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

Get smarter about the day’s news in tech, media and finance by following Silicon Valley’s most-read executive newsletter.

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Recent Editions

The Voyah Free SUV is among the challengers to Tesla's luxury crown in China. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Electric: Homegrown Brands Challenge Tesla’s Lock on China’s Luxury EV Market

By Steve LeVine · Aug 15, 2022 5:00am PDT

Today's column is by Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies. Since 2017, he has focused on the Chinese EV market, as well as smart cities, urban logistics and battery recycling management. The emergence of electric vehicles in the past decade offered Chinese automakers—viewed as producing low-quality... Today's column is by Dalibor Petkovic, a researcher specializing in Chinese industrial policies....

The Shaky Mental State of Silicon Valley

The Shaky Mental State of Silicon Valley

By Jon Steinberg · Aug 13, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! Next month, when the San Francisco Board of Supervisors reconvenes after its summer recess, one of the matters up for discussion will be a resolution to decriminalize the use of psychedelics. While San Franciscans have never needed Board approval to partake in the wonders of nature, you can bet plenty of tech... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! Next month, when the San Francisco Board of Supervisors...

Art by Clark Miller.

The Founder Who Got High on a Rooftop and Came Down With a Business

By Margaux MacColl · Aug 13, 2022 6:00am PDT

Watching the app you built hit the 10 million-download threshold would be a career high for most founders. But for Ben-Zion Benkhin, it’s just another day at the office. Within the last two years, Benkhin, 26, has launched two wildly popular artificial intelligence–based apps. The first was Wombo.ai, which uses AI to create highly shareable,... Watching the app you built hit the 10 million-download threshold would be a career high for most...

Illustration by Clark Miller

Can Creatives Survive the Future War Against Dall-e 2?

By Louise Matsakis · Aug 12, 2022 12:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Illustration by Clark Miller

Can Creatives Survive the Future War Against Dall-e 2?

By Louise Matsakis · Aug 12, 2022 12:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Earlier this year, Karen X. Cheng, a video director in San Francisco, was commissioned by a client to make an augmented reality dress for special events. The idea was to “hide” an animation of a beating heart within the dress, which an Instagram filter would reveal whenever a phone camera was pointed at the wearer’s chest. Cheng, who specializes... Earlier this year, Karen X. Cheng, a video director in San Francisco, was commissioned by a...

Art by Clark Miller

Bought and Sold

Meet Axios’ New Owners: Old-Money Atlanta Billionaires Hungry for the Next Big Thing

By Abram Brown · Aug 12, 2022 10:00am PDT · 5 comments

The pitch Sebastian Thrun made to investors in 2014 was an alluring one. Thrun—former head of Google X, the company’s top-secret skunkworks—had already raised over $20 million for his buzzy online-education startup, Udacity. Now he wanted more. He promised to profoundly disrupt education through online courses that put students through a... The pitch Sebastian Thrun made to investors in 2014 was an alluring one. Thrun—former head of...

Art by Clark Miller

‘It’s Just Bad News All the Time’: With the Tech Economy Buckling, Silicon Valley Therapists Are in High Demand

By Zara Stone · Aug 12, 2022 9:00am PDT

Over the last couple of months, David Mahabali has become highly skilled at lugging pillows, floor pads and blankets around the San Francisco Bay Area. He layers an assortment of them on the plush floors of McMansions in Woodside, spreads them across deep pile rugs in posh San Jose condos, and arranges them tidily in the living rooms of... Over the last couple of months, David Mahabali has become highly skilled at lugging pillows,...

Karl and me in New York. Karen Obrist Photography.

Meet Our First Chief Commercial Officer, Karl Wells

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 12, 2022 8:54am PDT · 6 comments

It's been a busy few months at The Information. Our newsroom has been leading the narrative in coverage, from our early reporting on Netflix's dramatic move to advertising to our detection of the victims of the massive collapse underway in the private tech markets. Our scoops on major layoffs and cost-cutting have swung the... It's been a busy few months at The Information. Our newsroom has been leading the...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Fintech Investors Cherry-Pick Deals in Boom’s Aftermath

By Erin Woo · Aug 12, 2022 6:00am PDT

Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Fintech Investors Cherry-Pick Deals in Boom’s Aftermath

By Erin Woo · Aug 12, 2022 6:00am PDT

In October, QED Investors managing partner Nigel Morris addressed the CEOs of several dozen fintech startups in an Alexandria, Va., hotel at the venture capital firm’s annual summit. After two days of discussions—and a cycling trip in Shenandoah National Park—he had a message for them: “These are the salad days.” ... In October, QED Investors managing partner Nigel Morris addressed the CEOs of several dozen...

Shouzi Chew, CEO of TikTok, in February. Photo by Bloomberg

TikTok’s Ad Business Is Giving Us Déjà Vu

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

First, some news about us! I am thrilled to share that we’ve hired Karl Wells—who has been running the subscription business at Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal—as our first chief commercial officer. Joe Pompeo broke the news for Vanity Fair. I’m really proud of how we’ve driven the conversation in tech journalism these past eight and... First, some news about us! I am thrilled to share that we’ve hired Karl Wells—who has been...

Emily Yang, @pplpleaser. Credit: Emily Yang

Creator Economy

TikTok’s Ad Stumbles; an NFT Artist on Crypto Twitter, Philanthropy and Diversity

By Mahira Dayal · Aug 11, 2022 2:51pm PDT

TikTok aims to rival the ad revenue of digital titans such as Meta Platforms, but a new report from my colleague Sylvia shows that turbulence within the short-form video app’s ad sales department threatens to throw it off course.That turbulence includes a high-pressure culture that has resulted in heavy turnover. Since top-down instruction still... TikTok aims to rival the ad revenue of digital titans such as Meta Platforms, but a new report...

Art by Josh Brill

TikTok’s $4 Billion Advertising Machine Is Messy Behind the Scenes

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Aug 11, 2022 12:39pm PDT · 2 comments

Two years ago, social media sensation TikTok came up with a slogan to prod brands to be more authentic in their advertisements on the app: “Don’t Make Ads. Make TikToks.” But last June that approach went off the rails with a high-profile marketing stunt by Starbucks. The coffee chain launched an ad campaign with Chance the... Two years ago, social media sensation TikTok came up with a slogan to prod brands to be more...

Art by Clark Miller

How I Learned to Code

By Emi Nietfeld · Aug 11, 2022 9:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller

How I Learned to Code

By Emi Nietfeld · Aug 11, 2022 9:00am PDT

On my first day of class at Harvard, at the end of a lackluster economics lecture, I was shoving my stuff into my backpack when electronic music started blasting through the speakers. The beat seemed to shake the chandelier. A sans serif logo appeared projected at the head of the room: CS50, Introduction to Computer Science. I had nowhere to be,... On my first day of class at Harvard, at the end of a lackluster economics lecture, I was shoving...

Viral Patel, global head of technology investing for Blackstone Credit. Art by Clark Miller.

Blackstone Plans to Back Tech Startups in $2 Billion–Plus Lending Push

By Maria Heeter · Aug 11, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Private equity giant Blackstone is gearing up to make its first major push into lending to startups and technology companies—joining a corner of the debt market that’s quickly heating up. The firm expects to invest at least $2 billion in technology debt deals over the next few years, including venture debt, deals with... Private equity giant Blackstone is gearing up to make its first major push into lending to...

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong in India in April. Photo by Bloomberg.

Coinbase Will Need Its Cash to Fend Off the Competition

By Akash Pasricha · Aug 10, 2022 4:13pm PDT

There was a lot to take away from Coinbase’s grim earnings report from Tuesday night. So let’s get right into it.The Numbers: Coinbase put up a net loss of $1.1 billion—its widest quarterly loss since at least 2019. Quarterly revenue ($803 million) was the lowest it’s been since late 2020, and yet quarterly operating expenses ($1.85 billion)... There was a lot to take away from Coinbase’s grim earnings report from Tuesday night. So let’s...

David Baszucki, chief executive officer and co-founder of Roblox Corp. Photo: Bloomberg.

Creator Economy

Startup Kangaroo Indicates Plans to Close; Roblox Rewards Creators

By Mahira Dayal · Aug 10, 2022 3:34pm PDT

Kangaroo, a creator economy startup that had dubbed itself a “Roblox for stories,” is in the process of shutting down, its co-founder and CEO Katie Mishra has told people close to the company. It’s not clear whether the Palo Alto, Calif., startup, which raised $3.3 million in funding last year, will try to relaunch with a different product.... Kangaroo, a creator economy startup that had dubbed itself a “Roblox for stories,” is in the...

Why Amazon Is Giving Employees Record Amounts of Stock, Even as It Trims Head Count

By Paris Martineau · Aug 10, 2022 10:00am PDT · 4 comments

Why Amazon Is Giving Employees Record Amounts of Stock, Even as It Trims Head Count

By Paris Martineau · Aug 10, 2022 10:00am PDT · 4 comments

At a moment when Amazon’s overall workforce is shrinking, the company is awarding stock to employees at a record-breaking clip to keep top talent from heading for the exits. Amazon granted 138 million restricted stock units to employees in the second quarter, as the chart above shows—an 82% increase from the number of restricted... At a moment when Amazon’s overall workforce is shrinking, the company is awarding stock to...

Art by Laurent Hrybyk

AI Is Transforming How We Bank—and Regulators Need Help to Keep Up

By Hilary J. Allen · Aug 10, 2022 9:00am PDT · 3 comments

Crypto may be hogging headlines, but it’s far from the only technological innovation causing problems for financial regulators. In particular, advances in a type of artificial intelligence known as machine learning are changing: how banks allocate credit; how banks manage their own risks internally; how financial advisers construct... Crypto may be hogging headlines, but it’s far from the only technological innovation...

From left, Loni Mahanta, OpenSea; Mark Wetjen, FTX; Julie Stitzel, Digital Currency Group; Tomicah Tillemann, Haun Ventures; Dante Disparte, Circle; Stuart Alderoty, Ripple. Photo illustration by Clark Miller.

The Crypto Fixers: 10 People Working to Shape How the Industry Is Regulated

By Aidan Ryan · Aug 10, 2022 6:00am PDT

Companies that develop, manage or trade cryptocurrencies are beefing up their policy arms as regulators launch enforcement actions and consider new rules for the young industry. Last month, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed insider-trading charges against a former Coinbase product manager, arguing that nine tokens involved in the... Companies that develop, manage or trade cryptocurrencies are beefing up their policy arms as...

TikTok’s Owner ByteDance Quietly Changed Its China Unit’s Name After U.S. Political Fears

By Juro Osawa and Shai Oster · Aug 10, 2022 5:00am PDT · 2 comments

Since The Information reported last year that the Chinese government had quietly taken a stake and a board seat in a key Chinese corporate entity of ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, politicians in the U.S. and elsewhere have fanned fears that the Chinese government holds dominion over TikTok too. ByteDance, which is headquartered in... Since The Information reported last year that the Chinese government had quietly taken a stake...

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong in India in April. Photo by Bloomberg

Coinbase Takes It in the Teeth

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 9, 2022 5:01pm PDT

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong in India in April. Photo by Bloomberg

Coinbase Takes It in the Teeth

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 9, 2022 5:01pm PDT

How is this for a head-scratcher? Gaming software maker AppLovin made an unsolicited offer to buy Unity Software in an all-stock deal worth more than $17.5 billion, with one unusual condition: Unity must abandon an existing agreement to acquire an AppLovin competitor called IronSource.I’ll buy you if you don’t buy our competitor—I suppose we... How is this for a head-scratcher? Gaming software maker AppLovin made an unsolicited offer to buy...