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

Art by Mike Sullivan

We Need a 911 for the Metaverse

By Brittan Heller · Mar 30, 2022 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

You’re walking down the street when someone jumps out of the shadows, knocks you down and steals your wallet. Or maybe you’re in a crowded bus and feel a stranger’s hand trying to force its way inside your clothing. What do you do? In the U.S., you’d call 911 to reach the police. But what if 911 were a different number in... You’re walking down the street when someone jumps out of the shadows, knocks you down and...

Illustration by Josh Brill

Creator Economy Startups Hop on the Web3 Bandwagon

By Kaya Yurieff · Mar 30, 2022 7:00am PDT · 4 comments

Since the end of last summer, investors have peppered Nick Gerard, co-founder and CEO of a company called Norby that makes marketing tools for creators, with the same question: What are his startup’s Web3 plans? Web3—a catchall term for technologies built atop the decentralized blockchains first used by cryptocurrencies—has... Since the end of last summer, investors have peppered Nick Gerard, co-founder and CEO of a...

Lachy Groom. Photo by Getty Images.

Solo Venture Capitalists Go Big

By Kate Clark · Mar 30, 2022 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Solo venture capitalists, a growing breed of individual tech investors who compete with traditional Silicon Valley venture capital firms, are raising bigger funds, writing larger checks and beefing up staff even as worsening macroeconomic conditions push down startup valuations and force cost cutting. Lachy Groom, a former Stripe product leader... Solo venture capitalists, a growing breed of individual tech investors who compete with...

Enovix's silicon cell containment system. Photo: Courtesy Enovix

The Electric Flash Analysis: Enovix Claims Safety and Energy Density Breakthroughs for Silicon-Based Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Mar 30, 2022 4:30am PDT

Enovix's silicon cell containment system. Photo: Courtesy Enovix

The Electric Flash Analysis: Enovix Claims Safety and Energy Density Breakthroughs for Silicon-Based Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Mar 30, 2022 4:30am PDT

Enovix, a Fremont, Calif., battery company, claimed this week that its silicon anode can outdo rival pure lithium-metal technology, which has gained favor among major automakers searching for the next generation of batteries to power electric vehicles.The company’s chief technology officer, Ashok Lahiri, said Enovix’s silicon-based battery... Enovix, a Fremont, Calif., battery company, claimed this week that its silicon anode can outdo...

GoPuff advertisements in NYC. Photo by Business Wire

Gopuff Plans Hundreds of Layoffs to Cut $40 Million in Costs

By Berber Jin · Mar 29, 2022 5:34pm PDT · 1 comment

Gopuff, the instant-delivery company valued at $15 billion last fall, is preparing to lay off hundreds of employees, or around 3% of its global workforce, said a person with knowledge of the matter. The cuts are part of an effort to reduce annual head count costs by at least $40 million, said another person who was briefed about the move. The... Gopuff, the instant-delivery company valued at $15 billion last fall, is preparing to lay off...

BlockFi Chief Security Officer Adam Healy. Photo: BlockFi. Art by Mike Sullivan

BlockFi Security Chief on the State of Cybersecurity Hiring; Celsius Hires New CTO (Exclusive)

By Aidan Ryan · Mar 29, 2022 5:19pm PDT

Security is a top concern for crypto companies, particularly as high-profile hacks and data breaches lead to billions of dollars in stolen assets. Tuesday, the Ronin Network—the blockchain protocol and network that powers the popular video game Axie Infinity—said hackers had stolen more than $600 million in one of the largest crypto hacks ever.... Security is a top concern for crypto companies, particularly as high-profile hacks and data...

Microstrategy chairman Michael Saylor, on the left, at a bitcoin conference last year. Photo by Bloomberg.

Microstrategy’s All-or-Nothing Bitcoin Bet

By Martin Peers · Mar 29, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Question: What is today’s best definition of a gambler? Answer: someone who buys shares in Microstrategy. That's the analytics software firm which in the past two years has decided to put almost every cent it can find into bitcoin. As of Feb. 14, its total BTC investment amounted to $3.77 billion, about 20 times the cash Microstrategy’s software... Question: What is today’s best definition of a gambler? Answer: someone who buys shares in...

Credit: Bloomberg

The Startups Taking on Creator Taxes; OnlyFans’ SPAC Plans

By Mahira Dayal · Mar 29, 2022 3:22pm PDT

Credit: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

The Startups Taking on Creator Taxes; OnlyFans’ SPAC Plans

By Mahira Dayal · Mar 29, 2022 3:22pm PDT

The April 18 tax deadline could mean a last-minute scurry by creators to upload dozens of payment forms from brand sponsorships and advertising payouts from social media apps. About five startups in our Creator Economy Database—including FlyFin, Lili, Collective, KeeperTax and Catch—address the particular challenges facing online creators by... The April 18 tax deadline could mean a last-minute scurry by creators to upload dozens of payment...

Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen. Photo: Bloomberg.

Adobe Buys Brio XR; VR Game Studio nDreams Raises $35 Million

By Mathew Olson · Mar 29, 2022 11:00am PDT

Adobe isn’t wasting any time implementing its metaverse growth strategy. We learned Monday that Adobe is buying Toronto-based startup Brio XR, maker of a set of no-code cloud-based tools for presenting 3D content on the web or with AR/VR. The deal could help Adobe pair its growing set of 3D tools with publishing tools suited to social media and... Adobe isn’t wasting any time implementing its metaverse growth strategy. We learned Monday that...

Photo by Fast.

Why Stripe’s ‘Fast’ Horse Is Losing the One-Click Checkout Race

By Malique Morris · Mar 29, 2022 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Several startups have been racing to sell software known as one-click checkout to retailers such as The Honest Company and Forever 21 to speed up how their customers pay for products online. But Fast, the only startup in the field backed by payments provider Stripe, has been slow to grow its business and is far behind rivals. The San... Several startups have been racing to sell software known as one-click checkout to retailers such...

Arcade Co-Founder and CEO Gabe Frank. Photo: Fred Marcus Studio. Art by Mike Sullivan

How a NFT-Backed Loan Startup Is Like a Pawn Shop; Biden’s Crypto Plan

By Aidan Ryan · Mar 28, 2022 5:27pm PDT

Gabe Frank, the co-founder and CEO of NFT-backed loan provider Arcade, likens his startup to the pawn shops, owned by his dad in El Paso, Texas, that he worked at growing up.“What they do is they enable liquidity, they take custody of the asset, they make a loan. If the borrower doesn't come back, then the pawn shop keeps the asset and they can... Gabe Frank, the co-founder and CEO of NFT-backed loan provider Arcade, likens his startup to the...

Apple CEO Tim Cook at Sunday's Academy Awards. Photo by AP

Apple is Playing a Different Streaming Game To Netflix

By Martin Peers · Mar 28, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Apple CEO Tim Cook at Sunday's Academy Awards. Photo by AP

Apple is Playing a Different Streaming Game To Netflix

By Martin Peers · Mar 28, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Get me Zack or Jamie! You can bet there was a mad rush among Hollywood agents trying to get Apple TV+ chieftains Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht on the phone today. To imagine the scene, just picture those lines that used to wrap around Apple stores on iPhone release days. Yes, Sunday night’s Best Picture Oscar win for “CODA” will put the... Get me Zack or Jamie! You can bet there was a mad rush among Hollywood agents trying to get Apple...

Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

Creator Economy Investors Grow More Discerning; Pinterest Expands Its Creator Fund

By Mahira Dayal · Mar 28, 2022 2:56pm PDT

Today we released an update to the Creator Economy Database, which now features 175 global startups and more than $6 billion in venture capital raised by U.S. startups since January 2021. There’s a lot that changed.For a start, we took eight categories and divided them into 12 to reflect growth in certain niches. Creator platforms (38) and... Today we released an update to the Creator Economy Database, which now features 175 global...

A concept image of how mixed reality with Mesh and HoloLens 2. Credit: Microsoft.

Microsoft’s Metaverse Security Stance; Sony’s VR Eye-Tracking Gains

By Mathew Olson · Mar 28, 2022 11:00am PDT

Every new boom in internet tech comes with security risks—just ask all the crypto adherents who’ve had their NFTs pilfered and wallets drained. Microsoft’s new vice president of security, former Amazon Web Services executive Charlie Bell, says the potential security threats posed by the metaverse “could be deal-breakers for enterprises if we don... Every new boom in internet tech comes with security risks—just ask all the crypto adherents who’...

Apple CEO Tim Cook in a video promoting new privacy features in June 2021. Credit: Apple

Apple’s Next Blow to the Ad Industry May Be Hiding in Plain Sight

By Sarah Krouse · Mar 28, 2022 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Nearly a year after Apple implemented privacy changes that make it harder for digital advertisers to track how consumers use their smartphone apps, the iPhone maker has already introduced two other privacy features that mask the identity of Apple device users. Together, they threaten to further constrain the online ad industry’s ability to... Nearly a year after Apple implemented privacy changes that make it harder for digital advertisers...

Images via Shutterstock.

Creator Economy Startup Funding Drops 30% in First Quarter

By Mahira Dayal · Mar 28, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Images via Shutterstock.

Creator Economy Startup Funding Drops 30% in First Quarter

By Mahira Dayal · Mar 28, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Three new creator economy unicorns. Two startups running meme accounts. Several that incorporate crypto. And $1 billion in first-quarter investments. These are some of the highlights from The Information’s newly updated Creator Economy Database. It now features 175 global private companies in this sector, ranging from services that... Three new creator economy unicorns. Two startups running meme accounts. Several that incorporate...

Illustration: Haejin Park/The Information

The Electric Quarterly: China Tightens Its Grip on U.S. and European EV Makers

By Steve LeVine · Mar 27, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Welcome back to The Electric!The year is just three months old, yet a torrent of events has already happened and new trends have taken shape. To help make sense of it all and connect the dots, below you will find the first issue of The Electric Quarterly, a four-times-a-year special edition of the publication that both wraps up the most recent... Welcome back to The Electric!The year is just three months old, yet a torrent of events has...

The Information Weekend's Special Kids and Tech Issue

The Information Weekend's Special Kids and Tech Issue

By Jon Steinberg · Mar 26, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! As the father of two tween girls, I eagerly anticipated the results of The Information’s first-ever survey of tech parents. The report is fascinating, both for the questions it answers, and the new ones it raises. How many hours of screen-time per day is “normal”? Is anyone out there actually letting kids use VR... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! As the father of two tween girls, I eagerly anticipated the...

Art by Clark Miller.

Play Games, Earn Crypto: For Children of Blockchain Pros, Play-to-Earn Gaming Opens a Brave New World

By Margaux MacColl · Mar 26, 2022 7:00am PDT

Michael Bacina’s daughter knew her father worked in the crypto industry, and she wanted in. Bacina, a lawyer at Piper Alderman in Sydney specializing in blockchain law, recalled a fateful day in a cafe two years ago, when his daughter, then 7 years old, turned to him and asked, “When are you going to buy some [bitcoin] for us?” He was thrilled—... Michael Bacina’s daughter knew her father worked in the crypto industry, and she wanted in....

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, earlier this month in Brussels. Photo by Bloomberg

Why Investors Shrugged Off Europe’s Big Tech Rules

By Nick Wingfield · Mar 25, 2022 4:55pm PDT

Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, earlier this month in Brussels. Photo by Bloomberg

Why Investors Shrugged Off Europe’s Big Tech Rules

By Nick Wingfield · Mar 25, 2022 4:55pm PDT

Greetings!Go figure. Late Thursday, European policymakers agreed on new competition rules that could soon force the most powerful tech companies on the planet to make big changes to their businesses. What was the reaction from investors in Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Amazon and Apple—four of the “gatekeepers,” in EU parlance, who could face the... Greetings!Go figure. Late Thursday, European policymakers agreed on new competition rules that...