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

Tech’s Worst-Timed Deals: Six Acquisitions That Have Not Improved With Age

By Martin Peers · Jun 23, 2022 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

As tech valuations collapse to a fraction of where they were last year, executives likely have a few regrets. One is sure to be acquisitions done at the top of the market. It’s always tempting when stock prices and private valuations are trading at stratospheric levels for company executives to choose that moment to expand through... As tech valuations collapse to a fraction of where they were last year, executives likely have a...

In Cannes This Week? Don’t Mention the R Word

By Mark Di Stefano · Jun 22, 2022 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Having trouble reaching someone in the advertising or marketing worlds this week? They’re most likely living it up in the South of France. Yes, after two years on hiatus due to Covid-19, the annual Cannes ad festival is back on. And attendees are out in force, looking to make up for lost party time. Just don’t mention the r-word (yes,... Having trouble reaching someone in the advertising or marketing worlds this week? They’re most...

Art: Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy

NFT Lovers Buck the Crypto Crash

By Mahira Dayal · Jun 22, 2022 2:14pm PDT

If you attended this year’s NFT NYC conference, you wouldn’t think we’re knee-deep in a crypto crash. Lines to register at the Marriott Marquis at Times Square wrapped around the block and snaked up five floors of the hotel on Tuesday. NFT enthusiasts, tech employees and digital artists, who paid at least $599 for general admission tickets, told... If you attended this year’s NFT NYC conference, you wouldn’t think we’re knee-deep in a crypto...

FalconX Chief of Staff Austin Reid. Photo: FalconX. Art by Mike Sullivan

FalconX Deal a Bright Spot in Bleak Market for Crypto

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 22, 2022 1:59pm PDT

FalconX Chief of Staff Austin Reid. Photo: FalconX. Art by Mike Sullivan

FalconX Deal a Bright Spot in Bleak Market for Crypto

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 22, 2022 1:59pm PDT

It’s been a rough couple of weeks for crypto companies as token prices have dropped, bellwethers such as Coinbase have laid off staff, and the crash in two cryptocurrencies—terraUSD and luna—has trashed confidence in digital assets. But some startups have been able to lock in new funding rounds or deals. FalconX on Wednesday said it raised... It’s been a rough couple of weeks for crypto companies as token prices have dropped, bellwethers...

Meta's avatars featuring clothing from new fashion partners. Credit: Meta Platforms.

Avatar Fashion Comes to Non-VR Meta Apps; June News Roundup

By Mathew Olson · Jun 22, 2022 11:00am PDT

Starting today, users of Facebook, Instagram and Messenger will be able to start dressing up avatars they use on those apps in outfits from brands like Balenciaga and Prada. But this feature won’t be available to users of Horizon Worlds, the social VR platform which recently expanded its reach to users in the United Kingdom. Even though Meta... Starting today, users of Facebook, Instagram and Messenger will be able to start dressing up...

Signage at VidCon 2016. Photo by Shutterstock

VidCon Returns as Chill Falls on Creator Economy

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 22, 2022 6:00am PDT

VidCon, the annual gathering of social media creators, fans and industry representatives, will descend on Anaheim, Calif., Wednesday for the first time since 2019. While the pandemic hijacked the conference’s plans to meet in person for two years running (it took place virtually in 2020), it made the YouTube- and TikTok-famous stars that... VidCon, the annual gathering of social media creators, fans and industry representatives, will...

Alicia Boler-Davis, in 2012. Photo by Bloomberg.

Reading Between the Lines of Amazon’s Big Shakeup

By Nick Wingfield · Jun 21, 2022 5:00pm PDT

We learned a few things from an Amazon executive reshuffling Tuesday, which was set in motion by the recent departure of Dave Clark, the company’s former CEO for worldwide consumer. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy promoted Doug Herrington to be the chief of what the company is now calling Worldwide Amazon Stores, and consolidated all of its operations... We learned a few things from an Amazon executive reshuffling Tuesday, which was set in motion by...

TikTok star Charli D'Amelio. Photo: AP

Who’s Headed to VidCon; Facebook Extends Fee-Free Creator Tools

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2022 2:12pm PDT

TikTok star Charli D'Amelio. Photo: AP

Creator Economy

Who’s Headed to VidCon; Facebook Extends Fee-Free Creator Tools

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 21, 2022 2:12pm PDT

It’s a busy week for conferences touching various areas of the creator economy, from advertising at the Cannes Lions Festival in France to crypto topics at NFT NYC and, of course, the Super Bowl of the influencer industry, VidCon in Anaheim, Calif. While I’m at VidCon, my colleague Mark Di Stefano is on the ground in Cannes and Mahira Dayal is... It’s a busy week for conferences touching various areas of the creator economy, from advertising...

Illustration by Josh Brill

What Venture Investors Get Wrong About China

By Ming Liao · Jun 21, 2022 9:00am PDT · 4 comments

For two decades, investors in China’s venture capital firms have looked for partners with an instinct for the “new economy.” And for two decades, the firms have posted high-flying returns primarily driven by winners in this fiercely competitive arena—including upstarts in budget appliances (Xiaomi), social media... For two decades, investors in China’s venture capital firms have looked for partners with...

Jerry Seinfeld (left) and Ted Sarandos. Photo by Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan

A Netflix Slump Tests Sarandos’ Talent Savvy

By Jessica Toonkel · Jun 21, 2022 6:00am PDT

In 2019, when comedian Mike Myers was pitching a new comedy series to Netflix, program executives at the company were skeptical. The onetime “Saturday Night Live” star hadn’t had a hit since the early 2000s and Netflix staffers worried a new series wouldn’t attract an audience, according to people familiar with the... In 2019, when comedian Mike Myers was pitching a new comedy series to Netflix, program executives...

Buyers of the coming Sony-Honda electric vehicle should have access to Sony's film library, including the James Bond franchise. Photo: Courtesy MGM

The Electric: Inside the Battle Over the EV Dashboard

By Steve LeVine · Jun 19, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Welcome back to The Electric! Automakers and tech companies are at war for who will control the profit from the sale of electric vehicles this decade. The assumption is that paid monthly subscriptions for software delivered over the air to EVs will generate much of the earnings. This week, we interrogate that assumption, and point out that... Welcome back to The Electric! Automakers and tech companies are at war for who will control...

San Francisco's Tentative Comeback

San Francisco's Tentative Comeback

By Jon Steinberg · Jun 18, 2022 8:00am PDT

San Francisco's Tentative Comeback

San Francisco's Tentative Comeback

By Jon Steinberg · Jun 18, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! Nick Wingfield, senior editor at The Information, here, sitting in for your regular newsletter maestro, Jon Steinberg. Is it 2018? That was the last time Bay Area venture capitalists and techies could brag that the Golden State Warriors were champions. For the two seasons prior to this one, San Francisco’s... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! Nick Wingfield, senior editor at The Information, here, sitting...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

‘I choose to be intentionally paranoid’: Adam Selipsky Navigates AWS Into a Cloudy Future

By Adam Lashinsky · Jun 18, 2022 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Of the five big tech companies that dominate their respective corners of the industry, Amazon is the only one whose headquarters sprout from the soil of a bustling metropolis. There’s no suburban sprawl in Seattle’s Belltown neighborhood, where a cluster of Amazon office towers is located, along with the company’s distinctive, triple-bulbed... Of the five big tech companies that dominate their respective corners of the industry, Amazon is...

So Your Startup Died. What Do You Do With All That Swag?

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 18, 2022 7:00am PDT · 5 comments

Megan Auringer started as a project manager at construction startup Katerra in January 2018, the same month it announced an $865 million fundraising round led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund, the world’s largest private tech investor. Over the next few years, the company kept collecting checks from venture capitalists, while Auringer collected free... Megan Auringer started as a project manager at construction startup Katerra in January 2018, the...

TikTok CEO Shouzi Chew. Photo by Bloomberg.

TikTok’s Oracle News Recalls Trump’s War on the App

By Martin Peers · Jun 17, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Talk about déjà vu! TikTok’s blog post today declaring that all of its U.S. user data is now on Oracle cloud servers in the U.S. took us back in time, to the summer of 2020, when the big story in tech business was Trump’s war on TikTok. Trump’s threats to ban TikTok—over concerns about the security of U.S. user data—didn’t pan out, of course.... Talk about déjà vu! TikTok’s blog post today declaring that all of its U.S. user data is now on...

Art by Clark Miller.

How Canned Iced Tea Became a Viral Crypto Project

By Margaux MacColl · Jun 17, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Art by Clark Miller.

How Canned Iced Tea Became a Viral Crypto Project

By Margaux MacColl · Jun 17, 2022 2:00pm PDT

When the value of the terra stablecoin started to plummet last month, things looked grim for the crypto market. Artists Brian Moore, Mike Lacher and Chris Baker decided to create a stablecoin whose value would never waver. The three of them, who are collectively known as Mossy, created a stablecoin pegged to AriZona Iced Tea, the sugary beverage... When the value of the terra stablecoin started to plummet last month, things looked grim for the...

Art by Clark Miller.

San Francisco Is Back. Sort of. Maybe.

By Kate Clark · Jun 17, 2022 12:00pm PDT · 16 comments

Earlier this month, hundreds of Bay Area techies swarmed 5A5 Steak Lounge, a private dining venue blocks from San Francisco’s Ferry Building where patrons feast on Wagyu beef and sip $16 Japanese whisky cocktails. They were there for a spring party put on by Modernist, a members-only club in San Francisco tailored to the tech elite. There was an... Earlier this month, hundreds of Bay Area techies swarmed 5A5 Steak Lounge, a private dining venue...

Art by Laurent Hrybyk.

Welcome to the E-Commerce Winter

By Mark Di Stefano and Malique Morris · Jun 17, 2022 6:02am PDT · 3 comments

Every tech downturn has a locus of weakness—the companies that fall first and spread the carnage. But few in Silicon Valley thought retail and payments companies would be among the biggest victims. The implosion in public tech-driven retail and payments companies has been breathtaking—with investors losing tens of billions of... Every tech downturn has a locus of weakness—the companies that fall first and spread the...

Elon Musk. Photo by Bloomberg.

Musk’s Q&A Glossed Over the Key Question About Twitter Buyout

By Martin Peers · Jun 16, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Elon Musk’s question-and-answer session with Twitter employees today should have been good news for shareholders. After all his bluster about spambots, the fact that Musk was willing to spend an hour or so answering questions from employees suggests that he intends to go through with the acquisition. And yet afterward, Twitter shares remained... Elon Musk’s question-and-answer session with Twitter employees today should have been good news...

Maitree Mervana Parekh, a principal at Acrew Capital. Photo: Maitree Mervana Parekh

TikTok’s Rising Venture Capitalists; Yanked Brand Deals; Viral Entomology

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 16, 2022 3:30pm PDT

Maitree Mervana Parekh, a principal at Acrew Capital. Photo: Maitree Mervana Parekh

Creator Economy

TikTok’s Rising Venture Capitalists; Yanked Brand Deals; Viral Entomology

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 16, 2022 3:30pm PDT

Some venture capital firms are experimenting with TikTok as a marketing tool to reach people in their mid-20s. Maitree Mervana Parekh, 29, a principal at Acrew Capital, sees it differently: As a way to portray her interests outside work and experience what it means to be a creator, which she says gives her a deeper understanding of founders and... Some venture capital firms are experimenting with TikTok as a marketing tool to reach people in...