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

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...

BeReal. Credit: AP

Creator Economy

How Creators Could Earn On BeReal; Layoffs At Snap And Hootsuite

By Mahira Dayal · Aug 9, 2022 4:25pm PDT

BeReal, the viral app that uses the front and back cameras for users to capture a candid image once a day, reached 7.9 million users by the end of July, The Information’s Kate Clark and I reported on Tuesday. That’s a staggering four times as many users as the 2 million it clocked in January, according to a person familiar with the app. Based on... BeReal, the viral app that uses the front and back cameras for users to capture a candid image...

Chart by Sarah Habershon.

Why Investors Value a BeReal User Double That of Snap

By Mahira Dayal and Kate Clark · Aug 9, 2022 3:46pm PDT · 1 comment

The siren song of a fast-growing social media network still holds investors spellbound. Take BeReal. The French social app, which once a day urges users to take and share a photo—wherever they are, regardless of what they’re doing—has become a breakout hit, particularly for people in their early 20s. Daily active users reached... The siren song of a fast-growing social media network still holds investors spellbound. Take...

Photo by Alaska Air Group.

For Meta’s Next CFO Susan Li, Metaverse Dreams Mean Real-World Challenges

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Aug 9, 2022 6:05am PDT · 1 comment

Photo by Alaska Air Group.

For Meta’s Next CFO Susan Li, Metaverse Dreams Mean Real-World Challenges

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Aug 9, 2022 6:05am PDT · 1 comment

When Meta Platforms reported its first-ever quarterly revenue decline last month, the Facebook parent company also made a key promotion with little fanfare: 36-year-old finance executive Susan Li would become chief financial officer in the fall, replacing longtime CFO Dave Wehner, who held the role for eight years and would transition to a... When Meta Platforms reported its first-ever quarterly revenue decline last month, the Facebook...

Chart: Sarah Habershon

Creator Economy

It’s Getting Harder to Hit 1 Million Followers on TikTok (Chart)

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 8, 2022 3:30pm PDT

The number of TikTok accounts crossing 1 million followers has been on the decline over the past year, new data shows. Last month, about 1,200 TikTok accounts hit that milestone, a 41% drop from the same time a year ago, according to data from Trendpop provided exclusively to The Information. The number of TikTok accounts crossing 1 million followers has been on the decline over the past...

Art by Clark Miller.

Venture Capital’s Limited Partners Warn of Fundraising Slowdown

By Kate Clark · Aug 8, 2022 11:11am PDT · 2 comments

The era of easy money could be over for venture capital firms. Although VC fundraising has so far matched last year’s brisk pace, limited partners—the people and institutions that invest in VC funds—say a slowdown is afoot. That’s because this year’s stock sell-off has left big institutions’ portfolios... The era of easy money could be over for venture capital firms. Although VC fundraising has so far...

From left, DataRobot executives Tom Levey, former CEO Dan Wright and CFO Damon Fletcher. Fletcher and Levey are departing. Art by Mike Sullivan

DataRobot’s CFO, Three Other Senior Execs Depart Amid Fallout Over Share Sales

By Kevin McLaughlin · Aug 8, 2022 8:45am PDT · 2 comments

The chief financial officer and several other senior executives at artificial intelligence startup DataRobot have resigned as the company prepares a second round of layoffs this year, according to two people with knowledge of the situation. The changes, announced internally in a meeting, are the latest sign of an ongoing leadership shakeup... The chief financial officer and several other senior executives at artificial intelligence...

Introducing The Information’s Enterprise Tech Power List

By Kevin McLaughlin, Aaron Holmes and Amir Efrati · Aug 8, 2022 6:00am PDT

Enterprise Power List

Introducing The Information’s Enterprise Tech Power List

By Kevin McLaughlin, Aaron Holmes and Amir Efrati · Aug 8, 2022 6:00am PDT

The biggest battle in tech is happening where most consumers can’t see it: the cloud. And a new cast of executives and investors are increasingly calling the shots—making decisions about the future of the battle with trillions of dollars at stake. The Information spent the last several months researching these leaders to compile... The biggest battle in tech is happening where most consumers can’t see it: the cloud. And a...

A nickel mine in Indonesia, which is not among the countries included in a bill that attempts to create a non-Chinese supply chain for EV batteries. Photo: Bloomberg.

The Electric: The U.S. Finally Gets Serious About the EV Battery Supply Chain

By Steve LeVine · Aug 7, 2022 2:00pm PDT

I am on vacation next week. The Electric will be dark next Sunday, Aug. 14, and return Aug. 21.As China has increasingly bolstered its lead in the global electric vehicle and battery race, it has seemed as though the U.S. is standing still: While Chinese companies have added every more battery manufacturing capacity, U.S. automakers and... I am on vacation next week. The Electric will be dark next Sunday, Aug. 14, and return Aug. 21.As...

‘He's Making Up a World He Wants to Attack’: Vivek Ramaswamy and the Making of an Anti-ESG Culture Warrior

‘He's Making Up a World He Wants to Attack’: Vivek Ramaswamy and the Making of an Anti-ESG Culture Warrior

By Jon Steinberg · Aug 6, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! On Friday morning, just minutes after we published this week’s cover story, I saw a New York Times headline that echoed one of our piece’s theses: “How Republicans Are ‘Weaponizing’ Public Office Against Climate Action.”Both the Times investigation, by David Gelles, and our own, by veteran business... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! On Friday morning, just minutes after we published this week’s...

Art by Clark Miller.

Q&A

A Filmmaker’s Ode to Virtual Reality and the People Who Live in It

By Annie Goldsmith · Aug 6, 2022 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

VRChat changed Joe Hunting’s life. Not only did the first-person virtual reality game serve as the setting for Hunting’s debut film “We Met in Virtual Reality,” but it also introduced the 23-year-old director, producer, writer and editor to his new girlfriend. (The Sundance-premiered documentary, now streaming on HBO Max, is garnering mostly ... VRChat changed Joe Hunting’s life. Not only did the first-person virtual reality game serve as...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

How BeReal Became NSFW: Photo-Snapping Gen Z Employees Create a New Privacy Worry for Employers

By Annie Goldsmith · Aug 5, 2022 12:00pm PDT · 5 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan.

How BeReal Became NSFW: Photo-Snapping Gen Z Employees Create a New Privacy Worry for Employers

By Annie Goldsmith · Aug 5, 2022 12:00pm PDT · 5 comments

It was 2:37 p.m. on a Tuesday when new university grad Connor (not his real name) got the push notification on his iPhone: “It’s time to BeReal!” A full-time employee in the corporate offices of a major retailer, Connor took his cue from the red-hot social media app BeReal and shot a quick photo of his workstation. He then scrolled through his... It was 2:37 p.m. on a Tuesday when new university grad Connor (not his real name) got the push...

Art by Clark Miller

Asked and Answered

Why Did Netflix Sue the ‘Bridgerton’ TikTok Musical—but Not MrBeast’s YouTube ‘Squid Game’?

By Abram Brown · Aug 5, 2022 10:00am PDT · 4 comments

Much of the past 18 months must have seemed rather like a fairy tale to Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, the 20-something, newly internet-famous songwriting duo behind a popular fairy-tale musical. In January 2021, they published the first of the TikTok videos that became the basis of “The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical,” a lyricized version of... Much of the past 18 months must have seemed rather like a fairy tale to Abigail Barlow and Emily...

Art by Clark Miller

‘He’s Making Up a World He Wants to Attack’: How Vivek Ramaswamy Became a Right-Wing Culture Warrior

By Michelle Celarier · Aug 5, 2022 9:00am PDT · 24 comments

Riley Moore had never met the man seated next to him. The state treasurer of West Virginia, Moore had come to a conservative retreat in the state’s storied Greenbrier resort in May 2021 to talk about a letter he and 14 other Republican state treasurers had just written to the Biden administration’s climate envoy, John Kerry. In it, the officials... Riley Moore had never met the man seated next to him. The state treasurer of West Virginia, Moore...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero.

Debt Is Back for Startups Shut Out of IPO Market

By Maria Heeter · Aug 5, 2022 6:19am PDT · 3 comments

Tech startups that had been eager to go public this year have been forced to put those plans on ice amid the market meltdown. With initial public offering conditions likely to remain tough at least through the end of the year, firms offering alternatives to equity raising are clamoring to help fill the gap. Direct lender Owl Rock Capital, which... Tech startups that had been eager to go public this year have been forced to put those plans on...

Photo by Bloomberg

Food Delivery Wars Heat Up as 7-Eleven Quietly Acquires a Delivery Startup

By Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Aug 4, 2022 5:18pm PDT · 2 comments

Photo by Bloomberg

Food Delivery Wars Heat Up as 7-Eleven Quietly Acquires a Delivery Startup

By Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Aug 4, 2022 5:18pm PDT · 2 comments

7-Eleven, the Japanese-owned convenience store chain, has acquired Skipcart, a four-year-old startup that developed a major network of drivers for fast delivery of restaurant food and other goods in the U.S., according to two people with knowledge of the deal. The move is significant because it could change how 7-Eleven does business with... 7-Eleven, the Japanese-owned convenience store chain, has acquired Skipcart, a four-year-old...

David Zaslav. Photo by AP.

David ‘Option Value’ Zaslav and Tech’s Misguided Quest for ‘Efficiency’

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 4, 2022 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

I have so many thoughts today, I am not sure where to begin. First, I continue to be amused by all the CEOs publicly talking about the need to make their companies and teams more “efficient” and productive. We saw it again today when Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced “Simplicity Sprints”—new ways for Googlers to reduce corporate waste. I... I have so many thoughts today, I am not sure where to begin. First, I continue to be amused by...

Gael Aitor, co-host of the Teenager Therapy podcast. Photo: Teenager Therapy

Creator Economy

The Podcasting Feature Spotify and Apple Should Launch Next

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 4, 2022 2:15pm PDT

As podcasting’s popularity grows, independent hosts have found it more challenging to break through and connect with new audiences. Efforts from Spotify and Apple, such as spotlighting favorites and offering recommendations based on interests, have helped. But the platforms could do more.Gael Aitor, the 19-year-old co-host of the mental... As podcasting’s popularity grows, independent hosts have found it more challenging to break...

Why Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai Are Worried About Productivity

By Stephen Council · Aug 4, 2022 10:00am PDT · 16 comments

Executives at Facebook parent Meta Platforms and Google parent Alphabet are feeling the pressure, so they’re giving employees a kick in the pants. After years of rapid hiring, productivity at the tech giants is suffering, as revenue and free cash flow per employee decline. The reason for falling productivity: Both companies have continued... Executives at Facebook parent Meta Platforms and Google parent Alphabet are feeling the pressure,...

Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

Anxiety at the All Hands: Startup Workers Lurch Between IPO Hopes and Layoff Fears

By Erin Woo, Becky Peterson and Mark Matousek · Aug 4, 2022 6:00am PDT

Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

Anxiety at the All Hands: Startup Workers Lurch Between IPO Hopes and Layoff Fears

By Erin Woo, Becky Peterson and Mark Matousek · Aug 4, 2022 6:00am PDT

Last Thursday, employees were on pins and needles at Instacart’s San Francisco headquarters ahead of the 10 a.m. all-hands meeting. The week before, the company’s founder and executive chair, Apoorva Mehta, announced that he would step down “once Instacart becomes a public company.” The language announcing... Last Thursday, employees were on pins and needles at Instacart’s San Francisco headquarters...