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

Renderings by Transparent House, Kennerly Architecture & Planning and Clark Miller; composite art by Miller

California Scheming: Nine Unsolicited Design Ideas for the Secret City of Solano County

By Margaux MacColl · Oct 6, 2023 11:00am PDT · 6 comments

For the last five years, a Silicon Valley supergroup has been plotting a secret city in Solano County, Calif., spending $800 million on 50,000 acres of land. Then, in August, The New York Times broke open the story, and the truth poured out. The project—dubbed “California Forever” and financed by a who’s who of tech... For the last five years, a Silicon Valley supergroup has been plotting a secret city in Solano...

Canva CEO Melanie Perkins: “She has a desire for worldwide domination.” AI generated art by Clark Miller

The Unsinkable Melanie Perkins: After 100 Rejections, the Canva CEO Faces Her Greatest Threat Yet

By Annie Goldsmith · Oct 6, 2023 9:00am PDT · 8 comments

In little more than a decade, the expectations placed on 36-year-old Melanie Perkins have gone from negligible to near impossible. Perkins, CEO and co-founder of Canva, a rapidly-growing graphic design platform and one of tech’s most highly valued private companies, was a complete unknown from Perth, Australia, when she appeared on... In little more than a decade, the expectations placed on 36-year-old Melanie Perkins have gone...

Alexander Kvamme, co-founder and CEO of Pathlight. Photo courtesy of Pathlight.

Pro Weekly: Generative AI Startups Hedge Their Bets

By Akash Pasricha · Oct 6, 2023 8:00am PDT

Our Generative AI database includes 78 companies, more than half of which are developing their own machine-learning models. The others rely on models from OpenAI or rivals such as Anthropic and Cohere. But a growing number of companies in our database use more than one machine-learning provider, including Pathlight, which uses five.San Francisco... Our Generative AI database includes 78 companies, more than half of which are developing their...

Vennette Ho. Photo via Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Meet the Banker at the Center of a Beauty M&A Wave

By Ann Gehan · Oct 6, 2023 6:03am PDT

Vennette Ho. Photo via Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Meet the Banker at the Center of a Beauty M&A Wave

By Ann Gehan · Oct 6, 2023 6:03am PDT

When Ju Rhyu’s Hero Cosmetics, a brand known for its Mighty Patch acne treatments that got its start selling on Amazon, was closing in on $100 million in revenue in mid-2021, she and her co-founders began to think about selling the five-year-old brand to a bigger company. Rhyu and the company’s board began interviewing bankers that... When Ju Rhyu’s Hero Cosmetics, a brand known for its Mighty Patch acne treatments that got...

Photo via Parade.

How Underwear Startup Parade Wiped Out Investors

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Ann Gehan · Oct 6, 2023 5:00am PDT · 7 comments

When lingerie manufacturer Ariela & Associates International announced its purchase of buzzy direct-to-consumer intimates startup Parade in August, the deal appeared to be yet another example of larger holding companies and licensing firms buying up popular digitally native brands. Parade, valued by investors last year at about $200 million,... When lingerie manufacturer Ariela & Associates International announced its purchase of buzzy...

Photo by Brandon Slater via Getty.

Startup Employees Can Exhale, But Not Relax Too Much

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 5, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Maybe, just maybe, startup employees who held onto their jobs amid spurts of mass layoffs over the last year and a half can exhale. They have survived. The number of monthly job cuts at tech companies—just over 4,600—hit an 18-month low in September, according to Layoffs.fyi, the venerable tracker of employee career pain. The recent sprinkling... Maybe, just maybe, startup employees who held onto their jobs amid spurts of mass layoffs over...

Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Flexport Plans to Cut Up to 30% of Workforce

By Theo Wayt · Oct 5, 2023 3:57pm PDT · 10 comments

Logistics startup Flexport plans to lay off up to 30% of its workforce, according to a person close to the company. That would represent about 1,000 people based on a headcount of around 3,300 people. The cuts are the latest and most drastic in a series of cost-cutting moves founder Ryan Petersen has made at the decade-old company since he... Logistics startup Flexport plans to lay off up to 30% of its workforce, according to a person...

Illustration generated in Ideogram

Andreessen Horowitz Discussed Backing a Rival to Midjourney Seeking $500 Million Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Jon Victor · Oct 5, 2023 3:09pm PDT · 3 comments

Illustration generated in Ideogram

Andreessen Horowitz Discussed Backing a Rival to Midjourney Seeking $500 Million Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Jon Victor · Oct 5, 2023 3:09pm PDT · 3 comments

Investment firm Andreessen Horowitz recently discussed leading a new equity financing for Ideogram, a startup that uses artificial intelligence to create unique images, said a person with knowledge of the situation. The Toronto startup, which has been seeking a $500 million pre-money valuation, doesn’t generate revenue. But... Investment firm Andreessen Horowitz recently discussed leading a new equity financing...

Clockwise from top left: Naomi Osaka, Tom Brady, Charli D'Amelio and Snoop Dogg. Photos via YouTube/Meta.

Creator Economy

Meta Is Paying Creators Millions for AI Chatbots

By Sahil Patel · Oct 5, 2023 3:01pm PDT

Meta Platforms’ decision to create artificial intelligence characters based on the likeness of some of the most famous people on the planet is paying off handsomely—for the stars themselves. Last week, the parent of Facebook and Instagram said it was paying stars including Snoop Dogg, Tom Brady, MrBeast and Charli D’Amelio for allowing Meta... Meta Platforms’ decision to create artificial intelligence characters based on the likeness of...

Dario Amodei, CEO and co-founder of Anthropic. Photo by Kimberly White via Getty.

Can AI Save Crypto Investors?

By Kate Clark · Oct 5, 2023 11:46am PDT · 1 comment

The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried is officially underway and the spotlight is back on the bankrupt crypto exchange he founded. Recall that FTX launched a $2 billion venture fund early last year and bought stakes in some of the top crypto companies. When FTX imploded late last year, its decision to play venture capitalist seemed like an... The trial of Sam Bankman-Fried is officially underway and the spotlight is back on the bankrupt...

A prototype of an autonomous vehicle by Glydways at its testing facility in Concord, Calif. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty

Robotaxi Startup Glydways Raises $56 Million, East Bay Project Advances

By Nick Wingfield · Oct 5, 2023 9:41am PDT · 4 comments

A startup seeking to bring robotaxis to dedicated roads surrounding airports and transit hubs is inching closer to realizing its vision. The startup, Glydways, has raised a $56 million Series B fundraising round, including about half of it from convertible debt that the notes holders are converting to equity. New Science Ventures led the round,... A startup seeking to bring robotaxis to dedicated roads surrounding airports and transit hubs is...

Photo by Shutterstock.

Why Do We Need an OpenAI of Europe?

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Oct 5, 2023 7:00am PDT · 4 comments

Photo by Shutterstock.

Why Do We Need an OpenAI of Europe?

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Oct 5, 2023 7:00am PDT · 4 comments

As large-language model developers such as OpenAI, Meta Platforms and Google battle for global supremacy, European LLM providers are trying to carve off that region for themselves. That’s a bad idea.Let’s back up. A number of European Union members have poured resources into promising AI startups. In last Wednesday’s release of Mistral 7B, an... As large-language model developers such as OpenAI, Meta Platforms and Google battle for global...

The Susquehanna Steam Electric Station outside of Berwick, Penn. Photo via Jakec/Wikimedia.

Cloud Providers Eye Nuclear Power as AI Saps Data Centers

By Anissa Gardizy and Maria Heeter · Oct 5, 2023 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

As cloud providers struggle to cope with fast-growing demand for artificial intelligence computing, they may turn to a source of power that has gone largely untapped by the cloud industry: nuclear. What might be the first data center site with direct access to a nuclear power plant, located outside Berwick, Pa., is now on the auction block.... As cloud providers struggle to cope with fast-growing demand for artificial intelligence...

Enovix CEO Raj Talluri. Photo: Courtesy Enovix

The Electric: Enovix Lays Off 185 Employees and Shifts Most of Its Operations to Malaysia

By Steve LeVine · Oct 5, 2023 4:30am PDT

Silicon battery developer Enovix this week laid off 185 engineers and other staff at its Fremont, Calif., factory as it shifted the bulk of its operations to Asia, close to the smartphone manufacturers that it hopes will buy its cells.The moves, announced Tuesday, reflect a reality in the rapidly growing lithium-ion battery industry, which is... Silicon battery developer Enovix this week laid off 185 engineers and other staff at its Fremont,...

Elon Musk. Photo via Shutterstock.

Musk’s Counterproductive Moves

By Martin Peers · Oct 4, 2023 5:01pm PDT · 2 comments

What a time to be a tech business reporter! Even as Sam Bankman-Fried’s fraud trial gets underway, our scoop yesterday about AI startup Anthropic’s rising valuation suggests that the disgraced FTX founder may have scored at least one home run with his Anthropic investment. Yes, that’s right: The fast-evolving story about AI startups has... What a time to be a tech business reporter! Even as Sam Bankman-Fried’s fraud trial gets...

Daniel Roth, LinkedIn editor in chief. Photo: LinkedIn

What LinkedIn’s OpenAI-Powered Assistant Got Right (and Wrong)

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 4, 2023 2:14pm PDT

Daniel Roth, LinkedIn editor in chief. Photo: LinkedIn

Creator Economy

What LinkedIn’s OpenAI-Powered Assistant Got Right (and Wrong)

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 4, 2023 2:14pm PDT

Last week, I was scrolling on LinkedIn when I noticed a new AI-powered assistant the professional social network is testing. The bot reviewed the part of my profile where I list my title and the “about” section, and drafted personalized suggestions “using insights from millions of profiles,” for me to review. It was the first time I had... Last week, I was scrolling on LinkedIn when I noticed a new AI-powered assistant the professional...

Golan. Photo: Courtesy Gil Golan

Exclusive from The Electric: GM’s New CTO Exits After One Month In the Job

By Steve LeVine · Oct 4, 2023 12:15pm PDT · 2 comments

General Motors’ chief technology officer, Gil Golan, is leaving the job after one month, according to an internal company memo distributed today, parts of which were seen by The Electric. Golan’s departure, effective Nov. 1, comes one week after a profile in The Electric in which he described a plan to aggressively expand the company’s work in... General Motors’ chief technology officer, Gil Golan, is leaving the job after one month,...

Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research

SBF’s ‘Good Faith’ Defense

By Aidan Ryan · Oct 4, 2023 12:09pm PDT

Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial kicked off in a Manhattan courtroom on Tuesday with jury selection, followed by opening statements from both the prosecution and the defense earlier today. I went down to check out the action in person on Wednesday, where we got the first in depth look at how Bankman-Fried and his lawyers will defend the... Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial kicked off in a Manhattan courtroom on Tuesday with jury...

Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X. Photo via Getty.

Inside Elon Musk’s Plans for X: Shopping and Sports

By Erin Woo and Sahil Patel · Oct 4, 2023 10:09am PDT

To turn around X, the company formerly known as Twitter, Elon Musk and CEO Linda Yaccarino are betting on shopping and sports. As Musk and Yaccarino try and turn the company around, there are growing signs they want to make X a shopping destination. For instance, X managers are considering ways of using direct messages on the platform to... To turn around X, the company formerly known as Twitter, Elon Musk and CEO Linda Yaccarino are...

Anthropic cofounder and CEO Dario Amodei. Photo by Getty.

Anthropic Makes OpenAI Look Cheap

By Amir Efrati · Oct 4, 2023 7:20am PDT

Anthropic cofounder and CEO Dario Amodei. Photo by Getty.

Anthropic Makes OpenAI Look Cheap

By Amir Efrati · Oct 4, 2023 7:20am PDT

How much should a well-regarded artificial intelligence startup be worth on paper?That’s the question facing scores of sovereign wealth funds, mutual fund firms and other private equity investors looking at two marquee AI opportunities: OpenAI and Anthropic. OpenAI is in the middle of its second employee share sale in the last six months, and if... How much should a well-regarded artificial intelligence startup be worth on paper?That’s the...