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

A Front-Row Seat at the Sam Bankman-Fried Circus

By Aidan Ryan · Nov 3, 2023 9:00am PDT · 9 comments

Shortly after 1:30 a.m. on Monday morning, while most people were tucked in bed ahead of the new week, I stepped into an Uber outside my apartment in Brooklyn. I was on my way to the Daniel Patrick Moynihan U.S. Courthouse in Manhattan with the hopes of snagging one of the 21 courtroom seats to see Sam Bankman-Fried testify in his own criminal... Shortly after 1:30 a.m. on Monday morning, while most people were tucked in bed ahead of the new...

Art by Shutterstock

Pro Weekly: Behind the Explosion of Generative AI Startups

By Akash Pasricha · Nov 3, 2023 8:00am PDT

Time flies! We launched our Generative AI Database five months ago, and this week we added our 100th (and 101st) companies, with inside reporting about who’s backing each company, how much revenue the company has generated, the machine-learning model it uses and the cloud providers it relies on.The numbers make clear just how much investors are... Time flies! We launched our Generative AI Database five months ago, and this week we added our...

Sam Bankman-Fried Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

SBF Found Guilty on All Counts

By Nick Wingfield · Nov 2, 2023 5:25pm PDT

Hot off the presses: The jury in the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried convicted the FTX founder and former CEO of all seven fraud and conspiracy charges he was facing. The quick verdict—jurors began deliberating Thursday afternoon—felt fitting for a case that federal prosecutors filed less than a year ago. Bankman-Fried now faces a maximum sentence of... Hot off the presses: The jury in the trial of Sam Bankman-Fried convicted the FTX founder and...

X CEO Linda Yaccarino. Photo by Getty

Hashtag Activism Returns to X

By Erin Woo · Nov 2, 2023 5:04pm PDT

X CEO Linda Yaccarino. Photo by Getty

Creator Economy

Hashtag Activism Returns to X

By Erin Woo · Nov 2, 2023 5:04pm PDT

Hashtag activism is back.Dozens of trans users of X have been posting their stories on the app formerly known as Twitter as a way of protesting conservative video maker PragerU, which purchased one of X’s most prominent advertising spots to promote a documentary arguing that gender-affirming care is dangerous for transgender youth. The... Hashtag activism is back.Dozens of trans users of X have been posting their stories on the app...

Palmer Luckey. Photo by Patrick T. Fallon via Getty.

Tension Brews in Defense Tech

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Nov 2, 2023 2:16pm PDT · 3 comments

It’s not every day that you see a company like Anduril, a 2,200-person defense technology company last valued at $8.5 billion, sue a 6-person startup with just $4 million in venture backing. But, as my colleague Margaux and I reported this week, Anduril CEO Palmer Luckey is going after a much smaller upstart founded by his former employees,... It’s not every day that you see a company like Anduril, a 2,200-person defense technology company...

Tom Bernthal and Sheryl Sandberg. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Ex-Meta COO Sandberg Sets Up Venture Investment Firm with Husband

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Natasha Mascarenhas · Nov 2, 2023 12:43pm PDT · 2 comments

Sheryl Sandberg, the longtime former chief operating officer at Meta Platforms, and her husband Tom Bernthal have started an investment firm to fund businesses in various sectors, according to a spokesperson for Sandberg. An internationally recognized figure, Sandberg often was the public face of the Facebook parent company before leaving last... Sheryl Sandberg, the longtime former chief operating officer at Meta Platforms, and her husband...

CEO of X Intervened to Get Hitler Post Taken Down

By Kaya Yurieff and Erin Woo · Nov 2, 2023 12:13pm PDT · 6 comments

Last weekend, staffers at X grew increasingly upset after a Pakistani senator posted a photo of Adolf Hitler on the service with the text “at least now the world know, why he did, what he did,” in reference to the Holocaust. Over the course of several hours, the post drew about a million views, as well as complaints from several... Last weekend, staffers at X grew increasingly upset after a Pakistani senator posted a photo of...

Chart by Shane Burke.

What it Takes to Make Open-Source AI Cheaper Than OpenAI; Microsoft Goes Multimodal

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Nov 2, 2023 7:15am PDT · 3 comments

Chart by Shane Burke.

What it Takes to Make Open-Source AI Cheaper Than OpenAI; Microsoft Goes Multimodal

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Nov 2, 2023 7:15am PDT · 3 comments

When Meta Platforms’ released its open-source Llama models earlier this year, the tech giant was praised for giving developers a free alternative to the expensive, bleeding-edge large-language models offered by proprietary LLM developers such as OpenAI. Turns out it’s not so simple.In many cases, using open-source LLMs can actually be more... When Meta Platforms’ released its open-source Llama models earlier this year, the tech giant was...

The People Running Innovative Battery Maker SES AI

By Steve LeVine · Nov 2, 2023 7:00am PDT

Last year, Kang Xu, a top U.S. expert on battery electrolytes, noticed a stark change in how U.S. passport authorities were treating him when he returned from trips abroad. Born in China, Xu is a naturalized U.S. citizen, earned his doctorate in chemistry at Arizona State University, worked for 26 years—his entire career—as a... Last year, Kang Xu, a top U.S. expert on battery electrolytes, noticed a stark change in how U.S....

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, left, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photos by Getty

Meta’s Free AI Isn’t Cheap to Use, Companies Say

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Nov 2, 2023 6:00am PDT · 5 comments

Some companies that pay for OpenAI’s artificial intelligence have been looking to cut costs with free, open-source alternatives. But these AI customers are realizing that oftentimes open-source tech can actually be more expensive than buying from OpenAI. Take Andreas Homer and Ebby Amir, co-founders of Cypher, an app that helps people... Some companies that pay for OpenAI’s artificial intelligence have been looking to cut costs...

UAW President Shawn Fain. Photo: John J. Kim/Tribune News Service/Getty

The Electric: The Labor Fight Moves to Nonunion Plants

By Steve LeVine · Nov 2, 2023 4:30am PDT

Moving fast with a pay bump for its U.S. employees and a new $8 billion investment in batteries, Toyota has offered a sign of how the next stage of the fight over auto industry pay and job security will play out: with a fierce struggle in dozens of nonunion electric vehicle and battery plants across the U.S. Moving fast with a pay bump for its U.S. employees and a new $8 billion investment in batteries,...

Photo via Shutterstock

Instacart’s Delicious Little Secret

By Cory Weinberg · Nov 1, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Photo via Shutterstock

Instacart’s Delicious Little Secret

By Cory Weinberg · Nov 1, 2023 5:00pm PDT

You won’t find this nugget in Instacart’s IPO filing, nor is it likely to be noted on the company’s first-ever earnings call next week. Even most employees don’t know about it. But I found out recently that Publix—one of the largest grocery chains in the U.S. and a key Instacart customer—wrote a significant check in Instacart’s Series D... You won’t find this nugget in Instacart’s IPO filing, nor is it likely to be noted on the company...

CocoMelon. Photo via YouTube

Creator Economy

Are Creator Startups Ripe For Rollups?

By Kaya Yurieff · Nov 1, 2023 2:33pm PDT

As more creator economy startups find buyers, I’ve been hearing talk about the possibility of rollups: one firm buying several similar businesses and combining them, saving on back-office costs while expanding their markets. So far, there’s more talk than action. The private equity firms who typically back such deals have made limited... As more creator economy startups find buyers, I’ve been hearing talk about the possibility of...

Photo by Harry Murphy via Getty.

Flexport Buys Shuttered Trucking Startup Convoy’s Technology

By Theo Wayt, Ann Gehan and Maria Heeter · Nov 1, 2023 12:25pm PDT · 1 comment

Flexport has reached a deal to buy the technology of shuttered trucking startup Convoy, as Flexport doubles down on its U.S. trucking ambitions even as it grapples with its own business slump. Convoy, once valued at $3.8 billion, shut down in October after failing to find a buyer or raise fresh capital. Convoy CEO Dan Lewis will join... Flexport has reached a deal to buy the technology of shuttered trucking startup Convoy, as...

Oculus founder Palmer Luckey speaks in Laguna Beach, Calif. on October 16, 2023.

Anduril’s Luckey Warns of ‘No Mercy’ After Suing Startup Launched by Alums

By Margaux MacColl and Natasha Mascarenhas · Nov 1, 2023 11:37am PDT · 2 comments

Anduril founder Palmer Luckey issued a warning to his staff last month: If he believes current or former employees are stealing confidential information from the nearly 2,200-worker defense tech startup, he will “show no mercy.” Luckey sent the Slack message, a screenshot of which The Information viewed, after the $8.5... Anduril founder Palmer Luckey issued a warning to his staff last month: If he believes current or...

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is cross examined by U.S. Assistant Attorney Danielle Sassoon while Judge Lewis Kaplan listens in Manhattan federal court, on Oct. 30. Members of the jury are seated at right. Courtroom sketch via AP.

The Evidence Jurors Will Consider to Decide SBF’s Fate

By Aidan Ryan · Nov 1, 2023 9:00am PDT

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is cross examined by U.S. Assistant Attorney Danielle Sassoon while Judge Lewis Kaplan listens in Manhattan federal court, on Oct. 30. Members of the jury are seated at right. Courtroom sketch via AP.

The Evidence Jurors Will Consider to Decide SBF’s Fate

By Aidan Ryan · Nov 1, 2023 9:00am PDT

The fall of FTX to the closing days of Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial moved at breakneck speed, as my colleague Martin Peers wrote on Tuesday. Exactly a year ago on Wednesday, the public still did not know the details of the leaked Alameda Research balance sheet that kick-started FTX’s demise. The trial moved at a brisk pace too. Just... The fall of FTX to the closing days of Sam Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial moved at breakneck...

David Bennett, chief customer officer at Tenstorrent. Photo courtesy of Tenstorrent.

An AI Chip Armageddon is Coming; Biden Punts on Open-Source LLMs

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Nov 1, 2023 7:40am PDT

When I asked David Bennett, the chief customer officer of AI hardware developer Tenstorrent, about the future of startups like his, he was blunt: Most will go out of business.To survive, he recommends startups remain flexible and avoid boxing themselves into any narrow use case. Bennett isn’t referring to some niche market, but rather, a... When I asked David Bennett, the chief customer officer of AI hardware developer Tenstorrent,...

Photo by Getty.

Inside TikTok’s Livestream Expansion: Tipping Contests, Creator Support

By Erin Woo · Nov 1, 2023 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

A young man with a shaved head and leather jacket bounces up and down in New York’s Union Square, chanting “TGIF” as viewers send him a stream of tips costing a few cents each. For more than an hour, he reacts to each tip as it comes in, shouting about a “glizzy” when a viewer sends him a hot dog, bobbing endlessly... A young man with a shaved head and leather jacket bounces up and down in New York’s Union...

Sam Bankman-Fried. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

Why SBF’s Case Moved So Fast

By Martin Peers · Oct 31, 2023 5:00pm PDT

The wheels of justice can turn quickly when conditions are right. Today the defense rested in the fraud trial of Sam Bankman-Fried. Closing arguments are scheduled for tomorrow, which means this case could go to the jury on Thursday. It’s possible, then, that we’ll have a verdict that same day. That would be one year exactly since crypto... The wheels of justice can turn quickly when conditions are right. Today the defense rested in the...

Sam Bankman-Fried on January 3. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

SBF Shifts Blame to His Inner Circle

By Aidan Ryan · Oct 31, 2023 2:06pm PDT · 5 comments

Sam Bankman-Fried on January 3. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty.

SBF Shifts Blame to His Inner Circle

By Aidan Ryan · Oct 31, 2023 2:06pm PDT · 5 comments

Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried wrapped up testimony in his criminal case on Tuesday, capping off four days on the stand by downplaying his role in the misuse of billions in customer funds. In his testimony, Bankman-Fried emphasized his hands-off management style and at times deflected blame to other former executives at his crypto firms. His... Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried wrapped up testimony in his criminal case on Tuesday, capping...