedented boom in data centers across... In the race to fund the buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure, data centers have...

Tesla's Nevada Gigafactory, run in partnership with Panasonic. Photo: Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty

The Electric: Three Gigafactory Experts Weigh In on What the West Needs to Do

By Steve LeVine · May 12, 2025 4:30am PDT

In 2014, Tesla CEO Elon Musk contracted with Japan’s Panasonic to make batteries for his next electric vehicle, the Model 3, at a new plant outside Reno, Nev. It was a big get for a relatively unproven automaker: Panasonic had been making lithium-ion batteries for two decades and was one of the world’s top producers. In 2014, Tesla CEO Elon Musk contracted with Japan’s Panasonic to make batteries for his next...

Art by Shane Burke

OpenAI Stake Cushioned Tiger Global’s Megafund Losses

By Natasha Mascarenhas · May 11, 2025 11:00am PDT · 1 comment

The Tiger Global Management megafund that made more than 200 investments during the peak of the pandemic-era startup boom was still in the red at the end of 2024, thanks to write-downs on a majority of its investments. But the spike in valuations of OpenAI and other artificial intelligence investments is softening the blow for the $12.7... The Tiger Global Management megafund that made more than 200 investments during the peak of ...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why an AI Data Center on the Prairie Is Sitting Empty

By Anissa Gardizy · May 10, 2025 10:00am PDT · 3 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why an AI Data Center on the Prairie Is Sitting Empty

By Anissa Gardizy · May 10, 2025 10:00am PDT · 3 comments

For a town with a population of just over 1,000, a Bible college and a quaint main street, there’s an unusual amount of bustle in Ellendale, N.D. A housing project with 20 homes is going up, along with a 38-unit apartment complex. Even a new pickleball court just opened. All of the developments are meant to support an anticipated influx of... For a town with a population of just over 1,000, a Bible college and a quaint main street, there’...

Art by Clark Miller. Gates image via Getty.

Bill Gates is the Smart Resistance

By Abram Brown · May 10, 2025 6:40am PDT · 1 comment

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Tech’s worries about privacy concerns are disappearing • The Top 5: The landscape designers who make Silicon Valley’s gardens bloom • Plus, our Recommendations: Life after “Conclave”; an original manosphere king; and crime up in the canyonsFor the wealthy and powerful who want to... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Tech’s worries about privacy concerns are...

Clark Miller

The Garden Designers Who Make Silicon Valley Beautiful

By Todd Plummer · May 10, 2025 6:00am PDT

Land is scarce in the Bay Area, which makes a well-designed outdoor space at a Marin cottage or Atherton manse a tremendous status symbol. The perfect allée of heritage olive trees or the right mise-en-scène of native grasses does more than elevate a property’s curb appeal—it telegraphs panache, access and a deep... Land is scarce in the Bay Area, which makes a well-designed outdoor space at a Marin cottage or...

Photo via Getty

Google’s Summer Wait For Search Shakeup Ruling

By Martin Peers · May 9, 2025 3:00pm PDT · 1 comment

This summer is likely to be a bit of a tense time at Google’s Mountain View, Calif., headquarters. The company is awaiting a judge’s ruling on what shackles to put on the company’s search business to curb its monopoly, which the court previously ruled was illegal. A three-week trial deciding on those shackles wrapped up on Friday in a Washington... This summer is likely to be a bit of a tense time at Google’s Mountain View, Calif.,...

ClickHouse CEO Aaron Katz. Image via YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

Snowflake Challenger ClickHouse Targets $6 Billion Valuation

By Sri Muppidi · May 9, 2025 1:12pm PDT · 3 comments

ClickHouse CEO Aaron Katz. Image via YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

Snowflake Challenger ClickHouse Targets $6 Billion Valuation

By Sri Muppidi · May 9, 2025 1:12pm PDT · 3 comments

Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake and Databricks. Now venture capitalists are circling ClickHouse, a startup some investors believe could rival the incumbents, particularly as the rise of artificial intelligence increases demand for its database software. The startup is in... Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake...

Fidji Simo, left, and Sam Altman. Photos via Getty

How Simo Will Fill Altman’s Management Gaps at OpenAI

By Amir Efrati and Stephanie Palazzolo · May 9, 2025 12:45pm PDT · 3 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to Instacart CEO Fidji Simo sets up a key partnership that will be closely watched as one of the world’s fastest-growing technology companies looks to extend its lead in artificial intelligence. For her part, Simo will have to wring more revenue from and... OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to...

OpenAI Acquires Windsurf for $3B, Google’s Stock Dips

By Jessica E. Lessin · May 9, 2025 12:22pm PDT

A vibe coding vibe check, the M&A uptick and VC goes retail on this week’s More or Less. Apple Spotify A vibe coding vibe check, the M&A uptick and VC goes retail on this week’s More or Less. ...

Photo via SaaStr Annual

Pro Weekly: New IPO Rumbings, Tech Events Cheat Sheet

By Akash Pasricha · May 9, 2025 8:00am PDT

In case you missed it, we published our first-ever Tech Events Calendar last week, exclusively for Pro subscribers. We mapped out the must-know events for 2025, including key conferences where deals are struck and big decisions are made. Check out the full calendar here. We also asked our newsroom experts what to expect from upcoming... In case you missed it, we published our first-ever Tech Events Calendar last week, exclusively...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Software’s New Turf Wars

By Jon Victor · May 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan

Software’s New Turf Wars

By Jon Victor · May 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

The rise of new artificial intelligence–powered business software threatens the future of long-established software firms. Their response is to jump into new markets with their own AI-powered software. That’s pitting companies against each other in new ways. ServiceNow earlier this week announced an AI agent to handle sales management,... The rise of new artificial intelligence–powered business software threatens the future of...

Incoming OpenAI CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo. Photo via Getty

AI Firms Get Religion on Marketing

By Martin Peers · May 8, 2025 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Artificial intelligence scientists and researchers, make room. You’re about to get an influx of new colleagues from the world of advertising and marketing, as the headlong race for AI dominance moves into a new, more commercial, phase. Exhibit A: As we scooped today, veteran marketing executive Mark D’Arcy, who spent a decade at Meta Platforms... Artificial intelligence scientists and researchers, make room. You’re about to get an influx of...

Photo via Skild

Skild AI Round Gets Pricier as Robot Fever Rises

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Rocket Drew · May 8, 2025 3:51pm PDT

Robotics startups are taking over the fundraising market.On Wednesday, my colleague Michael and I published a scoop about Foundation, a robotics startup launched by the former CEO of failed fintech firm Synapse, seeking capital at a $1 billion valuation despite just a year under its belt. That’s one of several robotics rounds in play. Skild... Robotics startups are taking over the fundraising market.On Wednesday, my colleague Michael and I...

Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

Instagram Keeps Highlighting the TikTok Threat

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Kaya Yurieff · May 8, 2025 2:39pm PDT

A central tenet of the government's antitrust case against Meta Platforms is that its 2012 Instagram acquisition crushed competition and left consumers with too few social networking options—just Snapchat, Facebook and a few others. Meta has argued that it actually competes with many more, notably TikTok. To buttress its argument, Instagram... A central tenet of the government's antitrust case against Meta Platforms is that its 2012...

Mark D’Arcy. Photo via Getty

Microsoft Hires Former Meta Marketing Exec to Work on Copilot AI

By Aaron Holmes and Jessica E. Lessin · May 8, 2025 11:55am PDT · 5 comments

Mark D’Arcy. Photo via Getty

Microsoft Hires Former Meta Marketing Exec to Work on Copilot AI

By Aaron Holmes and Jessica E. Lessin · May 8, 2025 11:55am PDT · 5 comments

Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and Time Warner, to serve as a creative director of the company’s Copilot consumer artificial intelligence chatbot, according to two people briefed on the situation. The hiring is a sign of how AI firms are starting to focus their attention on... Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and...