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

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel. Photo by Snap.

Creator Economy

Snap Tries for a Streamlined App—With a Lot of Features

By Erin Woo · Sep 17, 2024 3:26pm PDT

Snapchat, launched more than a decade ago, has been showing its wear. The app is a jumble of features, from TikTok-like videos (Spotlight) to Maps to its flagship disappearing Stories. With a major redesign unveiled Tuesday, it’s attempting to streamline the way its 850 million monthly users interact with the photo messaging app. Many may... Snapchat, launched more than a decade ago, has been showing its wear. The app is a jumble of...

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, left, and Octo.AI CEO Luis Ceze. Photo by Getty; screenshot via YouTube.

Nvidia Recently Discussed Acquiring Software Startup OctoAI for $165 Million

By Anissa Gardizy, Aaron Holmes and Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 17, 2024 11:37am PDT

Nvidia has been in advanced talks to buy OctoAI, a Seattle-based startup that sells software to make artificial intelligence models run more efficiently, according to a message sent to shareholders. The purchase would add to a string of small AI startup acquisitions by the AI chip heavyweight, which is trying to strengthen its software and... Nvidia has been in advanced talks to buy OctoAI, a Seattle-based startup that sells software to...

Art by Mike Sullivan via Midjourney

Why OpenAI is Hiding its Reasoning Model’s ‘Thoughts’

By Amir Efrati and Anissa Gardizy · Sep 17, 2024 7:00am PDT

In the artificial intelligence race, competition is fierce. Every big AI developer is watching rivals like a hawk and trying to reverse-engineer or copy their best work, as we’ve reported.What can a leader like OpenAI do to keep its edge? The company’s newly released reasoning model, o1-preview, aka Strawberry, shows one way: by hiding the ball... In the artificial intelligence race, competition is fierce. Every big AI developer is watching...

The People in Charge at Productivity App Notion

By Jon Victor · Sep 17, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

The People in Charge at Productivity App Notion

By Jon Victor · Sep 17, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Notion, a maker of popular task-management software, is injecting artificial intelligence into every pore of its products, aiming to make it easier for people to draft documents, summarize data and query spreadsheets. AI is also reshaping Notion’s executive ranks. The company recently hired Jackie Rocca, formerly vice president of product... Notion, a maker of popular task-management software, is injecting artificial intelligence into...

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. Photo via AP.

Amazon’s Jassy Vows to Fight Bureaucracy

By Martin Peers · Sep 16, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

CEO letters to staff are usually written with so much bombast and blather that they say little of note. But that’s not the case with one that came from Amazon CEO Andy Jassy today. Despite a sleepy headline, “Strengthening Our Culture and Teams,” Jassy’s letter delivers some home truths. Most notably, he made it clear his concern that Amazon is... CEO letters to staff are usually written with so much bombast and blather that they say little of...

Art by Clark Miller

Why AI Developers Are Skipping Google’s Gemini

By Erin Woo · Sep 16, 2024 3:11pm PDT · 12 comments

One of Google's efforts to catch up to OpenAI in the artificial intelligence race is struggling. Google’s conversational AI, Gemini, is too difficult for app developers and businesses to use compared to rivals’ technology, according to interviews with developers and several Google employees that help companies use the AI. One of Google's efforts to catch up to OpenAI in the artificial intelligence race is...

TikTok creator Talia Cadet speaks to reporters outside the courthouse in Washington on Monday. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images.

Creator Economy

TikTok’s Tough Day in Court

By Kaya Yurieff · Sep 16, 2024 3:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Things are not looking great for TikTok. I spent the morning hearing TikTok’s lawyers present their arguments to convince a Washington appeals court that a ban would infringe on the First Amendment rights of 170 million American users, as well as creators. The response from the court—a panel of three judges of the United States Court of... Things are not looking great for TikTok. I spent the morning hearing TikTok’s lawyers present...

image via Grok

Why OpenAI’s Reasoning Model Is Special

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Sep 16, 2024 7:00am PDT

image via Grok

Why OpenAI’s Reasoning Model Is Special

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Amir Efrati · Sep 16, 2024 7:00am PDT

OpenAI finally released its Strawberry reasoning artificial intelligence last week—or rather, an initial, less-complete version known as o1-preview. We first reported about the breakthrough behind Strawberry 10 months ago when it was still called Q*, and more recently told you what was coming, though we expected a more inspiring name than... OpenAI finally released its Strawberry reasoning artificial intelligence last week—or rather, an...

Photo by Getty

ByteDance Steps Up AI Chip Efforts

By Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu · Sep 16, 2024 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is accelerating efforts to make its own artificial intelligence chips as it looks for an edge over its rivals in China’s AI chatbot market. ByteDance is aiming for mass production of two semiconductors it has designed by 2026, in collaboration with chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.,... TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, is accelerating efforts to make its own artificial...

Ford CEO Jim Farley, top, and the company's head of EV development, Doug Field. Photos: Getty

Three-Quarters of Ford’s EV ‘Skunkworks’ Are Tesla, Apple and Rivian Alums

By Steve LeVine · Sep 16, 2024 4:30am PDT

In a call with Wall Street analysts in February, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Chief Financial Officer John Lawler detailed the costs to the company of its flagship electric Mach-E SUV and F-150 Lightning pickup. Ford lost $47,000 for each electric vehicle it sold in the fourth quarter of 2023, and was on track to lose up to $5.5 billion on EVs this... In a call with Wall Street analysts in February, Ford CEO Jim Farley and Chief Financial Officer...

Art by Clark Miller

Apple Is Slowly Killing the iPhone

By Abram Brown · Sep 14, 2024 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: The firebrand investor who can explain MAGA tech• The Top 5: The doggone best pet gadgets• Plus: San Francisco goes Bourbon Street for fall; how yuppies live on; and the immigrants and the internet. Remember when an Apple unveiling was actually exciting? Honestly, I can’t. It’s probably... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: The firebrand investor who can explain...

Screenshot via Legally Blonde/MGM; Art by Clark Miller.

Legal AI Startup EvenUp In Talks to Raise at $1 Billion Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 14, 2024 6:00am PDT

Screenshot via Legally Blonde/MGM; Art by Clark Miller.

Legal AI Startup EvenUp In Talks to Raise at $1 Billion Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 14, 2024 6:00am PDT

Startups that can cut down on costly paperwork for lawyers using generative artificial intelligence continue to draw investor dollars, despite the high costs of developing that software and the difficulties the startups face in acquiring exclusive legal data to train their models.The latest: San Francisco-based EvenUp, which develops AI software... Startups that can cut down on costly paperwork for lawyers using generative artificial...

Art by Clark Miller

What Silicon Valley Buys to Spoil Its Pets

By Annie Goldsmith · Sep 14, 2024 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Penny Lane, a Boykin spaniel living in the East Bay, is a bolter. It comes naturally to her: The Boykin, which is the state dog of South Carolina, was bred to fetch game during a hunt. “We live in the suburbs, so there’s some retrieving to be done, but not as much as one wishes,” said Penny’s owner, Allison Braley, a Bain... Penny Lane, a Boykin spaniel living in the East Bay, is a bolter. It comes naturally to her: The...

Photo via Getty.

What Biden’s Temu and Shein Crackdown Means for Amazon

By Martin Peers · Sep 13, 2024 3:30pm PDT

It’s no surprise that President Joe Biden isn’t a TikTok fan: He’s not really the target demographic. But the president signaled today that he also isn’t a fan of Temu or Shein, two online shopping sites with ties to China that sell lots of cut-price clothing, housewares and other stuff. The Biden administration is taking new steps to close the... It’s no surprise that President Joe Biden isn’t a TikTok fan: He’s not really the target...

Photo via AP.

E-Commerce Sellers, Logistics Startups Reshuffle Amid Trade Crackdown

By Theo Wayt and Ann Gehan · Sep 13, 2024 1:59pm PDT

The Biden administration’s decision on Friday to end an import exemption that fueled the popularity of sites like Temu and Shein is likely to force China-founded sellers to fast-track overhauling their supply chains—and raise their ultracheap prices. The proposed trade rule changes could also prompt strategy shifts at U.S.... The Biden administration’s decision on Friday to end an import exemption that fueled the...

Meta vs. Apple: the Future of Open vs. Closed Tech

By Jessica E. Lessin · Sep 13, 2024 10:46am PDT · 1 comment

Meta vs. Apple: the Future of Open vs. Closed Tech

By Jessica E. Lessin · Sep 13, 2024 10:46am PDT · 1 comment

Perhaps I was a little too harsh on Sam and Dave in this episode when I accused them each of blindly following their favorite tech CEO. But that's part of the fun of More or Less, where we give you our real views on people and companies—and call each other out on our quirks. I enjoyed this episode very much. It's the kind... Perhaps I was a little too harsh on Sam and Dave in this episode when I accused them each of...

Art by Clark Miller

The Firebrand Investor Who Can Explain Trump’s Rise in Tech

By Abram Brown · Sep 13, 2024 9:11am PDT · 16 comments

“You’ve been here before?” asked the guard at the gate, a pistol fastened to his belt. I shook my head no. “If you go past the red Tesla,” the guard said, waving my Uber through, “you’ve gone too far.” After a few minutes of Texas shrubland, we arrived at Joe Lonsdale’s back door, where... “You’ve been here before?” asked the guard at the gate, a pistol fastened to...

A wafer on display at Semicon Taiwan earlier this month. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Pro Weekly: AI Chip Startups Race to Finish Products

By Akash Pasricha · Sep 13, 2024 8:00am PDT

Our AI Chip Database includes 24 companies that hope to grab some of the riches flowing to market leader Nvidia. It’s an expensive task, and several have been busy raising money lately.Groq and Etched, two companies designing chips to run large language models, raised $640 million and $120 million, respectively, over the past few months. I... Our AI Chip Database includes 24 companies that hope to grab some of the riches flowing to market...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Tiger Global Plans to Join OpenAI’s Funding Round

By Kate Clark · Sep 13, 2024 7:13am PDT

A clearer picture is emerging of OpenAI’s massive financing, which values the ChatGPT developer at $150 billion. Venture capital firm Tiger Global Management plans to participate in the multi-billion dollar round, according to people familiar with the matter. Tiger would join Thrive Capital, Microsoft, Nvidia, Apple and the Abu Dhabi AI... A clearer picture is emerging of OpenAI’s massive financing, which values the ChatGPT...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Venture Capitalists Turn to Novel Methods to Return Cash

By Kate Clark · Sep 13, 2024 6:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

Venture Capitalists Turn to Novel Methods to Return Cash

By Kate Clark · Sep 13, 2024 6:00am PDT

In 2022, not long after the window for initial public offerings slammed shut, European early-stage investment firm Speedinvest hired someone who informally began using a wonky new job title. The firm’s self-styled “head of DPI” is in charge of making sure the distributed to paid-in capital ratio—a measurement of the cash... In 2022, not long after the window for initial public offerings slammed shut, European...