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

The Sora Saga Has Only Just Started

By Margaux MacColl · Mar 15, 2024 9:00am PDT · 4 comments

A month ago, Greg Pilon, a 44-year-old visual effects artist on such films as “Deadpool 2,” thought he heard the tick-tock of a doomsday clock for his industry. What set the gears in motion? His initial glimpse of Sora, OpenAI’s new text-to-video artificial intelligence tool, unveiled by CEO Sam Altman. In a 10-minute demo... A month ago, Greg Pilon, a 44-year-old visual effects artist on such films as “Deadpool...

Photo by Getty Images

Pro Weekly: Tighter Reins on Cloud Spending—Except for AI

By Akash Pasricha and Anissa Gardizy · Mar 15, 2024 8:00am PDT

We’ve updated our estimates for several of the biggest spenders in our Cloud Database. The changes show that some companies are trying to hold the line on cloud bills—except when it comes to spending on artificial intelligence. The most significant update in the database is all about AI. ChatGPT developer OpenAI projected last year that it... We’ve updated our estimates for several of the biggest spenders in our Cloud Database. The...

Art by Clark Miller

Microsoft Security Breaches Rile U.S. Government Customers

By Aaron Holmes · Mar 15, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Microsoft became the world’s biggest seller of cybersecurity software by bundling it with Office and Teams apps. But after a series of hacks exploited that software in the past year, several of Microsoft’s biggest customers are considering whether their reliance on Microsoft’s software bundle puts their security at risk. The... Microsoft became the world’s biggest seller of cybersecurity software by bundling it with...

The SpaceX Starship stands on the launch pad ahead of its third flight test from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas on Tuesday. Photo by Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images.

Musk’s Rocket Ship Takes Flight as Do Mnuchin’s TikTok Ambitions

By Martin Peers · Mar 14, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

The SpaceX Starship stands on the launch pad ahead of its third flight test from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas on Tuesday. Photo by Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images.

Musk’s Rocket Ship Takes Flight as Do Mnuchin’s TikTok Ambitions

By Martin Peers · Mar 14, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Let’s start with some good news: today’s successful rocket launch by Elon Musk’s SpaceX (cool video here). This was the third flight test of SpaceX’s Starship, the enormous new rocket the company is building to launch second-generation Starlink internet satellites, among other things. The test lasted an hour (for more details, see here). It was... Let’s start with some good news: today’s successful rocket launch by Elon Musk’s SpaceX (cool ...

Camila Cabello for Olipop. Photos via TikTok/YouTube Shorts.

Creator Economy

The Influencers Behind Olipop’s Rise; a Potential Bidder for TikTok

By Ann Gehan · Mar 14, 2024 3:27pm PDT

If you’ve started seeing more trendy drink brands popping up on your social media feeds recently, that’s by design. Upstart beverage makers like Olipop, which says its carbonated drinks can help improve digestion and gut health, have been increasing their reach through influencers on TikTok and other apps. In early 2022, the brand... If you’ve started seeing more trendy drink brands popping up on your social media feeds recently,...

TikTok's Culver City, California office. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

Why TikTok’s Own Investors Won’t Defend It; A Robotics Renaissance

By Kate Clark · Mar 14, 2024 3:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Legislation headed for the Senate that could ban TikTok is putting some U.S. venture capitalists in an uncomfortable position. Those with stakes in TikTok’s parent ByteDance could lobby in support of TikTok, prioritizing future returns. Or they could stay quiet, protecting both their relationships with policymakers and their reputations, as the... Legislation headed for the Senate that could ban TikTok is putting some U.S. venture capitalists...

The Information Honored with Five ‘Best in Business’ Journalism Awards

The Information Honored with Five ‘Best in Business’ Journalism Awards

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 14, 2024 1:23pm PDT · 5 comments

I just shared this note with our staff at The Information. Congratulations to all the journalists doing such incredible work. And thank you to our subscribers for supporting us.—Jessica *** Team, The Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (SABEW) has awarded their 2023 awards, and we cleaned up! For those who count such things,... I just shared this note with our staff at The Information. Congratulations to all the journalists...

Jane Dunlevie and Jason Rowe. Photos via Goldman Sachs and Fulbright Canada.

Goldman Sachs, Girding for More Deals, Promotes Two Tech Bankers

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 14, 2024 12:17pm PDT · 1 comment

Jane Dunlevie and Jason Rowe. Photos via Goldman Sachs and Fulbright Canada.

Goldman Sachs, Girding for More Deals, Promotes Two Tech Bankers

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 14, 2024 12:17pm PDT · 1 comment

Goldman Sachs promoted two of its senior investment bankers this week to prepare for a moment it has long been hoping for: a return of tech deals. Jane Dunlevie, a tech-focused banker who helped run Instacart’s initial public offering and Stripe’s $7 billion private capital raise last year, will expand her role to become global head... Goldman Sachs promoted two of its senior investment bankers this week to prepare for a moment it...

The European Union Parliament building in Brussels. Photo by Thierry Monasse via Getty Images.

Europe’s AI Act Has Landed With Fewer Teeth Than Originally Proposed

By Kalley Huang · Mar 14, 2024 7:25am PDT

European Union lawmakers on Wednesday approved the world’s most sweeping regulation so far of artificial intelligence. The AI Act, which will take effect in stages over the next several years, will ban some applications of AI that the law considers high risk, such as social scoring. It will also require the developers of AI models to adopt... European Union lawmakers on Wednesday approved the world’s most sweeping regulation so far of...

Nextdoor's Nirav Tolia. Photo by Christopher Willard/ABC via Getty Images.

Former Nextdoor Employee Says CEO Tolia Sexually Harassed Her

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 14, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

A former Nextdoor employee alleged to a company-appointed investigator and to its board of directors in the summer of 2018 that its chief executive and co-founder, Nirav Tolia, sexually harassed her in 2015. A Nextdoor spokesperson confirmed the investigation of Tolia, who left the CEO job in 2018 but was reappointed last month by its board of... A former Nextdoor employee alleged to a company-appointed investigator and to its board of...

Harbinger's first commercial electric chassis for RV maker Thor Industries. Photo via Harbinger/PR NewsWire.

The Electric: Investors Remain Interested in Commercial EVs

By Steve LeVine · Mar 14, 2024 4:30am PDT

Amid increasing Wall Street skepticism toward the makers of passenger electric vehicles, investors are still funding companies making commercial EVs. Among them, California-based Harbinger Motors last week delivered the first of its stripped-down electric chassis to recreational vehicle manufacturer Thor Industries, which will design and install... Amid increasing Wall Street skepticism toward the makers of passenger electric vehicles,...

Photo by Getty Images.

Busting Myths on Foreign Media Ownership as TikTok Ban Looms

By Martin Peers · Mar 13, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Photo by Getty Images.

Busting Myths on Foreign Media Ownership as TikTok Ban Looms

By Martin Peers · Mar 13, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

It’s taken four years, but the push to ban TikTok is moving at lightning speed—which will continue until it comes to a dead halt sometime in the near future. Today’s lopsided vote in the House of Representatives on the ban-or-sell TikTok bill moves the battle to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain. Let’s assume it passes in that... It’s taken four years, but the push to ban TikTok is moving at lightning speed—which will...

Photo via Adobe Stock.

Creator Economy

How Instagram Reels Could Benefit From a TikTok Ban

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Mar 13, 2024 3:00pm PDT

Is TikTok’s pain Instagram’s gain? In the past, employees at the Meta Platforms app certainly thought so. Instagram’s short-video feature, Reels, has come a long way since its bumpy start in 2020. But it’s hard to imagine any Instagram exec isn’t intrigued by the reprise of Washington’s efforts to ban the ByteDance-owned app. After all,... Is TikTok’s pain Instagram’s gain? In the past, employees at the Meta Platforms app certainly...

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew. Photo by Getty Images.

TikTok Ban Bill Spotlights Open Secret: App Loses Money

By Jing Yang, Kate Clark and Erin Woo · Mar 13, 2024 10:52am PDT · 8 comments

TikTok, facing a growing threat of a U.S. ban, has been a global juggernaut over the past few years, drawing more than a billion monthly users and prompting rivals to launch similar services. But what is an open secret among investors is that the app loses money. TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, doesn’t disclose TikTok’s financial... TikTok, facing a growing threat of a U.S. ban, has been a global juggernaut over the past few...

Art by Shane Burke

How Stalking and Harassment Allegations Fractured a Semiconductor Startup

By Paris Martineau · Mar 13, 2024 10:30am PDT · 1 comment

In March last year, the former girlfriend of Erik Hosler—then the CEO of semiconductor manufacturing startup xLight—applied for a domestic violence restraining order against him, accusing Hosler of stalking and harassing her. A judge in California had already granted a temporary order, and when xLight learned of the dispute, it asked... In March last year, the former girlfriend of Erik Hosler—then the CEO of semiconductor...

Photo via Unsplash/Deep Mind.

A Shakeout is Coming for Inference Startups

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 13, 2024 7:00am PDT

Photo via Unsplash/Deep Mind.

A Shakeout is Coming for Inference Startups

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 13, 2024 7:00am PDT

If you tuned into Nvidia’s and Microsoft’s recent quarterly earnings calls, you probably heard their leaders discuss how inference—a fancy word for operating an artificial intelligence model—is becoming a bigger part of the computing workloads in their data centers. In other words, chatbots like ChatGPT Enterprise are serving real customers.... If you tuned into Nvidia’s and Microsoft’s recent quarterly earnings calls, you probably heard...

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Before CEO Exit, Allbirds’ Design Mishaps Were Piling Up

By Ann Gehan · Mar 13, 2024 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Last fall, Allbirds was preparing to launch an updated version of its popular Wool Runner shoe when its product design team realized there was a problem. A flaw in the design meant Allbirds had to scramble to remove and replace the fabric inside roughly 30,000 pairs of shoes, two people who worked on the launch said. The last-minute snag... Last fall, Allbirds was preparing to launch an updated version of its popular Wool Runner shoe...

Kite founder Rob Solomon. Photo via YouTube.

Blackstone-Founded E-Commerce ‘Roll-Up’ Firm Shuts Down

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Mar 12, 2024 5:07pm PDT

How bad is the slowdown in e-commerce growth? Ask Blackstone, one of the world’s largest investment firms. Two years ago, a division of Blackstone that invests in consumer brands such as Supergoop and Spanx joined a second investor to commit $200 million to an e-commerce startup they had founded together. The startup, Kite, was pursuing a... How bad is the slowdown in e-commerce growth? Ask Blackstone, one of the world’s largest...

Photo by Bloomberg via Getty Images

Another Joe Takes Reins at Allbirds; Latest on TikTok

By Martin Peers · Mar 12, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

We’re in one of those news cycles where everything makes way for one dominant story, which right now is TikTok. Don’t worry—if you’re not fascinated by the to-ban-or-not-to-ban debate, it will eventually fade from the headlines. But not just yet: Instead, over the next few days, TikTok will become an even bigger story, as the House of... We’re in one of those news cycles where everything makes way for one dominant story, which right...

Alex Cooper attends The Unwell House at SXSW. Photo by Rick Kern via Getty Images.

What Five Hours With Alex Cooper’s Fans Say About Podcasting

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 12, 2024 2:49pm PDT

Alex Cooper attends The Unwell House at SXSW. Photo by Rick Kern via Getty Images.

Creator Economy

What Five Hours With Alex Cooper’s Fans Say About Podcasting

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 12, 2024 2:49pm PDT

I’ve spent the past few days at South by Southwest, the annual tech and arts festival in Austin. The most memorable part of my experience was embedding myself with the screaming fans of “Call Her Daddy” podcast host Alex Cooper, who threw multi-day events to celebrate the launch of the Unwell Network, an arm of her production company where she’s... I’ve spent the past few days at South by Southwest, the annual tech and arts festival in Austin....