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

Ali Ghodsi, co-founder and CEO of Databricks. Photo by Bloomberg.

Databricks Is Trimming Its Valuation While Other Startups Are Slashing Theirs

By Maria Heeter and Mark Matousek · Oct 20, 2022 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Valuations for a crop of high-profile startups have been falling fast, even according to their own internal assessments. But one company has been notably restrained in revising its valuation: cloud-based database software startup Databricks. Databricks trimmed its internal share price this month, which lowered its implied valuation to $31... Valuations for a crop of high-profile startups have been falling fast, even according to their...

Photo by Shutterstock

The Logic of a Microsoft-Netflix Deal Is Growing

By Martin Peers · Oct 19, 2022 5:00pm PDT

If you watched Netflix’s quarterly earnings analyst call on Tuesday night, you might have caught an interesting comment from Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters. One of the main reasons Netflix picked Microsoft as the company to handle the tech side of its new advertising sales effort, Peters said, was that “we felt like we were highly... If you watched Netflix’s quarterly earnings analyst call on Tuesday night, you might have caught...

Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein. Photo by Bloomberg

Inside The Bitcoin Mining Squeeze; Slow Start for Aptos

By Aidan Ryan · Oct 19, 2022 3:05pm PDT

Until this year, much of the crypto world had been focused on profiting from the boom in crypto prices. Now, some big investors are looking for ways to make money from the crash. A 60% drop in bitcoin prices this year, along with the increasing difficulty of mining the cryptocurrency, has hurt miners—especially those that borrowed money to... Until this year, much of the crypto world had been focused on profiting from the boom in crypto...

Creator Jonathan Hyla. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Hyla.

What to Expect from Snap Earnings; Q&A With A Filmmaker Building An Online Community for ADHD Creatives

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 19, 2022 2:37pm PDT

Creator Jonathan Hyla. Photo courtesy of Jonathan Hyla.

Creator Economy

What to Expect from Snap Earnings; Q&A With A Filmmaker Building An Online Community for ADHD Creatives

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 19, 2022 2:37pm PDT

Snap’s third-quarter financial results on Thursday will serve as a preview of how other internet companies are managing a pullback in ad spending and Apple’s disruptive privacy changes. Wall Street analysts see some signs of life, but warn that macroeconomic pressure persists. The Snapchat parent company and other tech companies are also... Snap’s third-quarter financial results on Thursday will serve as a preview of how other internet...

Stanford Management Company CEO Robert Wallace

The Big Interview

Stanford Wants a Bigger Piece of Silicon Valley’s Top VC Funds: Endowment Chief

By Kate Clark · Oct 19, 2022 10:32am PDT · 5 comments

Stanford University’s $37.8 billion endowment raked in nearly $1 billion from its venture capital portfolio’s bets on Airbnb and DoorDash after the startups went public in late 2020. Now it’s looking to increase its stake in the small number of elite VC funds responsible for those wins. But Stanford Management Company CEO... Stanford University’s $37.8 billion endowment raked in nearly $1 billion from its venture...

Elon Musk in front of a SpaceX rocket launch. Photos by Getty Images.

Elon Musk’s Management Style Is a Threat to Global Democracy

By Kate Klonick · Oct 19, 2022 9:00am PDT · 33 comments

Elon Musk’s management style is notoriously impulsive, toxic and cruel. Onetime employees describe being “tossed to the curb like a piece of litter,” the result of Musk’s “complete lack of loyalty or human connection.” This coldness hasn’t been reserved just for middle management or low-level workers. In... Elon Musk’s management style is notoriously impulsive, toxic and cruel. Onetime employees...

Photo by Shutterstock

TikTok Gains Ad Momentum as Meta Struggles

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Oct 19, 2022 6:00am PDT

This spring, pet accessories company Wild One launched ad campaigns for a new dog toy—a rubber cylinder with a tennis ball wedged inside—on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram. The TikTok campaign, a time-lapse video of a dog trying to wrestle the tennis ball free, took off, according to Rose Mayo, vice president of growth at Wild... This spring, pet accessories company Wild One launched ad campaigns for a new dog toy—a...

Starboard Value CEO Jeffrey Smith. Photo by Bloomberg

Salesforce’s Wake-Up Call Was Long Overdue

By Akash Pasricha · Oct 18, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Starboard Value CEO Jeffrey Smith. Photo by Bloomberg

Salesforce’s Wake-Up Call Was Long Overdue

By Akash Pasricha · Oct 18, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Jeffrey Smith might be just the jolt Salesforce needs. The CEO of Starboard Value told CNBC Tuesday that his activist investor hedge fund had taken a significant stake in Salesforce, noting that the cloud software company could do much better in the way of growth and profitability. Activists don’t always get things right, but in this case, Smith... Jeffrey Smith might be just the jolt Salesforce needs. The CEO of Starboard Value told CNBC...

ConvertKit CEO Nathan Barry. Photo: Henry Thong

Creator Economy

A Boot-Strapped Startup Vies With Mailchimp for Creator Dollars; YouTube Introduces Podcast Ads

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 18, 2022 2:42pm PDT

When Instagram started to become popular more than a decade ago, many bloggers abandoned their personal websites to post on the photo-sharing app instead. Those blogs and mailing lists became in vogue again as creators looked for ways to connect more personally with fans. That meant a new market for the email marketing software services that... When Instagram started to become popular more than a decade ago, many bloggers abandoned their...

An iPhone 14 Plus at an Apple Store in Shanghai last week. Photo by Getty Images

Apple Cuts iPhone 14 Plus Production Less Than Two Weeks After Debut

By Wayne Ma · Oct 18, 2022 11:36am PDT

Apple is cutting production of the iPhone 14 Plus less than two weeks after its debut, according to two people involved in the company’s supply chain. Apple has told at least one manufacturer in China to immediately halt production of iPhone 14 Plus components while its procurement team reevaluates demand for the product, which Apple has... Apple is cutting production of the iPhone 14 Plus less than two weeks after its debut, according...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Facing Threat From Apple, Google Tries New Hardware Playbook

By Jon Victor and Amir Efrati · Oct 18, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

It may be Google’s worst nightmare. Apple’s iPhone is stealing share from Samsung phones powered by Google’s Android software. At the same time, U.S. antitrust regulators are scrutinizing Google’s search deal with Apple, raising the prospect that Google’s search may lose its favored position in the Safari browser on... It may be Google’s worst nightmare. Apple’s iPhone is stealing share from Samsung...

AI-related images generated by DALL·E 2. Art direction by Shane Burke and Mike Sullivan.

Venture FOMO Returns as Investors Chase Artificial Intelligence Deals

By Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Oct 17, 2022 6:17pm PDT · 3 comments

AI-related images generated by DALL·E 2. Art direction by Shane Burke and Mike Sullivan.

Venture FOMO Returns as Investors Chase Artificial Intelligence Deals

By Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Oct 17, 2022 6:17pm PDT · 3 comments

Venture capitalists are shaking themselves out of a bear market slumber to chase deals in a pocket of artificial intelligence that’s spilled into the mainstream this year: AI that generates art, videos and writing. Jasper AI, which last year started selling an AI-assisted writing tool, raised funding from Insight Partners at a $1.5 billion... Venture capitalists are shaking themselves out of a bear market slumber to chase deals in a...

Photo by Bloomberg

Tech Disruptors Lose Their Luster

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

If you’ve closed your eyes lately to the constant gyrations in the stock market, you might have missed some interesting trends in valuations. One we’ve observed lately is how a number of older companies, in fields such as ad-supported media, retail, personal lending and shoes, are now trading at a premium to the venture-backed firms that were... If you’ve closed your eyes lately to the constant gyrations in the stock market, you might have...

Photo: Shutterstock

Creator Economy

Protecting Bipolar Creators Online; The Leanest Creator Economy Startups

By Mahira Dayal · Oct 17, 2022 3:00pm PDT

In The Weekend section, my colleague Margaux took a deep dive into the reality that bipolar creators on TikTok face. During manic episodes, those creators sometimes struggle with common symptoms of bipolar disorder, like an excess of energy and lack of judgment. That puts them in a vulnerable position as they post and talk to the public... In The Weekend section, my colleague Margaux took a deep dive into the reality that bipolar...

Chart by Shane Burke

Why E-Commerce Disruptors Are Trading Like Brick-and-Mortar Dinosaurs

By Akash Pasricha and Martin Peers · Oct 17, 2022 6:00am PDT

E-commerce is on sale. Online commerce companies including ThredUp, Rent the Runway, Stitch Fix and Farfetch have seen their valuations tumble, putting them in the same ballpark as aging brick-and-mortar giants like Macy’s and Nordstrom. Already South Korea’s internet search giant, Naver, has taken advantage of the collapse to snap... E-commerce is on sale. Online commerce companies including ThredUp, Rent the Runway, Stitch Fix...

At Silver Peak, concentrated lithium turns the last in a string of ponds an eerie blue. Photo: The Electric

The Electric: In Remote Nevada, Evidence of the Decade’s Lithium Shortage

By Steve LeVine · Oct 16, 2022 2:00pm PDT

At Silver Peak, concentrated lithium turns the last in a string of ponds an eerie blue. Photo: The Electric

The Electric: In Remote Nevada, Evidence of the Decade’s Lithium Shortage

By Steve LeVine · Oct 16, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Save the date: The world is in a lithium shortage, and looks likely to remain so for at least the remainder of the decade. This is bad news for those hoping for a fast and massive shift to electric vehicles. To plumb why the industry hasn't managed to move more rapidly, and what it can do to turn things around, I'm delighted to host Eric Norris,... Save the date: The world is in a lithium shortage, and looks likely to remain so for at least the...

Legs in the Metaverse, Heads in Reality

Legs in the Metaverse, Heads in Reality

By Jon Steinberg · Oct 15, 2022 7:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend!The observant reader may notice an odd disconnect in this weekend’s newsletter. Above the fold, you’ll see Margaux’s cover story exploring how social media platforms can identify when users are experiencing manic episodes or other symptoms of bipolar disorder. Her reporting is backed by a decade’s worth of research... Hi, welcome to your Weekend!The observant reader may notice an odd disconnect in this weekend’s...

Elon Musk. Photo by Bloomberg.

Musk Will Have Absolute Control Over Twitter, Documents Show

By Kate Clark, Becky Peterson and Martin Peers · Oct 14, 2022 3:29pm PDT · 5 comments

Elon Musk may be relying on outside investors to help finance his $44 billion purchase of Twitter. But that doesn’t mean he’s giving those investors a say in how the company is run. A shareholders’ agreement prepared by Musk’s lawyers for equity investors shows that Musk will retain absolute authority over key decisions.... Elon Musk may be relying on outside investors to help finance his $44 billion purchase of...

Art by Clark Miller

‘Sometimes You’ve Got to Fight Fire With Fire’: A Vigilante Coder Goes to War Against Misinformation

By Jessica Lucas · Oct 14, 2022 1:00pm PDT · 1 comment

For the people closest to Christopher Bouzy, like his wife Jennifer, the battles he wages against trolls online can be both captivating and devastating to watch. “It’s fun when he mops the floor with them,” she said. “I’m really proud! I’m like, ‘Yeah! Get them.’ But it’s stressful. Especially when they put out your address and all this other... For the people closest to Christopher Bouzy, like his wife Jennifer, the battles he wages against...

Instacart Cuts Internal Valuation Third Time, to $13 Billion

By Erin Woo · Oct 14, 2022 10:58am PDT · 5 comments

Instacart Cuts Internal Valuation Third Time, to $13 Billion

By Erin Woo · Oct 14, 2022 10:58am PDT · 5 comments

Instacart, the instant delivery company gearing up to go public, has slashed its internal valuation to about $13 billion, according to two people familiar with the matter. It’s the third time the San Francisco startup has reduced its internal valuation this year, in a period when public delivery stocks have continued to shed value. The new... Instacart, the instant delivery company gearing up to go public, has slashed its internal...