The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica E. 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

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Tech Revives Nuclear

By Martin Peers · Oct 16, 2024 5:00pm PDT

Big tech has well and truly gone nuclear. Amazon’s announcement today that it has signed three deals for the development of nuclear power reactors—including leading a $500 million funding round for a reactor developer called X-energy (not related to the X-obsessed Elon Musk)—demonstrates clearly how the tech industry is helping to revive nuclear... Big tech has well and truly gone nuclear. Amazon’s announcement today that it has signed three...

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Creator Economy

Why Shopping Livestreams Are Taking Over TikTok

By Kaya Yurieff and Ann Gehan · Oct 16, 2024 2:00pm PDT

Last year, TikTok helped woo sellers to TikTok Shop by footing the bill for incredible discounts on its new e-commerce service. These encouraged merchants to sell items at rock-bottom prices, which led to a deluge of sales. But this year, TikTok is taking a different tack to grow its e-commerce sales by encouraging more brands to go live—a lot.... Last year, TikTok helped woo sellers to TikTok Shop by footing the bill for incredible discounts...

Crusoe's Bill Stein and Chase Lochmiller. Photos via Getty and Crusoe.

Q&A

Why OpenAI’s Data Center Plan Hinges on a Little-Known Startup

By Anissa Gardizy · Oct 16, 2024 12:01pm PDT · 3 comments

The artificial intelligence race is lifting previously unknown data center startups that say they can move faster than bigger developers. The latest is Crusoe, which on Tuesday announced a deal to borrow $3.4 billion to develop a data center that could eventually become one of the largest in the world. Oracle, a cloud provider, will lease the... The artificial intelligence race is lifting previously unknown data center startups that say they...

Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok Tries to Woo American Shoppers, One Livestream at a Time

By Kaya Yurieff and Ann Gehan · Oct 16, 2024 10:31am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok Tries to Woo American Shoppers, One Livestream at a Time

By Kaya Yurieff and Ann Gehan · Oct 16, 2024 10:31am PDT

As TikTok’s U.S. shopping service enters its second year of operation, the ByteDance-owned company has become stingier about wooing online merchants with cash. TikTok has cut back on subsidizing deep discounts for retailers, a tactic it used last year when TikTok Shop launched, and has tripled its cut of sales to 6%. But TikTok has started... As TikTok’s U.S. shopping service enters its second year of operation, the ByteDance-owned...

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Chip Boom Strains Nvidia’s Relationship with its Most Important Supplier

By Amir Efrati · Oct 16, 2024 7:00am PDT

Nvidia and OpenAI may get the headlines, but their microprocessors and artificial intelligence wouldn’t be possible without the good people of Taiwan—specifically, more than 70,000 employees and leaders of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.A few years ago, my colleague Wayne took readers into the deep relationship between TSMC and Apple,... Nvidia and OpenAI may get the headlines, but their microprocessors and artificial intelligence...

Nvidia's Jensen Huang, left, and TSMC's Morris Chang. Photos by Getty

Nvidia and TSMC’s Lucrative AI Alliance Shows Signs of Stress

By Qianer Liu · Oct 16, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

The most successful and lucrative partnership in the artificial intelligence business is showing signs of strain. In March, Jensen Huang, CEO of chip giant Nvidia, trumpeted the arrival of a family of new chips, known as Blackwell, designed to run the latest, most powerful AI software. Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, Tesla’s Elon Musk and... The most successful and lucrative partnership in the artificial intelligence business is showing...

Steve Schwarzman, co-founder and CEO of Blackstone. Photo via Getty.

Blackstone's Giant Data Center Bet

By Martin Peers · Oct 15, 2024 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Big tech companies don’t report September-quarter earnings until the end of this month. But you don’t have to wait until then to get an update on the artificial intelligence data center gold rush that’s now underway. Instead, just tune in to Blackstone’s earnings call on Thursday.The giant investment firm has emerged as one of the big global... Big tech companies don’t report September-quarter earnings until the end of this month. But you...

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Five Red Flags Hanging Over Venture Capital

By Kate Clark · Oct 15, 2024 3:20pm PDT · 2 comments

Photo via Adobe

Five Red Flags Hanging Over Venture Capital

By Kate Clark · Oct 15, 2024 3:20pm PDT · 2 comments

The artificial intelligence boom has provided a nice distraction from the reality of the venture capital industry, where cracks beneath the surface continue to grow. The latest edition of PitchBook’s quarterly report on the venture business paints a concerning portrait and offers a bleak projection: “the dam created by the headwinds of high... The artificial intelligence boom has provided a nice distraction from the reality of the venture...

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Creator Economy

Twitch Taps Amazon Exec to Boost Ad Business

By Theo Wayt and Kaya Yurieff · Oct 15, 2024 2:45pm PDT

Amazon is bringing in a new leader to Twitch to boost its advertising business, deepening the ties between the livestreaming service and its powerful parent. In a reorganization of Twitch’s ad business, Amazon is forming a new ad sales and product group for Twitch under the leadership of executive Viral Thacker. Thacker’s team will work “... Amazon is bringing in a new leader to Twitch to boost its advertising business, deepening the...

Subscriber Survey

Don’t Break Up Google, The Information Readers Say

By Scott Thurm · Oct 15, 2024 12:09pm PDT

Google should not be forced to sell or spin off parts of its business, even though a judge found the company has violated antitrust laws, most respondents to a survey by The Information said. A majority of survey respondents also said they don’t think breaking up Google is realistic and a plurality said it would hurt rather than help the... Google should not be forced to sell or spin off parts of its business, even though a judge found...

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OpenAI’s Charity Could Soon Be Worth $40 Billion

By Rocket Drew · Oct 15, 2024 7:00am PDT

Score one for OpenAI? Before we get to today’s column, we should flag Aaron’s scoop yesterday about OpenAI hiring one of Microsoft’s most prominent artificial intelligence researchers. It must be a welcome relief for OpenAI to be on the receiving end of such a move for a change.Onto today’s issue…Between headlines about OpenAI’s... Score one for OpenAI? Before we get to today’s column, we should flag Aaron’s scoop...

Art by Clark Miller.

Compliance Pros in Hot Demand as Crypto and Fintech Firms Staff Up

By Yueqi Yang · Oct 15, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller.

Compliance Pros in Hot Demand as Crypto and Fintech Firms Staff Up

By Yueqi Yang · Oct 15, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

For years, many crypto and fintech startups viewed hiring staffers to ensure their businesses followed the rules as an afterthought. Hires to oversee compliance with financial regulations aren’t a flashy sign of growth like software engineers or big-name product hires. Now, compliance staffing has become top of mind for these companies,... For years, many crypto and fintech startups viewed hiring staffers to ensure their businesses...

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Netflix’s Earnings Will Test Pricey Stock

By Martin Peers · Oct 14, 2024 5:00pm PDT

It may feel like we’ve just finished earnings season—but hey, time flies when you’re having fun. Yes, earnings are upon us again. Netflix, as always, kicks off tech’s roster of quarterly reports on Thursday. And there are a bunch of recent buyers of Netflix stock who have much riding on what the streaming giant reports.Netflix stock has hit new... It may feel like we’ve just finished earnings season—but hey, time flies when you’re having fun....

Mira Murati, former CTO of OpenAI. Photo via Getty.

OpenAI’s Newest Possible Threat: Ex-CTO Murati; Google’s Mini-ChatGPT Moment

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Erin Woo · Oct 14, 2024 8:00am PDT

When it comes to recruiting and retaining artificial intelligence researchers, OpenAI has faced tougher competition this year from old and new rivals. Now it’s facing pressure from a very recent former employee: ex-chief technology officer Mira Murati.Murati, whose last day was Friday, October 4 and now is as an advisor to the company, has been... When it comes to recruiting and retaining artificial intelligence researchers, OpenAI has faced...

Hannah McClellan, VP of Operations and Amazon Pharmacy, speaks at Amazon's Delivering the Future conference in Nashville last week. Photo via Getty.

Amazon Looks to Streamline Its Mishmash of Grocery and Pharmacy Brands

By Theo Wayt · Oct 14, 2024 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

After a decade of acquisitions and internal product launches in groceries and pharmacy delivery, Amazon is taking steps to streamline the mishmash of services it now operates and reinvigorate growth in both markets. For instance, Amazon has begun to unify its two online pharmacy operations, which consist of PillPack, a service Amazon bought for... After a decade of acquisitions and internal product launches in groceries and pharmacy delivery,...

Photo Credit: Erin Beach

WTF Summit Recap: Jessica Lessin’s Fireside Chat With Amazon’s Colleen Aubrey

By The Information Partnerships · Oct 13, 2024 1:54pm PDT

Photo Credit: Erin Beach

Partner Content

WTF Summit Recap: Jessica Lessin’s Fireside Chat With Amazon’s Colleen Aubrey

By The Information Partnerships · Oct 13, 2024 1:54pm PDT

As the artificial intelligence hype cycle wanes, business leaders are pushing to move beyond experimental approaches and find applications that yield tangible value for their business. But with an emerging technology like AI, it can be difficult to distinguish between groundbreaking new use cases and short-lived fads. For Colleen Aubrey,... As the artificial intelligence hype cycle wanes, business leaders are pushing to move beyond...

Photo Credit: Erin Beach

Partner Content

WTF Summit Recap: Insights From Leaders in Connected Experiences

By The Information Partnerships · Oct 13, 2024 1:52pm PDT

Smart devices and connected apps are a part of daily life for many people—sharing our location, keeping an eye on our homes, and even monitoring our sleep cycles and heart rates. This ecosystem of connected experiences offers new conveniences and insights, but it also raises critical questions about information overload, data privacy, and... Smart devices and connected apps are a part of daily life for many people—sharing our...

Photo by Erin Beach.

Partner Content

WTF Summit Recap: Jessica Lessin’s Fireside Chat With Amazon’s Beth Galetti

By The Information Partnerships · Oct 12, 2024 7:52am PDT

When Beth Galetti, Amazon’s senior vice president of people, experience and technology, joined the company in 2013, it employed around 100,000 people—a number that has since exploded to 1.5 million. The responsibility of overseeing one of the world’s largest workforces requires Amazon to balance two crucial outcomes:... When Beth Galetti, Amazon’s senior vice president of people, experience and technology,...

Who Will Save the Kids From Bad Tech?

Who Will Save the Kids From Bad Tech?

By Abram Brown · Oct 12, 2024 7:00am PDT

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Ben Horowitz, an investor of many contrasts • Social Media: The moms at war with social media• The Top 5: Our favorite protein bars • From AI to Chelsea Clinton’s Plea, Inside The Information’s Latest WTF Summit • Plus: SF’s nerd mecca; the videogame company obsessed... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Ben Horowitz, an investor of many...

Art by Clark Miller

There’s an Arms Race for the Next Million-Dollar Protein Bar

By Ashwin Rodrigues · Oct 12, 2024 5:38am PDT · 3 comments

Art by Clark Miller

There’s an Arms Race for the Next Million-Dollar Protein Bar

By Ashwin Rodrigues · Oct 12, 2024 5:38am PDT · 3 comments

The macro of the moment is protein, and it’s not much of a competition. Everyone is paying attention to their protein intake for one reason or another: The longevity movement’s practitioners are focusing on it for strength training. Anyone on a GLP-1 has likely gotten a doctor’s lecture on getting the right amount of protein.... The macro of the moment is protein, and it’s not much of a competition. Everyone is paying...