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

MicroStrategy CEO Michael Saylor. Photo by Bloomberg.

Market’s Bad Day: Crypto and Equities Sell Off

By Martin Peers · Jun 13, 2022 5:00pm PDT

What a day. Today’s sell-off in crypto prices, triggered by crypto lender Celsius’ suspension of withdrawals, seems likely to have repercussions far and wide. And while the stock market didn’t fall as much as crypto prices did today—the Nasdaq dropped 4.7%, compared to bitcoin’s 15.9%—that will be cold comfort to equity investors. After all, the... What a day. Today’s sell-off in crypto prices, triggered by crypto lender Celsius’ suspension of...

Chart: Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy

A Chart of People on the Move at Creator Startups

By Mahira Dayal · Jun 13, 2022 3:11pm PDT

Every week, this newsletter tracks the movement of employees in the creator economy, who are often hopping between the big social networks, startups and agencies. People leave their jobs for a variety of reasons, from the chance to take a more senior position to the allure of joining a fast-growing startup. And of course, some don’t announce... Every week, this newsletter tracks the movement of employees in the creator economy, who are...

From left: Stripe's Patrick Collison, Mike Clayville and John Collison. Images via Stripe; YouTube. Art by Mike Sullivan

Stripe’s Growing Pains: A Payments Star Hits Snags in Push for Big Businesses

By Becky Peterson · Jun 13, 2022 6:00am PDT

Late last year, Stripe gave its employees an enticing new choice: They could either receive their annual bonuses in cash, as they had for years, or they could opt to take some of it as equity in the rocketing payments startup, which was then turning heads with a funding round that had valued it at $95 billion. But it told one group of Stripe... Late last year, Stripe gave its employees an enticing new choice: They could either receive their...

The Mercedes-Benz electric EQS. Photo: Bernd Wei'brod/picture-alliance/dpa/AP

Mercedes and the Knife Fight That’s Coming to the Luxury EV Market

By Steve LeVine · Jun 12, 2022 2:00pm PDT

The Mercedes-Benz electric EQS. Photo: Bernd Wei'brod/picture-alliance/dpa/AP

Mercedes and the Knife Fight That’s Coming to the Luxury EV Market

By Steve LeVine · Jun 12, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Welcome back to The Electric!After a pioneer blazes a trail, copycats follow, hoping to reap the same riches. So it is in the nascent electric vehicles industry, which is crowded with ultra-luxury models hoping to replicate Tesla's success with the expensive Roadster. But one automaker's foray into the top end is not imitation, because it can... Welcome back to The Electric!After a pioneer blazes a trail, copycats follow, hoping to reap the...

Roku streaming devices. Photo by Bloomberg.

Growth of Streaming Ad Market Spotlights Technical Glitch: Viewers Who Switch Off Are Still Counted

By Jessica Toonkel · Jun 12, 2022 8:29am PDT · 3 comments

It’s a funny technical quirk of some streaming devices: Even after viewers turn off their televisions, the devices continue to invisibly, silently play their favorite shows. For viewers, the only hint of this comes when they turn their TVs back on and see that the shows they were watching ran to the end. In some cases, several episodes may... It’s a funny technical quirk of some streaming devices: Even after viewers turn off their...

It's Silicon Summer, Baby

It's Silicon Summer, Baby

By Jon Steinberg · Jun 11, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! This is Jillian Goodman, The Information’s opinion editor, taking over for your usual newsletter-er, Jon Steinberg.The official start of summer isn’t for ten days yet, but here at Weekend, we’re already in full sunglasses mode. I’m filling in for Jon this week while he enjoys some much-needed vacation, and by... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! This is Jillian Goodman, The Information’s opinion editor,...

Art by Clark Miller.

Screentime: LearnVest’s Founder Thinks the Future of Finance Is on Your Phone

By Margaux MacColl · Jun 11, 2022 7:00am PDT

Welcome toScreentime,where tech leaders divulge their most personal phone habits. Inspired Capital partner Alexa von Tobel loves crypto, and the proof is all over her phone. From trading currencies on Gemini to admiring her non-fungible tokens on the POAP app, von Tobel has fully bought into the idea that the financial technology of the future... Welcome toScreentime,where tech leaders divulge their most personal phone habits. Inspired...

Art by Clark Miller

A Silicon Valley Summer Camp Wants Kids to Ditch the Canoes for Holographic Coding

By Flora Tsapovsky · Jun 11, 2022 7:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller

A Silicon Valley Summer Camp Wants Kids to Ditch the Canoes for Holographic Coding

By Flora Tsapovsky · Jun 11, 2022 7:00am PDT

Outside, it’s nearly summer. But at Camp Integem, the “holographic AR summer camp,” it can be any season kids want it to be. To be fair, Camp Integem is, in fact, an in-person experience. At 10 locations around the San Francisco Bay Area, for up to $559 per week, kids ages 5 to 18 can learn skills such as character animation, multiplayer game... Outside, it’s nearly summer. But at Camp Integem, the “holographic AR summer camp,” it can be any...

Sen. Amy Klobuchar. Photo by Bloomberg.

Brits Target Apple’s and Google’s Mobile Power

By Martin Peers · Jun 10, 2022 5:00pm PDT

For all the talk of coming regulations squeezing big tech—and Britain’s antitrust regulator has a new study out today targeting Apple and Google—Wall Street doesn’t seem too bothered. Shares of the iPhone maker and Google’s parent, Alphabet, for instance, have performed better than most tech stocks so far this year, each having fallen around... For all the talk of coming regulations squeezing big tech—and Britain’s antitrust regulator has a...

Art by Clark Miller

Tokens for We but Not for Thee: How a DAO Turned Against One of Its Earliest Investors

By Margaux MacColl · Jun 10, 2022 2:00pm PDT · 3 comments

On May 20, Honey Barrel, whose online bio describes them only as a “vanquisher of non-frens,” woke up and chose chaos. They’re a member of Merit Circle DAO, a decentralized autonomous organization worth over $370 million that loans non-fungible tokens to people who play crypto games but can’t afford the buy-in, according to crypto research... On May 20, Honey Barrel, whose online bio describes them only as a “vanquisher of non-frens,”...

Art by Clark Miller

The ABCs of Summer: An Encyclopedic Guide to Silicon Valley’s Time Off

By Annie Goldsmith · Jun 10, 2022 12:00pm PDT

A Silicon Valley summer features the classics, of course—camping, canoeing, baseball and so on. But leave it to the techies to come up with vacation plans that are more, shall we say, innovative than the old standards. Looking for ideas? You could be like Patreon CEO Jack Conte and build a recording studio in your house. Or try wing foiling (it’... A Silicon Valley summer features the classics, of course—camping, canoeing, baseball and so on....

Chart by Mike Sullivan.

Demand for Specialized Tech Jobs Remains Despite Hiring Freezes and Layoffs

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jun 10, 2022 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Chart by Mike Sullivan.

Demand for Specialized Tech Jobs Remains Despite Hiring Freezes and Layoffs

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jun 10, 2022 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

It’s been a grim couple of months in the tech industry, with announcements of hiring freezes or slowdowns, as well as layoffs, seemingly every other day. But for some specialized roles, hiring appears to be holding strong. Between January and May, job postings for positions in artificial intelligence and machine learning rose more than 60%... It’s been a grim couple of months in the tech industry, with announcements of hiring...

Disney CEO Bob Chapek. Photo by Bloomberg.

Disney Backs Chapek; Meta’s Slight Pullback

By Martin Peers · Jun 9, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Looks like Disney CEO Bob Chapek can relax, as much as any CEO ever can. A statement from Disney’s board today, coinciding with Chapek’s firing of a high-profile but combative TV executive, made clear the board stands behind Chapek. That TV executive, Peter Rice, had been seen in Hollywood as a potential successor to Chapek. The board’s... Looks like Disney CEO Bob Chapek can relax, as much as any CEO ever can. A statement from Disney’...

Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

TikTok Trods a Well-Worn Path With Screen Limits

By Kaya Yurieff · Jun 9, 2022 2:13pm PDT

What’s an easy way to show you’re committed to young people’s well-being—without doing much to change what makes an app addictive? More screen time reminders! TikTok on Thursday announced new screen time controls, joining other social apps and smartphone makers that have instituted similar features in recent years. The ByteDance-owned... What’s an easy way to show you’re committed to young people’s well-being—without doing much to...

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg talking about AR glasses at F8 in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg.

Meta Shifts AR Glasses Plans; The Place of AR and VR at Tribeca

By Mathew Olson · Jun 9, 2022 11:02am PDT

This week has been a bit like watching a row of dominoes fall in slow motion. First in line was Apple’s developer event, which both sidestepped word of Apple’s long-anticipated but unconfirmed headset and left nearly no room for AR news. Then came Alex Kipman’s exit at Microsoft, casting doubt on the future of HoloLens. Now, thanks to a scoop... This week has been a bit like watching a row of dominoes fall in slow motion. First in line was...

A person wearing Meta's Project Aria glasses, a research device for AR hardware development. Photo: Meta Platforms.

Meta Scales Back AR Glasses Plan Amid Reality Labs Shakeup

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jun 9, 2022 9:53am PDT · 3 comments

A person wearing Meta's Project Aria glasses, a research device for AR hardware development. Photo: Meta Platforms.

Meta Scales Back AR Glasses Plan Amid Reality Labs Shakeup

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jun 9, 2022 9:53am PDT · 3 comments

Meta Platforms has scaled back its plans to release a series of augmented reality glasses over the next several years as part of an effort to trim heavy investments it is making in its Reality Labs hardware and AR/VR division, employees were notified Wednesday. Meta has decided to not commercially release what was to be the first version of the... Meta Platforms has scaled back its plans to release a series of augmented reality glasses over...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Secondary Markets Seize Up as Startup Insiders Dump Shares

By Mark Matousek · Jun 9, 2022 6:36am PDT · 1 comment

With the market for initial public offerings all but dead this year and the likelihood of down rounds looming, startup employees have been racing to cash out of their shares. In theory, secondary markets dealing in private companies’ stock should give people a way to do that. There’s just one problem: Someone has to be willing to... With the market for initial public offerings all but dead this year and the likelihood of down...

Meta's Sheryl Sandberg. Photo by Bloomberg.

Clark’s Flexport Move Signals Executive Reshuffle Underway

By Martin Peers · Jun 8, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Are we in for a spate of executive departures? News today that Dave Clark, who quit last Friday as Amazon’s consumer chief, was jumping to logistics software firm Flexport is the latest sign that top executives are choosing this early-summer moment to change jobs. Given how painful business conditions are right now, it’s probably not a bad time... Are we in for a spate of executive departures? News today that Dave Clark, who quit last Friday...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy

Spotify Aims for the Moon on Podcasts; Meta Launches Roblox Rival

By Mahira Dayal · Jun 8, 2022 3:59pm PDT

Spotify used its second-ever investor day Wednesday to go big—very big—on podcasts, which CEO and co-founder Daniel Ek seems to view as a type of jet fuel that will shoot the streaming service’s business into the stratosphere. Executives told investors that podcasts, which brought in $215 million in revenue last year, are a “$20 billion global... Spotify used its second-ever investor day Wednesday to go big—very big—on podcasts, which CEO and...

Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz. Photo: Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Crypto Recruiters Feel the Chill; Breaking Down the Digital Asset Bill

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 8, 2022 1:10pm PDT

Galaxy Digital CEO Mike Novogratz. Photo: Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Crypto Recruiters Feel the Chill; Breaking Down the Digital Asset Bill

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 8, 2022 1:10pm PDT

Over the past few weeks, we’ve been covering the downturn in crypto prices and how that’s affecting crypto companies. For some, it’s triggered layoffs and hiring freezes. But as my story on Tuesday this week shows, there’s also an effect on the broader ecosystem of firms that have helped facilitate the massive growth in the industry. For... Over the past few weeks, we’ve been covering the downturn in crypto prices and how that’s...