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

Photo by Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Fanatics.

Bolt’s Fanatics Partnership Goes South, Adding to Growth Woes

By Abubakar Idris and Erin Woo · Mar 28, 2024 11:34am PDT

Bolt, the checkout startup that rocketed to an $11 billion valuation during the pandemic e-commerce boom, is embroiled in another legal battle with a high-profile retail partner: sports apparel company Fanatics, which signed a deal in 2022 to offer Bolt’s speedy payment buttons across several of its e-commerce sites. Fanatics filed a... Bolt, the checkout startup that rocketed to an $11 billion valuation during the pandemic...

Photo via Midjourney

Why Two Models Are Better Than One

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 28, 2024 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

You may have heard of the saying, “two heads are better than one.” The same could be said about large language models.Yes, developers have figured out that model performance can be improved by combining a couple of LLMs. The concept behind "model merging" is surprisingly intuitive. Developers combine the weights (or the “settings” that determine... You may have heard of the saying, “two heads are better than one.” The same could be said about...

Mercury co-founder and CEO Immad Akhund. Photo via Getty Images.

Inside Mercury’s Stumble From Fintech Hero to Target of the Feds

By Michael Roddan · Mar 28, 2024 6:00am PDT

The meeting last July between officials from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and executives from Choice Financial Group was tense. For most of the two-and-a-half hour session, the FDIC officials delivered the results of the agency’s recent examination of Choice, a once sleepy bank based in Fargo, N.D., for possible violations of... The meeting last July between officials from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and executives...

The electric Lightning LS-218, with Enevate's dominant metallurgical silicon anode. Photo: Courtesy Lightning Motorcycle

The Electric: The First Commercial Silicon-Dominant Battery Powers This Motorcycle

By Steve LeVine · Mar 28, 2024 4:30am PDT

The electric Lightning LS-218, with Enevate's dominant metallurgical silicon anode. Photo: Courtesy Lightning Motorcycle

The Electric: The First Commercial Silicon-Dominant Battery Powers This Motorcycle

By Steve LeVine · Mar 28, 2024 4:30am PDT

California-based Lightning Motorcycle has released a new electric bike that it says accelerates from zero to 60 mph in two seconds, delivers 335 miles of range, and adds about 200 miles of charge in 12 minutes. The secret behind Lightning’s LS-218 is the first commercial electric vehicle battery anode dominated by silicon, a material that... California-based Lightning Motorcycle has released a new electric bike that it says accelerates...

Photo by Tada Images/Adobe Stock.

What Amazon’s Anthropic Update Doesn’t Tell Us

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

You could hear a pin drop in the tech world today, things were so quiet. (Are techies off painting Easter eggs?) We’re so starved for news that we appreciated Amazon’s decision to “update” everyone on the status of its commitment to invest up to $4 billion in artificial intelligence startup Anthropic. The update was…Amazon has completed the full... You could hear a pin drop in the tech world today, things were so quiet. (Are techies off...

Chart by Shane Burke

Creator Economy

How Creators Make Money Is Changing

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 27, 2024 1:40pm PDT

In 2021, we reported on a survey that measured creators’ top sources of revenue. At that time, sponsorships with advertisers took the top spot by far. Some 77% of creators said it was their single highest source of income. Three years later, other revenue sources are starting to gain more ground. For instance, affiliate marketing, where... In 2021, we reported on a survey that measured creators’ top sources of revenue. At that time,...

Diana Doyle of Morgan Stanley and Rich Wong of Accel. Photos via Morgan Stanley and Accel.

Q&A

Why Fewer Than 20% of Startup Unicorns Are Likely to Go Public Soon

By Laura Mandaro · Mar 27, 2024 10:48am PDT · 2 comments

The market for initial public offerings is crawling out of a two-year slumber, invigorated by the debuts of Reddit and Astera Labs. But most startups valued at $1 billion or higher won’t go public soon, predicts Accel partner Rich Wong. Of the 1,200-plus private startups that now have this valuation, he estimated far fewer than 20% will... The market for initial public offerings is crawling out of a two-year slumber, invigorated by the...

Art by Clark Miller

To Build a Winning Defense Tech Company, Think Outside the Pentagon

By Tom Biegala · Mar 27, 2024 9:00am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller

To Build a Winning Defense Tech Company, Think Outside the Pentagon

By Tom Biegala · Mar 27, 2024 9:00am PDT · 2 comments

There has been a lot of buzz recently around technology startups developing products for the defense industry. In the past few years, companies such as Palantir, Anduril and SpaceX have achieved strong valuations from public and private investors. In addition, geopolitical instability in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and East Asia has led to a... There has been a lot of buzz recently around technology startups developing products for the...

Databricks headquarters in San Francisco. Photo by Tada Images/Adobe Stock.

Why the AI Hyperrealists at Databricks Spent $10 Million to Beat Meta’s LLM

By Amir Efrati · Mar 27, 2024 7:05am PDT · 1 comment

Perhaps no executive in the artificial intelligence field has gone to greater lengths to knock down generative AI hype quite like Databricks CEO Ali Ghodsi. A year ago, that looked like sour grapes as OpenAI’s quick progress made many people think that software tools like those Databricks sells to companies to manage data and utilize AI would... Perhaps no executive in the artificial intelligence field has gone to greater lengths to knock...

Melanie Perkins, CEO of Canva. Photo by Getty.

The Financials Behind Canva’s Corporate Sales Battle Plan Against Adobe

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 27, 2024 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Software startup Canva, which has grown to a $26 billion valuation with a message that it is “democratizing design” for people without professional training, is increasingly pinning its fortunes on selling its suite of editing tools to the biggest companies in the world. The privately held Australian company told prospective... Software startup Canva, which has grown to a $26 billion valuation with a message that it is...

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty Images.

IPOs Still Face a High Bar, Despite Upbeat Debuts

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 26, 2024 5:00pm PDT

Startup CEOs are feeling practically poetic after watching Reddit and Astera Labs trade up following their public debuts in recent days. It feels like “the sun peeking through the clouds after a long period of rain,” one CEO who has been eyeing a public listing texted me. Bankers and venture capitalists, of course, are writing love sonnets to... Startup CEOs are feeling practically poetic after watching Reddit and Astera Labs trade up...

Speakers at this year's Creator Economy Summit include influencer Loren Gray (left) and recording artist Diplo. Photos via Getty Images.

An Insider’s Guide to Our Creator Economy Summit

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 26, 2024 2:00pm PDT

Speakers at this year's Creator Economy Summit include influencer Loren Gray (left) and recording artist Diplo. Photos via Getty Images.

Creator Economy

An Insider’s Guide to Our Creator Economy Summit

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 26, 2024 2:00pm PDT

I can’t believe we are just one week away from our fourth annual Creator Economy Summit in Los Angeles!This is the second time we’re hosting this event in person, and we are so excited to bring together more than 300 people, including creators, entrepreneurs, tech executives and investors shaping the sector. (There’s still time to buy a ticket ... I can’t believe we are just one week away from our fourth annual Creator Economy Summit in Los...

Left to right: Jeremi Gorman, Anoushka Vaswani, Everett Randle,
Delian Asparouhov and Dan Levine.

Announcing The Information’s Inaugural List of Next General Partners

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Mar 26, 2024 10:24am PDT

Venture capital firms are in flux. Seasoned investors are attempting to hand control to a younger generation of partners. Firms are restructuring as they seek the best investors to win competitive artificial intelligence deals. All this upheaval spells opportunity for a rising group of ambitious dealmakers. The Information’s VC reporters... Venture capital firms are in flux. Seasoned investors are attempting to hand control to a younger...

Photo by Josh Edelson/AFP via Getty Images.

Big Tech Taps Their Founders As AI Talent Battle Heats Up

By Kalley Huang and Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 26, 2024 7:00am PDT

In January, Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted a video touting the 350,000 Nvidia H100 graphics processing units he said the company would have by the end of the year. While the post signaled Meta’s advantage in computing capacity, several current and former employees interpreted it simply as a way to improve Meta’s ability to recruit in... In January, Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted a video touting the 350,000 Nvidia H100...

Apple CEO Tim Cook in Shanghai on March 21. Photo by AFP/China OUT via Getty Images.

Apple’s Vision Pro Gets Boost From China’s Media Kingmaker

By Wayne Ma · Mar 26, 2024 6:00am PDT

When Apple launched the Vision Pro headset, it leaned heavily on its own streaming app, as well as those of Disney and others, to market the headset’s most compelling feature: an immersive video experience. Now Tencent, China’s largest social media, streaming and gaming company, has agreed to make some of its most important apps... When Apple launched the Vision Pro headset, it leaned heavily on its own streaming app, as well...

Nelson Peltz. Photo by Bloomberg.

Peltz’s New Tactic in Activist Campaign: Supporting Iger

By Martin Peers · Mar 25, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Nelson Peltz. Photo by Bloomberg.

Peltz’s New Tactic in Activist Campaign: Supporting Iger

By Martin Peers · Mar 25, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Here’s a new one in the annals of shareholder politicking. Activist investor Nelson Peltz, whose campaign for seats on Disney’s board has drawn an aggressive response from the company lately, declared on Monday that he is a supporter of CEO Bob Iger. Yes, after he has for weeks been assailing Disney’s poor performance, Peltz put out a statement... Here’s a new one in the annals of shareholder politicking. Activist investor Nelson Peltz, whose...

Photo via Shutterstock/Art by Shane Burke.

To Fight Ban Bill, TikTok’s Best Hopes Lie in First Amendment Challenge

By Erin Woo and Juro Osawa · Mar 25, 2024 1:44pm PDT · 6 comments

When then-President Donald Trump tried to ban Chinese-owned app WeChat in 2020, hundreds of WeChat users banded together to sue. They argued that WeChat was a vital communications tool for many elderly Chinese Americans. The tactic worked and the court blocked the ban. Now TikTok, which is facing a potential ban in a bill now before the Senate,... When then-President Donald Trump tried to ban Chinese-owned app WeChat in 2020, hundreds of...

Photo by Bloomberg.

The Big Interview

‘Sober’ IPO Market Is Over, Says Top Morgan Stanley Banker

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 25, 2024 12:36pm PDT · 1 comment

Many of the big investors weighing Reddit’s initial public offering weren’t convinced by the company’s pitch in the weeks leading up to the listing, fretting about the firm’s lack of profits or uncertainty around big licensing deals for its data. But the doubts dissipated for many by the time Reddit’s bankers closed the deal, which valued the... Many of the big investors weighing Reddit’s initial public offering weren’t convinced by the...

Photo via Adobe Stock

New RAG Techniques are Generative AI’s Greatest Hope

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 25, 2024 7:30am PDT

As time goes on and some buyers of generative AI grow disillusioned with the meager returns they’ve seen, many are experimenting with new ways to eke better performance out of large language models without paying up for the latest, state-of-the-art LLM.One way to do this is through a technique called retrieval augmented generation, which aims to... As time goes on and some buyers of generative AI grow disillusioned with the meager returns they’...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta Pursues AI Talent With Quick Offers, Emails From Zuckerberg

By Kalley Huang and Jon Victor · Mar 25, 2024 6:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta Pursues AI Talent With Quick Offers, Emails From Zuckerberg

By Kalley Huang and Jon Victor · Mar 25, 2024 6:00am PDT

To better compete for artificial intelligence researchers, Meta Platforms is making unconventional moves, including extending job offers to candidates without interviewing them and relaxing a longstanding practice of not increasing compensation for employees threatening to leave. In a sign of how seriously the social media company is taking the... To better compete for artificial intelligence researchers, Meta Platforms is making...