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

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Recent Editions

Art by Clark Miller. Tull image via Getty Images.

Secretive Billionaire Thomas Tull’s Never-Ending Transformation

By Julia Black · Apr 12, 2024 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

Private jets are a common enough sight over Driggs, Idaho, a hamlet 30 miles west of the exclusive resort town of Jackson Hole, Wyo. But one weekend a few months ago, so many chartered flights and luxury SUVs arrived in the small town that the mayor began to receive calls from residents asking what was going on. The commotion, as it turned out,... Private jets are a common enough sight over Driggs, Idaho, a hamlet 30 miles west of the...

Photo by Getty Images

Pro Weekly: Back-to-Back Funding in Generative AI

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

My colleague Cory reported Monday that some venture investors are shying away from companies working on generative artificial intelligence because they require a lot of capital, can fetch towering valuations and often face stiff competition. But you wouldn’t know it from the first quarterly tabulation of funding to the companies in our ... My colleague Cory reported Monday that some venture investors are shying away from companies...

Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images.

StubHub Plans Summer IPO in New Test of Market

By Cory Weinberg · Apr 12, 2024 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Online ticketing marketplace StubHub is aiming to go public by late summer, people close to the company said, setting up another sizable internet initial public offering after Reddit’s IPO last month. And as StubHub has more than $2 billion in debt, many times its estimated profits, the company will test investors’ appetite for... Online ticketing marketplace StubHub is aiming to go public by late summer, people close to the...

Google Cloud CEO delivering the keynote address at the unit's annual conference. Photo via Google Cloud

At Google’s Cloud Conference, Lofty AI Visions Meet Customer Reality

By Jon Victor and Anissa Gardizy · Apr 12, 2024 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Google Cloud CEO delivering the keynote address at the unit's annual conference. Photo via Google Cloud

At Google’s Cloud Conference, Lofty AI Visions Meet Customer Reality

By Jon Victor and Anissa Gardizy · Apr 12, 2024 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

In his keynote speech at Google’s annual cloud computing conference Tuesday, Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian outlined a future in which businesses use artificial intelligence agents to automate all manner of tasks, from analyzing data, to creating ad copy, to prodding consumers to spend more money. Now he must get customers to follow his... In his keynote speech at Google’s annual cloud computing conference Tuesday, Google Cloud...

The Amazon Spheres in Seattle. Photo by John Moore/Getty Images.

What Amazon’s Shareholder Letter Didn’t Say

By Martin Peers · Apr 11, 2024 5:00pm PDT

We’re approaching that time of the year when most public companies hold their annual shareholder meetings, theoretically giving investors both large and small a chance to question management and vote on board members and other matters. That all still happens, but the drama has faded from these events. What used to be in-person gatherings are... We’re approaching that time of the year when most public companies hold their annual shareholder...

Photo via Adobe Stock.

Investors Circle ‘Most Hated’ Fintech and E-Commerce Sectors

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Apr 11, 2024 3:51pm PDT · 1 comment

The fintech and e-commerce sectors, two of the hardest hit by the end of the venture capital funding boom, are still showing plenty of carnage. Some investors say it’s the perfect time to go bargain hunting. At the end of 2022, fintech was “probably the most hated area and probably lending within that [sector], and we actually have a couple... The fintech and e-commerce sectors, two of the hardest hit by the end of the venture capital...

Photo by Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Creator Economy

Watch But Don’t Worry About the Coming AI Influencers

By Erin Woo · Apr 11, 2024 3:21pm PDT

This morning, my colleagues Jing, Juro and I reported that TikTok has started to develop an advertising tool that would generate AI avatars to star in advertisers’ videos. The feature is still far from ready, we reported. Still, TikTok’s efforts indicate that the company could try to shake up the way creators make money again. ... This morning, my colleagues Jing, Juro and I reported that TikTok has started to develop an...

OpenAI signage at the Mobile World Congress conference in Barcelona in February 2024. Photo by SIPA USA via AP.

OpenAI Researchers, Including Ally of Sutskever, Fired for Alleged Leaking

By Erin Woo and Stephanie Palazzolo · Apr 11, 2024 1:18pm PDT · 2 comments

OpenAI signage at the Mobile World Congress conference in Barcelona in February 2024. Photo by SIPA USA via AP.

OpenAI Researchers, Including Ally of Sutskever, Fired for Alleged Leaking

By Erin Woo and Stephanie Palazzolo · Apr 11, 2024 1:18pm PDT · 2 comments

OpenAI has fired two researchers for allegedly leaking information, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. They include Leopold Aschenbrenner, a researcher on a team dedicated to keeping artificial intelligence safe for society. Aschenbrenner was also an ally of OpenAI chief scientist Ilya Sutskever, who... OpenAI has fired two researchers for allegedly leaking information, according to a person...

Photo by Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images.

Temu Flip-Flopped on Cotton Policy Meant to Weed Out Forced Labor, Suppliers Say

By Jing Yang · Apr 11, 2024 7:35am PDT · 1 comment

Temu, a China-founded bargain shopping app, has been under fire from U.S. lawmakers, who say it hasn’t done enough to stamp out the use of forced labor in its supply chain. Temu, for its part, has said it keeps close watch on the thousands of small manufacturers that make up its sprawling supplier base. But last year, Temu walked back a... Temu, a China-founded bargain shopping app, has been under fire from U.S. lawmakers, who say it...

Photo via Getty Images.

A New Wave of Foundation Model Developers Is Coming

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Apr 11, 2024 7:20am PDT

For months, venture capitalists have been telling me the same thing: the foundation model game is over. Between OpenAI, Anthropic, Cohere, Google and dozens of open-source model developers, there’s just no way for a company developing a new large language model to break into the market. In recent weeks, though, VCs have modified that stance... For months, venture capitalists have been telling me the same thing: the foundation model game is...

Illustration of AI-generated influencers. Art by Shane Burke.

TikTok Plots Using Virtual Influencers for Advertising

By Erin Woo, Jing Yang and Juro Osawa · Apr 11, 2024 6:00am PDT

TikTok touts itself as a platform where creators can stand out and build a following. But the company has begun discussing with advertisers an artificial intelligence-powered feature that would generate avatars to star in videos—virtual influencers that would potentially compete with human creators for ad deals. The feature, which is... TikTok touts itself as a platform where creators can stand out and build a following. But the...

Wright Electric CEO Jeff Engler, whose company is a contestant in Arpa-E's competition to invent a 1,000 watt-hour per kilogram battery. Photo: Luke MacGregor/Bloomberg/Getty

The Electric: 13 Teams Compete to Invent the Most Powerful Superbattery

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

Wright Electric CEO Jeff Engler, whose company is a contestant in Arpa-E's competition to invent a 1,000 watt-hour per kilogram battery. Photo: Luke MacGregor/Bloomberg/Getty

The Electric: 13 Teams Compete to Invent the Most Powerful Superbattery

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

Amid grave investor doubts about the viability of next-generation batteries, a half-dozen U.S. companies and seven universities are competing in a government-sponsored contest to quadruple the energy density of the world’s best commercial electric vehicle batteries. Amid grave investor doubts about the viability of next-generation batteries, a half-dozen U.S....

Photo by Valeriya Zankovych/Adobe Stock.

Meta’s New Chip Underlines Questions About AI Spending

By Martin Peers · Apr 10, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Mark Zuckerberg seems to enjoy stealing Sundar Pichai’s thunder. Close observers of the cloud sector will know that Google Cloud has one of its big annual events in Las Vegas this week, and it’s rolling out lots of announcements, including a new custom-designed chip for cloud computing. It seems Meta Platforms couldn’t resist getting in on the... Mark Zuckerberg seems to enjoy stealing Sundar Pichai’s thunder. Close observers of the cloud...

Photo via Adobe Stock

Creator Economy

The Hard Numbers on YouTube Shorts

By Kaya Yurieff · Apr 10, 2024 2:17pm PDT

Last week, we published a deep dive into YouTube, whose leaders are bringing a new focus on financial discipline at the expense of support staff that helped creators grow and manage their accounts. That focus on the bottom line has raised the hackles of creators. But they could justifiably be more outraged about the slim financial payouts... Last week, we published a deep dive into YouTube, whose leaders are bringing a new focus on...

Amazon headquarters in Arlington, Va. Photo by Andrew Cabellero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images.

Amazon Lets Employees Swap Stock Grants for Cash

By Theo Wayt · Apr 10, 2024 1:20pm PDT · 3 comments

Amazon is giving its mid- and lower-level corporate employees a chance to decide how much they want to tie their future pay to the company’s stock performance. In May, Amazon will give many U.S. corporate employees the option of reducing the amount of stock they receive next year by a quarter in exchange for more cash, according to an... Amazon is giving its mid- and lower-level corporate employees a chance to decide how much they...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

TikTok Owner ByteDance Misled Regulators on Payments Probe

By Michael Roddan · Apr 10, 2024 10:07am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan.

TikTok Owner ByteDance Misled Regulators on Payments Probe

By Michael Roddan · Apr 10, 2024 10:07am PDT

In early 2023, Irish banking regulators contacted ByteDance with a pointed question: Why was the Chinese internet giant and parent company of TikTok moving large sums of money, likely in the tens of millions of dollars, out of its HSBC bank accounts? ByteDance officials quickly sought to assuage their concerns by telling the Irish regulators it... In early 2023, Irish banking regulators contacted ByteDance with a pointed question: Why was the...

Cris Valenzuela, CEO of Runway. Photo by Nicole Pereira.

Don’t Mortgage Your Future to Microsoft, Says Coatue’s Chief Investment Officer—And What Else You Missed from Our Private Capital Conference

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Apr 10, 2024 7:00am PDT

Artificial intelligence wasn’t the stated theme of The Information’s Private Capital Conference on Tuesday at the New York Stock Exchange but it was the topic on everyone’s lips. Artificial intelligence wasn’t the stated theme of The Information’s Private Capital Conference...

Funding for Generative AI Startups Shifts to Applications

By Akash Pasricha · Apr 10, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

In the world of generative artificial intelligence startups, chatbots are so 2023. This year, entrepreneurs and venture capitalists are building and backing new applications of the emerging technology, including humanlike robots and voice generators. In the first quarter, venture capitalists plowed more than $2.2 billion into startups tracked by... In the world of generative artificial intelligence startups, chatbots are so 2023. This year,...

Juliet de Baubigny of BDT & MSD Partners and Tony Kim of BlackRock on Tuesday.

Private Capital Conference

Highlights From The Information’s Private Capital Conference

By The Information Staff · Apr 9, 2024 6:54pm PDT

Investors at The Information’s Private Capital Conference Tuesday said the shakeout in valuations the past two years has given them more opportunities to find attractive deals—even in beaten-down sectors such as e-commerce. But tech founders face higher hurdles to go public and many initial public offerings remain far off, even for... Investors at The Information’s Private Capital Conference Tuesday said the shakeout in...

Left to right: The Information's Kate Clark and Cory Weinberg; Akrati Johari, Chief Growth Officer and Head of ZXData at Zanbato; and Gaurav Mathur, founding partner at Pinegrove Capital Partners. Photo by Nicole Pereira.

General Atlantic and Mubadala Send Positive Signals About Market

By Martin Peers · Apr 9, 2024 5:15pm PDT

Left to right: The Information's Kate Clark and Cory Weinberg; Akrati Johari, Chief Growth Officer and Head of ZXData at Zanbato; and Gaurav Mathur, founding partner at Pinegrove Capital Partners. Photo by Nicole Pereira.

General Atlantic and Mubadala Send Positive Signals About Market

By Martin Peers · Apr 9, 2024 5:15pm PDT

The stock market is setting records, partly due to enthusiasm about artificial intelligence, a sector where valuations have soared. The IPO market isn’t back to where it was before interest rates started rising. Yet some investors are more upbeat about investment conditions than they’ve been in a while, judging from comments at our Private... The stock market is setting records, partly due to enthusiasm about artificial intelligence, a...