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

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew photographed in the company's Washington, D.C. office. Photo by Getty.

TikTok’s Plan to Stay in the U.S. Could Pose a Threat—to U.S. Tech Companies

By Matt Perault · Mar 9, 2023 9:00am PST · 8 comments

In a bid to avoid a U.S. ban, TikTok is embarking on a project to restructure its product and operations in the country. It plans to store local citizen data on local servers, create a domestic entity to house that data, comply with local legal and law enforcement requests for data, limit the flow of data across national borders—and spend... In a bid to avoid a U.S. ban, TikTok is embarking on a project to restructure its product and...

Greg Brockman. Photo by Getty

Q&A

OpenAI President on Musk Criticism: ‘We Made a Mistake’

By Jon Victor and Kevin McLaughlin · Mar 9, 2023 6:00am PST · 4 comments

Elon Musk fanned a growing culture war in artificial intelligence by confirming last week that he plans to develop an “anti-woke” alternative to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, as The Information first reported. Musk and other critics have a point, said Greg Brockman, OpenAI’s co-founder and president. In an interview, he said the... Elon Musk fanned a growing culture war in artificial intelligence by confirming last week that he...

Tonopah Flats, NV, where American Battery Technology is mining lithium from claystone. Photo: Courtesy American Battery Technology Co.

The Electric: A Big New U.S. Source of Lithium? Maybe.

By Steve LeVine · Mar 9, 2023 4:30am PST

A new report claims that Nevada land leased by lithium developer American Battery Technology Co. could contain the largest lithium deposit in the U.S., enough to equip 1.5 million electric vehicle batteries a year. The claim carries two big caveats: American Battery must do more work to confirm the size of the deposit, and it must perfect a... A new report claims that Nevada land leased by lithium developer American Battery Technology Co....

Photo by Bloomberg

To Prove Efficiency, Zuckerberg Should Reverse Name Change

By Martin Peers · Mar 8, 2023 5:00pm PST · 2 comments

Photo by Bloomberg

To Prove Efficiency, Zuckerberg Should Reverse Name Change

By Martin Peers · Mar 8, 2023 5:00pm PST · 2 comments

Here’s an idea for Meta Platforms as we wait for the company to unveil another round of layoffs: Mark Zuckerberg should reverse his decision to change the name of the company to Meta. That label might have made sense (at least to him) back at the height of the boom times, in the fall of 2021, when his focus was all metaverse, all the time. The... Here’s an idea for Meta Platforms as we wait for the company to unveil another round of layoffs:...

Julie McNamara, Spotify’s head of global podcast studios, oversees originals and exclusives. Photo: Spotify

Creator Economy

Spotify Redoubles Podcast Efforts

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 8, 2023 2:59pm PST

Over the past two years, Spotify became known for pricey, exclusive deals with popular podcasters, including Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper and Emma Chamberlain. But the audio streaming company also wants to help a broader swath of podcasters, an effort that was center stage at Spotify’s annual Stream On event in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Spotify... Over the past two years, Spotify became known for pricey, exclusive deals with popular...

Dario Amodei, CEO and co-founder of Anthropic. Photo: YouTube/Centre for Effective Altruism.

OpenAI Rival Anthropic Raises Funding at $4.1 Billion Valuation

By Kate Clark · Mar 8, 2023 1:37pm PST

Spark Capital is leading a $300 million investment in artificial intelligence startup Anthropic, one of the primary startup challengers to OpenAI, at a pre-investment valuation of $4.1 billion, according to two people familiar with the matter. The deal follows a $400 million investment in the startup by Google, one of the people said. ... Spark Capital is leading a $300 million investment in artificial intelligence startup Anthropic,...

Silvergate Bank's offices in La Jolla, Calif. Photo by Bloomberg.

VCs Step in as Silvergate Woes Send Crypto Startups Scrambling

By Aidan Ryan · Mar 8, 2023 1:00pm PST · 2 comments

Is crypto about to be unbankable? Crypto-friendly bank Silvergate is teetering, saying last week it could be left “less than well capitalized” after a run on deposits and shutting off its Silvergate Exchange Network payments system for crypto companies and big traders. The bank had been suffering from significant withdrawals following the... Is crypto about to be unbankable? Crypto-friendly bank Silvergate is teetering, saying last...

Vishal Garg, CEO of Better.com. Photo by Better.com.

Better.com CEO Doesn’t Rule Out More Layoffs or a Down Round

By Theo Wayt · Mar 8, 2023 11:18am PST · 1 comment

Vishal Garg, CEO of Better.com. Photo by Better.com.

Better.com CEO Doesn’t Rule Out More Layoffs or a Down Round

By Theo Wayt · Mar 8, 2023 11:18am PST · 1 comment

Better.com is staring into the abyss. The SoftBank-backed mortgage lender is fighting to survive amid high interest rates that have crushed its core refinancing business. In an interview with The Information, its founder and CEO—who went viral in late 2021 when he sacked 900 employees on a Zoom call—didn’t rule out further... Better.com is staring into the abyss. The SoftBank-backed mortgage lender is fighting to survive...

LinkedIn's San Francisco office lobby. Photo by LinkedIn.

LinkedIn Faces Growing Complaints From Recruiters Over Rising Prices

By Mark Matousek · Mar 8, 2023 6:00am PST · 6 comments

A core pillar of LinkedIn’s revenue growth in recent years, its recruiting services business, is under pressure as customers rebel against the company’s prices. LinkedIn has hiked the fees it charges for recruiter subscriptions so much that in recent months, as companies have slowed hiring, some tech firms and specialist recruiting... A core pillar of LinkedIn’s revenue growth in recent years, its recruiting services...

Photo by Getty Images

Can CEOs Please Stop Acting like Jerks?

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 7, 2023 5:00pm PST · 5 comments

Twitter CEO Elon Musk was speaking at a Morgan Stanley conference around the corner from our office in San Francisco today. You can’t have a conversation in Silicon Valley these days without him coming up. It’s not just that tech people love to talk about Twitter (and they do). It’s also that they love to talk about CEOs and their styles and... Twitter CEO Elon Musk was speaking at a Morgan Stanley conference around the corner from our...

Photo: Shutterstock/Shane Burke

Creator Economy

TikTok Asks Creators to Help Win Over Lawmakers

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 7, 2023 3:04pm PST

TikTok sent a message to some creators this week inviting them to join top company executives in Washington D.C. in late March as the ByteDance-owned company continues to fight calls for a ban of the app in the U.S.The trip would include “standing side by side with creators and the TikTok team at the U.S. Capital” to show TikTok’s positive... TikTok sent a message to some creators this week inviting them to join top company executives in...

Photo by Bloomberg.

Crypto Startups Scramble to Find Banks After Silvergate Meltdown

By Aidan Ryan, Akash Pasricha and Michael Roddan · Mar 7, 2023 2:39pm PST

Photo by Bloomberg.

Crypto Startups Scramble to Find Banks After Silvergate Meltdown

By Aidan Ryan, Akash Pasricha and Michael Roddan · Mar 7, 2023 2:39pm PST

Crypto companies need banks to operate—but finding one is getting a lot harder. During the crypto boom of recent years, a number of small banks looked past potential risks to embrace the fast-growing crypto industry. Now, following the implosion of FTX, top crypto-friendly bank Silvergate Bank is struggling to stay afloat and Signature... Crypto companies need banks to operate—but finding one is getting a lot harder. During the...

Art by Clark Miller.

Terms of Service Have Gotten Out of Control

By David Hoffman · Mar 7, 2023 9:00am PST · 11 comments

Over a decade ago, journalist Eric Felten claimed that “most of us make more legal agreements in a year than our grandparents made in a lifetime.” The same statement—if we equate “legal agreements” with “written contracts”—would be true today only if you changed “in a year” to... Over a decade ago, journalist Eric Felten claimed that “most of us make more legal...

Navan CEO Ariel Cohen. Photo via Navan.

No ‘Sugarcoating’: Travel Startup Navan’s Turbulent Ride Toward an IPO

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 7, 2023 6:01am PST · 1 comment

Ariel Cohen took the stage sipping champagne before 9 a.m. in front of more than 3,000 of his employees last month. Dozens of his travel software company’s workers, wearing purple pajamas, had just slept at the firm’s Palo Alto office. Another executive urged employees to get up and dance. They were celebrating a rebrand of the... Ariel Cohen took the stage sipping champagne before 9 a.m. in front of more than 3,000 of his...

Photo by Bloomberg

Apple and Samsung’s Teamwork

By Martin Peers · Mar 6, 2023 5:00pm PST

Comedian Louis C.K. had a smart observation a few years ago about how quickly people become blasé about the wonders of modern life, such as plane flight. His commentary came to mind after I read my colleague Wayne Ma’s story this morning about Apple’s rocky business marriage with Samsung. Among other things, the story describes how hard it is to... Comedian Louis C.K. had a smart observation a few years ago about how quickly people become blasé...

Travel creator Tanyka Renee Henry. Photo by Yanic Barrett

The Travel Creator Using Jasper AI as a Muse

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 6, 2023 2:00pm PST

Travel creator Tanyka Renee Henry. Photo by Yanic Barrett

Creator Economy

The Travel Creator Using Jasper AI as a Muse

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 6, 2023 2:00pm PST

When travel creator Tanyka Renee Henry is stuck on an idea, she sometimes turns to a virtual source of help: Jasper AI, an artificial intelligence-powered copywriter. Henry, who has 320,000 Instagram followers, says she uses Jasper to help her come up with written material for social media captions, business pitches, or the newsletter she... When travel creator Tanyka Renee Henry is stuck on an idea, she sometimes turns to a virtual...

Art by Clark Miller

How Apple’s Need for Cutting Edge Screens Kept Tech’s Unhappiest Marriage Alive

By Wayne Ma · Mar 6, 2023 6:00am PST · 2 comments

There are complicated relationships in the tech industry. And then there is the rocky marriage between Apple and Samsung Electronics. While Apple has long depended on the Korean electronics giant to supply key parts for the iPhone, it has also waged a long-running court battle against Samsung, accusing it of ripping off Apple patents in its own... There are complicated relationships in the tech industry. And then there is the rocky marriage...

Last month, Ford CEO Jim Farley describes the company's new battery-building association with Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd, China's largest battery manufacturer. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty

The Electric: How States And Companies Are Frustrating Efforts to Create a China-Free U.S. Battery Industry

By Steve LeVine · Mar 5, 2023 2:00pm PST

Over the last five months, Joshua Hundt and his Michigan negotiating team have outcompeted a dozen U.S. states to land two multibillion-dollar battery factories. But there’s a catch: Both plants involve Chinese companies, clashing with a new U.S. law that aims to exclude them from the U.S. battery industry. Hundt, chief projects officer for... Over the last five months, Joshua Hundt and his Michigan negotiating team have outcompeted a...

It's Wunderkind Week

It's Wunderkind Week

By Jon Steinberg · Mar 4, 2023 7:00am PST

Hi, welcome to your Weekend!Ever since Covid lockdowns began three years ago, young people have seemed a bit adrift. I see it at home with my two daughters, 13 and 11, who still can’t break some of the annoying screen habits they formed during the pandemic. I see it with their public school peers in San Francisco, many of whom are still climbing... Hi, welcome to your Weekend!Ever since Covid lockdowns began three years ago, young people have...

Elon Musk. Photo by Getty.

Musk Delayed Paying Twitter’s Amazon Cloud Bill, Sparking Ad Threat

By Erin Woo · Mar 3, 2023 4:06pm PST

Elon Musk. Photo by Getty.

Musk Delayed Paying Twitter’s Amazon Cloud Bill, Sparking Ad Threat

By Erin Woo · Mar 3, 2023 4:06pm PST

Elon Musk is running into an obstacle in his relentless drive to cut costs at Twitter: some of the same vendors that Twitter is squeezing to save money are also its advertising clients. As recently as last month, Twitter sales and marketing staff were told by their colleagues that Amazon had threatened to withhold payment for advertising it runs... Elon Musk is running into an obstacle in his relentless drive to cut costs at Twitter: some of...