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

Five times/week

The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica 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.

By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy

Recent Editions

The Ultium Cells plant near Lordstown, Ohio. Photo: Courtesy Ultium

The Electric: Union Negotiations for a U.S. Battery Plant Are Likely to Take a Year

By Steve LeVine · Jun 22, 2023 5:30am PDT

The United Auto Workers’ contract talks with Ultium Cells, General Motors’ joint venture for electric vehicle batteries, could take as long as a year as the union also attempts to hammer out a new national four-year agreement with the big three U.S. automakers, according to a union official.Six months after workers at the Ultium plant in... The United Auto Workers’ contract talks with Ultium Cells, General Motors’ joint venture for...

Photo by Getty.

What the FTC Misses With Amazon Lawsuit

By Martin Peers · Jun 21, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

In its war on big tech, the Federal Trade Commission has opened a new front. In a lawsuit filed against Amazon today, the FTC accused the e-commerce giant of duping millions of consumers into “unknowingly” enrolling in its Amazon Prime service and then making it really difficult for them to cancel. So this is what Amazon founder Jeff Bezos meant... In its war on big tech, the Federal Trade Commission has opened a new front. In a lawsuit filed...

From left: Bret Taylor, Peter Fenton and Clay Bavor. Photo: Getty

Ex-Salesforce Chief Bret Taylor’s AI Startup Raises Money From Sequoia, Benchmark

By Kate Clark · Jun 21, 2023 4:02pm PDT · 5 comments

Benchmark has led the first round of funding for a three-month-old artificial intelligence startup founded by former Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor and ex-Google executive Clay Bavor at a valuation of over $100 million, according to a person with direct knowledge of the deal. Taylor and Bavor’s company raised at least $20 million in the... Benchmark has led the first round of funding for a three-month-old artificial intelligence...

David Dobrik. Photo by Cibelle Levi.

Why David Dobrik Is Going All in on Snapchat and Pizza

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2023 2:00pm PDT · 1 comment

David Dobrik. Photo by Cibelle Levi.

Creator Economy

Why David Dobrik Is Going All in on Snapchat and Pizza

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2023 2:00pm PDT · 1 comment

David Dobrik first gained fame as an online influencer when he was a teen on the six-second video app Vine, then as a vlogger through his self-named YouTube channels. But in the past 18 months, he’s quietly become one of the top creators on Snapchat, where he posts 80 to 100 times a day and has 7.4 million subscribers. It’s a sign of how Snap... David Dobrik first gained fame as an online influencer when he was a teen on the six-second video...

Art by Clark Miller.

Artificial Intelligence’s Glass Ceiling

By David Magerman · Jun 21, 2023 10:57am PDT · 9 comments

OpenAI’s stated goal is to develop and promote a software system capable of artificial general intelligence. Toward that end, the company has released systems based on large-language models, which can respond to prompts with fluent conversation on many subjects. ChatGPT, Microsoft’s Bing chatbot and other new systems based on... OpenAI’s stated goal is to develop and promote a software system capable of artificial...

Brian Shroder, CEO of Binance.US. Photo via Getty.

SEC Case Hamstrings Binance.US

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 21, 2023 9:00am PDT

What does the future of Binance.US look like? The crypto exchange, founded as a U.S. offshoot of Binance in 2019, is in a precarious situation after the Securities and Exchange Commission sued both exchanges and their founder, Changpeng Zhao, for securities violations earlier this month. The allegations included that Binance and Zhao commingled... What does the future of Binance.US look like? The crypto exchange, founded as a U.S. offshoot of...

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Getty

What Apple Didn’t Reveal About the Vision Pro

By Wayne Ma · Jun 21, 2023 6:00am PDT · 18 comments

If you want a sense of what you might be able to do with Apple’s new Vision Pro mixed-reality headset in the future, consider this. Apple left a lot of bold new features it had been developing for the headset on the cutting-room floor—at least for now. Those include plans for fitness experiences, ambitious tools to help developers... If you want a sense of what you might be able to do with Apple’s new Vision Pro...

The Alibaba offices in Beijing. Photo by Bloomberg.

Investors Miss The Big Picture On Alibaba Shakeup

By Martin Peers · Jun 20, 2023 5:00pm PDT

The Alibaba offices in Beijing. Photo by Bloomberg.

Investors Miss The Big Picture On Alibaba Shakeup

By Martin Peers · Jun 20, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Talk about falling out of favor. Alibaba’s news today that its chair and CEO Daniel Zhang would step down so he can focus on the spinoff of Alibaba’s cloud unit—which he will continue to run—sent the company’s shares down 4.5%. That makes little sense on a number of levels. For one thing, as we wrote last year, there have long been questions... Talk about falling out of favor. Alibaba’s news today that its chair and CEO Daniel Zhang would...

Chart by Shane Burke

Creator Economy

The Creator Economy Database Goes Global; Trevor Noah’s Take on Podcasts

By Isabelle Sarraf · Jun 20, 2023 3:18pm PDT

Our latest update to the Creator Economy Database comes with a major overhaul of the data we report for startups based outside the U.S. For the first time, we’ve included detailed information about the funding rounds and lead investors for private creator companies headquartered outside of the U.S. Here’s what we found:• Singapore-based BandLab,... Our latest update to the Creator Economy Database comes with a major overhaul of the data we...

Nat Friedman, left, and Daniel Gross. Photos by Microsoft and Getty

Billion-Dollar AI Venture Fund Offers Elusive Nvidia Chips to Win Deals

By Kate Clark · Jun 20, 2023 2:19pm PDT

Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross, a pair of founders turned startup investors, set the venture capital world abuzz last week by announcing a novel tactic to win over founders: offering them access to a huge number of free servers equipped with the most advanced chips for training machine-learning models. It turns out the duo also quietly raised an... Nat Friedman and Daniel Gross, a pair of founders turned startup investors, set the venture...

Left to right: musicians thekid.ACE, PinkPantheress, beabadoobee and Tokimonsta. Art by Shane Burke.

Creator Economy Database

Creator Startup Funding Breaks Quarterly U.S. Losing Streak

By Isabelle Sarraf and Kalley Huang · Jun 20, 2023 10:41am PDT

It’s still incredibly hard to raise venture capital as the founder of a creator economy startup—unless you’re offering services for independent musicians. Creator economy startups in the U.S. raised $151.5 million in venture funding in the second quarter of this year so far, down 82% year over year, according to an update from... It’s still incredibly hard to raise venture capital as the founder of a creator economy...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

OpenAI Considers Creating an App Store for AI Software

By Aaron Holmes and Jon Victor · Jun 20, 2023 6:00am PDT · 11 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photo by Getty

OpenAI Considers Creating an App Store for AI Software

By Aaron Holmes and Jon Victor · Jun 20, 2023 6:00am PDT · 11 comments

OpenAI—an early mover in releasing chatbots powered by large-language models—is contemplating another initiative to extend its influence in the world of artificial intelligence. The company is considering launching a marketplace in which customers could sell AI models they customize for their own needs to other businesses, according... OpenAI—an early mover in releasing chatbots powered by large-language models—is...

Kate Jhaveri, global head of marketing for TikTok, speaks in Cannes Monday. Photo by Getty.

Creator Economy

TikTok and Cost Cuts at Cannes

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 19, 2023 8:24am PDT

I’m at the bustling Cannes Lions advertising festival in the south of France, where the sun is strong and the rosé is flowing. The mood feels buoyant, even as the advertising world has pulled back on spending and tech companies reel from bruising mass layoffs. Some attendees are sharing Airbnbs with colleagues or staying far from the venue... I’m at the bustling Cannes Lions advertising festival in the south of France, where the sun is...

Inside the CEO Switch at Twitch

Inside the CEO Switch at Twitch

By Jon Steinberg · Jun 17, 2023 6:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend.On Wednesday night, while editing Annie’s thoroughly delightful cover story on new Twitch CEO Dan Clancy, I hopped over to Clancy’s Twitch page, just to see if he was livestreaming. To my surprise and delight, he was.Almost two hours into a four-and-a-half hour jam session and open-mic night, the CEO sat facing... Hi, welcome to your Weekend.On Wednesday night, while editing Annie’s thoroughly delightful cover...

Art by Clark Miller

Market Research

The Electric Vehicle Newbie’s Guide to Summer Road Tripping

By Tim Stevens · Jun 17, 2023 6:00am PDT · 6 comments

Road trip season is upon us, and with electric vehicle sales up almost 50% so far in 2023, there’s a good chance that wherever you’re going, you won’t need gasoline. But you will need to recharge, and that’s where things can get complicated. I have been testing EVs for well over a decade and have driven thousands of miles... Road trip season is upon us, and with electric vehicle sales up almost 50% so far in 2023,...

Tiger Global management partners Chase Coleman, left, and Scott Shleifer

Tiger Global Raises $2.7 Billion, 55% Less Than Target Set Last Fall

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jun 16, 2023 3:49pm PDT

Tiger Global management partners Chase Coleman, left, and Scott Shleifer

Tiger Global Raises $2.7 Billion, 55% Less Than Target Set Last Fall

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jun 16, 2023 3:49pm PDT

Tiger Global Management, a New York-based investment firm that became a symbol of the recent startup funding boom and bust, has raised $2.7 billion, according to a pair of securities filings it filed on Friday. Taken together, the capital is 55% less than the $6 billion goal it set for the new fund as of last fall and is 79% less than the... Tiger Global Management, a New York-based investment firm that became a symbol of the recent...

Art by Clark Miller

Jennifer Pahlka Hasn’t Given Up on Fixing the Government

By Nancy Scola · Jun 16, 2023 11:00am PDT · 8 comments

It was in spring 2017 that Jennifer Pahlka, then a member of the Pentagon’s new Defense Innovation Board, found herself in a darkened U.S. military base watching a young analyst study aerial footage of a suspicious car. Well, the analyst was trying to parse the images: The Pentagon was relying on clunky, outdated software to highlight the... It was in spring 2017 that Jennifer Pahlka, then a member of the Pentagon’s new Defense...

CEO Dan Clancy in the livestreaming studio at Twitch's San Francisco headquarters. Photograph by Carolyn Fong for The Information

Twitch’s New CEO Tries to Strike the Right Chords

By Annie Goldsmith · Jun 16, 2023 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

I will start with John Denver,” said Dan Clancy. “There’s one note that’s kind of high, so I mangle it a little. But that’s OK. Part of doing this is being comfortable mangling a note or two.” Clancy, CEO of the $45 billion livestreaming platform Twitch, then launched into an emphatic keyboard rendition of... I will start with John Denver,” said Dan Clancy. “There’s one note that’s...

Pro Weekly: How Investor Sentiment Reacts to the News

Pro Weekly: How Investor Sentiment Reacts to the News

By Kalley Huang · Jun 16, 2023 8:00am PDT

Welcome back!Thursday, we published results from our monthly reader survey. Readers of The Information remain split on their outlook for Silicon Valley, with roughly equal numbers of respondents saying conditions will improve, worsen or stay the same.Respondents last month were more optimistic about most of the 14 companies our survey asks... Welcome back!Thursday, we published results from our monthly reader survey. Readers of The...

Photo by Getty.

How the SEC Could Cripple Crypto Venture Capitalists

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 16, 2023 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Photo by Getty.

How the SEC Could Cripple Crypto Venture Capitalists

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 16, 2023 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s lawsuits against both Coinbase and Binance have sparked an intense debate about its effort to regulate the crypto markets. But another aspect of the SEC’s crackdown has drawn less attention—proposed rules that could make it nearly impossible for some crypto-focused venture capitalists to... The Securities and Exchange Commission’s lawsuits against both Coinbase and Binance have...