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

Photo by Bloomberg

Apple’s Mixed-Reality Plans Have Mark Zuckerberg Sweating

By Martin Peers · Oct 12, 2022 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

You have to hand it to Mark Zuckerberg. He has managed to change the conversation around his company—from the noxious effects of social media to his hugely ambitious metaverse plans. This week in particular he rode a wave of publicity around Meta’s upcoming new high-end virtual reality headset. There are plenty of skeptics about his metaverse... You have to hand it to Mark Zuckerberg. He has managed to change the conversation around his...

Kyra co-founders Devran Amaratunga Karaca (left) and Nicholas Dart (right). Photo: Jonathan Dwyer

Creator Economy

Video Content Studio Kyra Raises $15 Million in Funding; Q&A with Creator and Former Product Manager Luo

By Mahira Dayal · Oct 12, 2022 2:57pm PDT

Kyra, a 5-year-old startup that helps creators produce content and connect with advertisers, raised $15 million in Series A funding led by Bonnier Ventures, the startup exclusively told The Information. LionTree, Firstminute Capital, Guardian Group Media Ventures and Torch Capital participated. The new funding more than doubles Kyra’s previous... Kyra, a 5-year-old startup that helps creators produce content and connect with advertisers,...

Photo by Shutterstock

What’s Behind Crypto’s Confusing Week of Breakthroughs and Setbacks

By Akash Pasricha · Oct 12, 2022 1:30pm PDT

If you spend any time on crypto Twitter, you’ve probably seen this expression pop up: “We’re still so early!” It’s a phrase that sums up all the sector’s craziness—hacks and other problems come with the territory, while industry “firsts” on mainstream adoption are seen as big signals for what’s to come. Well, this week’s news cycle—a set of... If you spend any time on crypto Twitter, you’ve probably seen this expression pop up: “We’re...

Image: Clockwise from top left: Andrej Karpathy, Jason Kilar, Jerome Pesenti, Vanessa Guthrie, Kayvon Beykpour, Andrew Shuman. Photos by Getty Images, Bloomberg and Belathée Photography

On the Market: Tesla, Meta, Twitter, Snap Executives

By The Information Staff · Oct 12, 2022 9:30am PDT

Image: Clockwise from top left: Andrej Karpathy, Jason Kilar, Jerome Pesenti, Vanessa Guthrie, Kayvon Beykpour, Andrew Shuman. Photos by Getty Images, Bloomberg and Belathée Photography

On the Market: Tesla, Meta, Twitter, Snap Executives

By The Information Staff · Oct 12, 2022 9:30am PDT

The senior ranks at tech companies are in flux. Layoffs, restructurings and canceled projects have led many experienced executives to the door. Others are simply ready for something new. In this latest installment of Free Agents, we profile six of them. Those on the market include Jerome Pesenti and Andrej Karpathy, former leaders at Meta... The senior ranks at tech companies are in flux. Layoffs, restructurings and canceled projects...

Bloomberg; Art by Mike Sullivan

Fighting New Antitrust Rules Is a Bad Move for Big Tech

By Brooke Fox, Gene Kimmelman and Fiona M. Scott Morton · Oct 12, 2022 9:00am PDT · 4 comments

Sen. Amy Klobuchar recently invoked David and Goliath when discussing her fight to pass antitrust legislation to rein in dominant tech firms. “I have two lawyers. They have 2,800 lawyers and lobbyists,” she said at this year’s Code Conference in September. But executives at those dominant tech firms would do well to remember... Sen. Amy Klobuchar recently invoked David and Goliath when discussing her fight to pass antitrust...

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo by Bloomberg

Microsoft Forms New Team to Target ‘Industrial Metaverse’

By Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 12, 2022 5:00am PDT · 2 comments

Microsoft’s plan to use the metaverse to spice up decidedly unglamorous applications in factories and other industrial settings is beginning to take shape. Last week, Microsoft internally announced the formation of a new team, Industrial Metaverse Core, that plans to help customers create immersive new software interfaces for operating the... Microsoft’s plan to use the metaverse to spice up decidedly unglamorous applications in...

Photo by Shutterstock.

TikTok and the Universal Law of Internet Companies

By Jessica E. Lessin · Oct 11, 2022 5:00pm PDT

So, what’s next for TikTok? A phone? Stay with me for a second here. As we reported a few months ago, TikTok wants its users to buy a lot more stuff through the app. Juro reported that TikTok’s parent, ByteDance, wants to double the revenue it gets from selling goods through its Chinese video app, Douyin. TikTok, meanwhile, has big... So, what’s next for TikTok? A phone? Stay with me for a second here. As we reported a few...

Art: Shane Burke

Link-In-Bio Startup Beacons in Talks to Buy Portals App; TikTok Reveals Shopping Ambitions

By Mahira Dayal · Oct 11, 2022 3:12pm PDT

Art: Shane Burke

Creator Economy

Link-In-Bio Startup Beacons in Talks to Buy Portals App; TikTok Reveals Shopping Ambitions

By Mahira Dayal · Oct 11, 2022 3:12pm PDT

We’ve written a lot here about how link-in-bio startups, the companies hosting websites that gather creators’ various social handles and e-commerce shops, will need to expand their services to buffer themselves from the threat social of networks like Instagram offering rival products. The latest: Beacons, a link-in-bio startup backed... We’ve written a lot here about how link-in-bio startups, the companies hosting websites that...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero.

Startups Avoid Valuation Cuts With ‘Up Rounds in Name Only’

By Maria Heeter and Erin Woo · Oct 11, 2022 12:07pm PDT · 5 comments

When installment lender Klarna revealed in July it had raised $800 million at a valuation 85% lower than its previous funding round, the deal was seen as the first in a likely wave of dramatic down rounds. Instead, startups including fitness equipment maker Tonal, delivery app Jokr and investing app Acorns are still managing to raise money at... When installment lender Klarna revealed in July it had raised $800 million at a valuation 85%...

Photo of Chris Dixon by Getty Images. Art by Mike Sullivan

Chris Dixon Keeps the Crypto Faith

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 11, 2022 6:00am PDT

This summer, venture capitalist Chris Dixon settled down for a dinner conversation about politics, startup investing and the economy with business and entertainment executive Michael Ovitz at Ovitz’s 28,000-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion. At one point, the conversation shifted to a topic Dixon knows intimately: cryptocurrency. ... This summer, venture capitalist Chris Dixon settled down for a dinner conversation about...

Photo by Bloomberg

What the Netflix-Disney Stock Price Gap Tells Us

By Martin Peers · Oct 10, 2022 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

We’re barely a week away from the start of tech earnings season, when Netflix reports its third-quarter numbers. Investors are feeling bullish: Netflix shares have rallied 30% since mid-July, roughly when the company reported it had lost fewer subscribers in the second quarter than it had projected. That supposedly “better than expected” result... We’re barely a week away from the start of tech earnings season, when Netflix reports its...

Actor Malina Weissman at the Wonderland Dreams exhibit. Photo by Ruby June.

Instagram-Worthy Pop-Ups Are Back; Injury at TwitchCon

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 10, 2022 2:46pm PDT

Actor Malina Weissman at the Wonderland Dreams exhibit. Photo by Ruby June.

Creator Economy

Instagram-Worthy Pop-Ups Are Back; Injury at TwitchCon

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 10, 2022 2:46pm PDT

Calling all Millennials. The Instagram-worthy art exhibit has returned. Pre-pandemic, and before the short-video wars, you may remember sites such as the interactive Museum of Ice Cream exhibit, with its giant pit of oversized plastic sprinkles—the perfect backdrop for snapping glossy photos for social media. Restaurants also upped their... Calling all Millennials. The Instagram-worthy art exhibit has returned. Pre-pandemic, and...

Roelof Botha, partner at Sequoia Capital, and Zhao Changpeng, founder of Binance. Photos by Getty Images and Bloomberg.

Sequoia Capital, Binance Stand By Equity Funding for Musk’s Twitter Takeover

By Erin Woo, Kate Clark and Aidan Ryan · Oct 10, 2022 12:28pm PDT

At least two major equity investors backing Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter plan to go ahead with their funding, as the billionaire moves toward closing the deal after dramatically reversing his position on it. Sequoia Capital, which has committed $800 million to the deal, plans to keep its funding in place, according to a person... At least two major equity investors backing Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter plan to go...

Jack Ma in Paris in 2019. Photo by Getty Images

Jack Ma’s Investment Firm Struggles to Raise Money in China

By Juro Osawa · Oct 10, 2022 6:00am PDT

Jack Ma, China’s most iconic entrepreneur, whose swift fall from grace with government authorities captivated the country and broader business world, has a new problem: Chinese investors are afraid to give him money. Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm Ma co-founded in 2010, is having difficulty raising capital from domestic investors... Jack Ma, China’s most iconic entrepreneur, whose swift fall from grace with government...

Headquarters of Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd., poised to remain the world's largest battery producer through the 2020s, in Ningde, China. Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg

The Electric: The U.S. Is Ramping Up. China Is Ramping Up Faster

By Steve LeVine · Oct 9, 2022 2:00pm PDT

In recent months, the U.S. and Europe have taken enormous steps to eliminate China's near-monopoly on lithium-ion batteries, the strategic heart of electric vehicles, as the industry begins to take off. But this week we look at the reality that China's dominance of batteries is likely only to become greater by the end of the decade, and that... In recent months, the U.S. and Europe have taken enormous steps to eliminate China's...

What Us, Worry? Why Silicon Valley Seems Happy Again

What Us, Worry? Why Silicon Valley Seems Happy Again

By Jon Steinberg · Oct 8, 2022 7:00am PDT

What Us, Worry? Why Silicon Valley Seems Happy Again

What Us, Worry? Why Silicon Valley Seems Happy Again

By Jon Steinberg · Oct 8, 2022 7:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend!The economic news may be nerve-wracking, but judging from the results of our nearly 1,000-subscriber survey, Silicon Valley seems to be taking the downturn in stride. In fact, large proportions of our readership appear pretty content with the new norms of post-pandemic professional life. This is a bit of a... Hi, welcome to your Weekend!The economic news may be nerve-wracking, but judging from the results...

Brian Armstrong in “Coin: A Founder’s Story.” Screenshot via YouTube.

The Coinbase Story Is Worthy of Cinema. The Film It Made for Itself Isn’t

By Margaux MacColl · Oct 8, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

“No one’s a villain here,” said executive coach Matt Mochary to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong in “Coin: A Founder’s Story.” And he’s right, at least for the 88-minute duration of the new Coinbase-produced documentary, which premiered Friday on Amazon, iTunes, YouTube and elsewhere. “Coin” is a story told entirely through Armstrong’s... “No one’s a villain here,” said executive coach Matt Mochary to Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong in “...

Philippe Laffont. Photo by Bloomberg.

Two More Coatue Partners Have Departed

By Kate Clark · Oct 7, 2022 2:26pm PDT · 2 comments

Coatue Management general partners Luca Schmid and Sebastian Duesterhoeft, who helped lead its private tech investments, have left the New York-based firm, according to a person familiar with the matter. The partners are the latest senior exits from crossover funds, the firms with Wall Street roots that made big bets on startups during the past... Coatue Management general partners Luca Schmid and Sebastian Duesterhoeft, who helped lead its...

Katie Haun. Photo by Bloomberg

‘I’m Not Looking Where the Puck Is Right Now’: Katie Haun Picked an Awkward Time to Launch a Crypto Fund

By Adam Lashinsky · Oct 7, 2022 1:00pm PDT · 5 comments

Katie Haun has set up the offices of her new venture capital shop surprisingly close to her old one. Always security conscious from her time battling cybercriminals for the U.S. Department of Justice, Haun prefers to keep the precise location of her exceedingly well-funded Haun Ventures secret. Suffice it to say a skilled golfer at the nearby... Katie Haun has set up the offices of her new venture capital shop surprisingly close to her old...

Art by Clark Miller

‘Where Are the Women?’: Is Hybrid Work Widening Tech’s Gender Gap?

By Arielle Pardes · Oct 7, 2022 11:00am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller

‘Where Are the Women?’: Is Hybrid Work Widening Tech’s Gender Gap?

By Arielle Pardes · Oct 7, 2022 11:00am PDT · 2 comments

Earlier this year, identity software company Okta gave its employees a presentation on burnout. An invited speaker explained the warning signs and distributed a 43-question inventory to determine an employee’s individual risk for a “stress-induced breakdown.” Amanda Giannelli, an engineer at the company, already knew she was wiped—she was... Earlier this year, identity software company Okta gave its employees a presentation on burnout....