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

Photo: AP

The Electric: After Killing His Cheap EV, Musk May Also Ditch the Battery That Made It Special

By Steve LeVine · Jul 15, 2024 4:30am PDT

In 2020, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the idea of a new battery that he said would change everything about electric vehicles. He called the battery unpoetically the 4680—a reference to its metric system dimensions—and said it would allow Tesla to finally produce a car almost anyone could afford. In 2020, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the idea of a new battery that he said would change...

Drew Baglino (left) and Elon Musk at a Tesla event in 2020. Art by Clark Miller. Screenshot via YouTube

Musk Sets Tesla Battery Deadline After Setbacks

By Steve LeVine, Wayne Ma and Becky Peterson · Jul 15, 2024 4:20am PDT · 2 comments

In 2020, in front of a parking lot of raucous fans and investors honking their Teslas, Elon Musk laid out an intricate plan to make a $25,000 electric vehicle for the common person. The key: a transformative new battery boasting a slew of innovations, which he said could be ready in time for the vehicle’s release in 2023. Tesla blew that... In 2020, in front of a parking lot of raucous fans and investors honking their Teslas, Elon Musk...

Donald Trump after shots were fired at a rally in Butler, Penn., on July 13. Photo by Getty

Social Media’s Trump Challenge

By Nick Wingfield · Jul 14, 2024 3:46pm PDT

It’s not often that every major tech leader agrees on the same thing, especially when it comes to a figure as divisive as Donald Trump. But it was hard to find one of them who didn’t publicly express a concern for Trump’s well-being in the wake of the shooting at a rally in Pennsylvania, now under investigation as an assassination attempt aimed... It’s not often that every major tech leader agrees on the same thing, especially when it comes to...

Art by Clark Miller

An Ellison’s Comic Gay Adventure

By Abram Brown · Jul 13, 2024 7:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller

An Ellison’s Comic Gay Adventure

By Abram Brown · Jul 13, 2024 7:00am PDT

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:A tale of a remarkable Silicon Valley marathon The very finest fellowships for tech moguls Plus: Hasan Minhaj’s digital reinvention; a funny dog story; and a beachside riddle. Nimona and Ballister Boldheart seem unlikely to secure a place among cinema’s most remembered pairings of animated... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:A tale of a remarkable Silicon Valley marathon The ...

Art by Clark Miller

Silicon Valley Moguls’ Favorite Fellowships

By Julia Black · Jul 13, 2024 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Picture this: A founder of a buzzy Silicon Valley startup, a top Wall Street executive and the head of a world-changing nonprofit walk into a bar. No, it’s not the setup for a joke. It’s the type of everyday happening that participants in high-profile programs like the Aspen Institute’s Henry Crown Fellowship and the Forum of... Picture this: A founder of a buzzy Silicon Valley startup, a top Wall Street executive and the...

The European Commission for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age's Margrethe Vestager. Photo by Thierry Monasse/Getty Images.

Europe’s Latest Target Is Musk’s X

By Martin Peers · Jul 12, 2024 3:45pm PDT · 1 comment

You have to hand it to the European Commission—they’re doing a great job innovating on regulation. Take today’s announcement that Elon Musk’s X may be in breach of the Digital Services Act, partly because Musk has devalued the blue checkmark by making it available to anyone who pays. What regulator has previously gone after a company for... You have to hand it to the European Commission—they’re doing a great job innovating on...

The Modern Press Playbook with Jess

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 12, 2024 12:12pm PDT

What a surprise this week when Brit and Dave turned the tables and grilled me about PR and my advice for companies and investors who want to—or have to—deal with the press. It is quite an interesting time in the press vs. corporate relationship, and I hope my tips were useful. Plus, of course, more on the latest silly summer tech... What a surprise this week when Brit and Dave turned the tables and grilled me about PR and my...

Art by Clark Miller

The Epic Corporate Marathon of Strava, Cult-Favorite Fitness App

By Annie Goldsmith · Jul 12, 2024 9:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller

The Epic Corporate Marathon of Strava, Cult-Favorite Fitness App

By Annie Goldsmith · Jul 12, 2024 9:00am PDT

While running a half-marathon in Philadelphia a few years ago, Courtney Kitchen noticed another woman near her running roughly her pace: She seemed like she’d make a great training buddy. But there wasn’t an opportune moment for the pair to exchange phone numbers at the race, so later that day, Kitchen opened Strava, the popular... While running a half-marathon in Philadelphia a few years ago, Courtney Kitchen noticed another...

Pro Weekly: Creator Funding Rises; It's not Just AI

Pro Weekly: Creator Funding Rises; It's not Just AI

By Akash Pasricha · Jul 12, 2024 8:00am PDT

We published our second-quarter funding report this week for the Creator Economy Database. Artificial intelligence fueled a second consecutive quarter of growing investment in the sector, with the first six months of 2024 roughly equaling creator economy startup funding for all of last year. But here’s the thing: It’s not just about AI.Funding... We published our second-quarter funding report this week for the Creator Economy Database....

Art by Clark Miller. Trae Stephens photos courtesy Epic Church San Francisco

The Rise of Founders Fund’s Faithful Warrior

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jul 12, 2024 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

In late June, roughly 300 people—many of them founders, venture capitalists and other techies—piled into a windowless room on a Thursday night in a church in downtown San Francisco. Some were at Epic Church San Francisco to worship, while others privately admitted they were angling for an introduction to one of the people preaching... In late June, roughly 300 people—many of them founders, venture capitalists and other...

Photo by Thomas Wire via Getty Images.

Why Women Are Disappearing From Tech

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 11, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

I opened my email this morning to read troubling news from PitchBook: The percentage of venture deals for companies with female founders—a measly 6.5% last year—has dropped further, to 5.7% this year so far. Companies that have at least one female co-founder are getting only 16.6% of venture dollars, down from 27% last year. And I wasn’t a... I opened my email this morning to read troubling news from PitchBook: The percentage of venture...

Photo by Rita Franca/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The Startup Helping Creators Track and License Work Used by AI

By Julia Hornstein · Jul 11, 2024 3:05pm PDT · 1 comment

Photo by Rita Franca/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Creator Economy

The Startup Helping Creators Track and License Work Used by AI

By Julia Hornstein · Jul 11, 2024 3:05pm PDT · 1 comment

Writers and other creators are increasingly worried that artificial intelligence training models will suck up their work without compensating them. A new Los Angeles–based startup called SmarterLicense is selling a fix: a tool that tracks when a creator’s work is used on the internet, for AI or other purposes.The two-year-old startup, which... Writers and other creators are increasingly worried that artificial intelligence training models...

Luis Silva, CEO and founder of CloudWalk, at Web Summit Rio in April. Photo via YouTube.

A Latin American Payments Startup Tries to Defy the Fintech Slump

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Kate Clark · Jul 11, 2024 2:41pm PDT

Fintech startups have suffered a difficult fundraising climate for two years, after a cocktail of rising interest rates and cooler e-commerce spending made capital harder to come by. But one startup based in São Paulo is trying to defy the slump with an ambitious new fundraise.CloudWalk, a Latin America–focused fintech startup that sells... Fintech startups have suffered a difficult fundraising climate for two years, after a cocktail of...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Flood of Shein and Temu Packages Sparks Delivery Startup Gold Rush

By Ann Gehan and Theo Wayt · Jul 11, 2024 9:00am PDT

When Hailify was founded in 2017 as an app for Uber and Lyft drivers to manage competing gigs, Shein was a little-known Chinese startup and Temu didn’t exist. Hailify’s initial business plan didn’t work out, but it now has found new life dropping off thousands of parcels each day shipped from China by companies including Temu... When Hailify was founded in 2017 as an app for Uber and Lyft drivers to manage competing gigs,...

Photo by Chesnot/Getty Images.

AWS Doubles Down on Practicality; The Loopholes of AI

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 11, 2024 7:00am PDT

A year ago, when Amazon Web Services executive Matt Wood told developers that the firm aimed to be “neutral” in the large language model market, by offering several options that excel in different ways, many saw it as an excuse for being late to the AI race.Now, AWS might be having the last laugh. Microsoft is increasingly adopting a... A year ago, when Amazon Web Services executive Matt Wood told developers that the firm aimed to...

Photo by AP. Art by Shane Burke.

U.S. Election Is Crypto’s Make-or-Break Moment

By Yueqi Yang · Jul 11, 2024 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Photo by AP. Art by Shane Burke.

U.S. Election Is Crypto’s Make-or-Break Moment

By Yueqi Yang · Jul 11, 2024 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

The crypto industry is bracing for what could be its most consequential event yet: the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Barring last-minute changes in candidates, the race will pit two candidates with drastically different stances against each other: Joe Biden, whose administration steered a two-plus-year regulatory crackdown, and Donald Trump,... The crypto industry is bracing for what could be its most consequential event yet: the 2024 U.S....

A Renault Scenic EV displayed during the Geneva Motor Show. Photo by Getty

The Electric: Renault May Use Iron-Based Batteries in About Half Its EVs

By Steve LeVine · Jul 11, 2024 4:30am PDT

A Renault Scenic EV displayed during the Geneva Motor Show. Photo by GettyFollowing a pattern set by Tesla and Chinese carmakers, Renault plans to make a dramatic switch away from nickel-based batteries in future electric vehicles, instead using iron-based batteries in about half of them, a senior executive of the French automaker said.Philippe... A Renault Scenic EV displayed during the Geneva Motor Show. Photo by GettyFollowing a pattern set...

Satya Nadella, Sam Altman and Tim Cook. Photos via Getty.

Microsoft and Apple Ditch OpenAI Board Observer Roles

By Martin Peers · Jul 10, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Phil Schiller may be wondering what he did wrong. Just over a week after we learned that Apple would get a board observer position at OpenAI—to be filled by Schiller—those plans are off. Microsoft meanwhile is also giving up its OpenAI board observer role, saying it was no longer necessary. Were the board meetings that boring? (Kidding!)While... Phil Schiller may be wondering what he did wrong. Just over a week after we learned that Apple...

Demi Guo, co-founder and CEO of Pika Labs. Photo by David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Creator Economy

The Creator Economy’s AI Tailwind

By Kaya Yurieff · Jul 10, 2024 2:00pm PDT

The investor excitement around artificial intelligence is boosting funding for creator economy startups, reversing two years of straight declines. The second quarter extended the first quarter rebound, reflecting investors’ confidence that startups can leverage generative AI to develop useful tools for creators. (You can read our full story,... The investor excitement around artificial intelligence is boosting funding for creator economy...

Creator Startups Have Already Raised as Much Money This Year as in All of 2023

By Kaya Yurieff and Akash Pasricha · Jul 10, 2024 10:40am PDT · 1 comment

Creator Economy Database

Creator Startups Have Already Raised as Much Money This Year as in All of 2023

By Kaya Yurieff and Akash Pasricha · Jul 10, 2024 10:40am PDT · 1 comment

Venture capitalists are rediscovering their flair for the creator economy. In the first half of this year, U.S. creator economy startups raised roughly as much money as in all of last year, according to new data from The Information’s Creator Economy Database. In the second quarter alone, U.S. creator startups raised $692.7 million, up 68%... Venture capitalists are rediscovering their flair for the creator economy. In the first half of...