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

Photo via Cohesity

In Battle of Ransomware Protectors, One Firm Burns a Lot of Cash, Another Preps an IPO

By Maria Heeter, Anissa Gardizy and Kate Clark · Jun 23, 2023 6:00am PDT

Four years ago, one of the most intense battles in enterprise software was underway between two startups led by former colleagues: Rubrik and Cohesity. They help businesses manage data, and they also market themselves as offering protection against ransomware attacks. At the time, Rubrik was clearly in the lead, but Cohesity was growing faster... Four years ago, one of the most intense battles in enterprise software was underway between two...

Zenia Mucha. Photo by Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Can a Hollywood Operator Help TikTok? That Didn’t Go So Well the First Time

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 22, 2023 5:17pm PDT · 1 comment

“Terrifying.”That was the word from a longtime Hollywood hand when I asked for the person’s reaction to Disney’s former communications czar, Zenia Mucha, joining TikTok to lead brand marketing and communications. For a little context, Mucha is known as one of the toughest and best communications leaders in the land. For two decades, she ran... “Terrifying.”That was the word from a longtime Hollywood hand when I asked for the person’s...

Photo via VidCon

Creator Economy

A TikTok Shake-Up Amid Vidcon Frenzy

By Erin Woo · Jun 22, 2023 4:25pm PDT

It’s Erin Woo, reporting from VidCon in Anaheim, Calif.The convention, which kicked off Wednesday night, has drawn thousands of social media creators, industry executives and fans this year. YouTube is back sponsoring the conference which it has done every year there’s been a VidCon except last year, when TikTok took over as main sponsor. Amjad... It’s Erin Woo, reporting from VidCon in Anaheim, Calif.The convention, which kicked off Wednesday...

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman. Photo by Getty

Reddit Sales Growth Slowdown Preceded Fight Over New API Fees

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 22, 2023 2:26pm PDT

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman. Photo by Getty

Reddit Sales Growth Slowdown Preceded Fight Over New API Fees

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 22, 2023 2:26pm PDT

A stark business reality faced Reddit before a user uprising engulfed its site this month: slowing sales growth. Reddit’s revenue rose 38% in 2022 to about $670 million last year, two people familiar with the matter said, faster than many other internet ad firms but a steep slowdown from the more than doubling of revenue the company... A stark business reality faced Reddit before a user uprising engulfed its site this month:...

Figma CEO Dylan Field. Photo by Bloomberg via Getty

Antitrust Threat to Figma-Adobe Deal Thwarts Hopes for VC Rebound

By Kate Clark · Jun 22, 2023 12:49pm PDT

Adobe’s $20 billion plan to buy design software startup Figma in September offered Silicon Valley venture capitalists brief relief from the downturn’s tight grip. But they might want to put the champagne away. European regulators plan to launch an investigation of Adobe’s deal, the Financial Times reported earlier this week. A few... Adobe’s $20 billion plan to buy design software startup Figma in September offered Silicon Valley...

V. Pappas. Photo by Getty.

TikTok’s COO Pappas to Quit

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 22, 2023 10:17am PDT

TikTok's Chief Operating Officer V. Pappas has quit, Pappas told staff on Thursday, according to an email viewed by The Information. At the same time, TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew announced the elevation of chief of staff Adam Presser to be head of operations, while also revealing that former Disney executive Zenia Mucha will join in a new role... TikTok's Chief Operating Officer V. Pappas has quit, Pappas told staff on Thursday, according...

Photos via Getty and Shutterstock. Art by Shane Burke.

How Meta Stumbled In Quest for Chip Independence

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Wayne Ma · Jun 22, 2023 6:00am PDT · 8 comments

Meta Platforms executives always knew this moment would come. Apple’s unveiling of its Vision Pro mixed reality headset early this month puts the spotlight on the looming battle between Apple and Meta over control of the augmented reality and virtual reality market. And for the past five years, Meta has readied itself for the competition... Meta Platforms executives always knew this moment would come. Apple’s unveiling of its...

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 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.

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

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

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

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

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

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—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.

TikTok and Cost Cuts at Cannes

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

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...