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

Illustration by Josh Brill

Why Netflix Rivals Are Ditching Binge Watching

By Jessica Toonkel · Feb 7, 2022 10:30am PST · 4 comments

Netflix turned itself into an entertainment empire by getting the world hooked on binge watching. That used to be a model rivals tried to copy, but now it’s starting to look outdated. Cranking out entire original seasons to drop all at once is costly, and viewership can be hit or miss. And if users are accustomed to the instant... Netflix turned itself into an entertainment empire by getting the world hooked on binge watching....

Photo by Bloomberg

Uber and Its Delivery Rivals Reveal Closely Guarded Data to Antitrust Investigators

By Josh Sisco · Feb 7, 2022 6:00am PST

Last October, Uber completed its $1.1 billion purchase of alcohol-delivery startup Drizly and began integrating the business into its Uber Eats food-delivery operation. But the Federal Trade Commission isn’t done reviewing the acquisition. A team of FTC lawyers in New York is scrutinizing the deal as part of a broader probe of whether Uber... Last October, Uber completed its $1.1 billion purchase of alcohol-delivery startup Drizly and...

Jagdeep Singh, CEO of QuantumScape. Photo: Courtesy QuantumScape

QuantumScape’s Fast-Charging Claims Have Sparked a Backlash

By Steve LeVine · Feb 6, 2022 2:00pm PST

Welcome back to The Electric! Save the date: As it has done for decades with oil and OPEC, the world is relying on a single point of supply for its future electric vehicle batteries—China. But how can the U.S. and Europe catch up and establish their own, competitive battery metals supply chain? One answer: by reinventing how battery metals... Welcome back to The Electric! Save the date: As it has done for decades with oil and OPEC,...

Tired of Being Sidelined by 'Another Boy's Club,' Women Are Demanding Their Piece of the Crypto Pie

Tired of Being Sidelined by 'Another Boy's Club,' Women Are Demanding Their Piece of the Crypto Pie

By Jon Steinberg · Feb 5, 2022 8:00am PST

Tired of Being Sidelined by 'Another Boy's Club,' Women Are Demanding Their Piece of the Crypto Pie

Tired of Being Sidelined by 'Another Boy's Club,' Women Are Demanding Their Piece of the Crypto Pie

By Jon Steinberg · Feb 5, 2022 8:00am PST

Hi, welcome to your Weekend!Is there a cryptocurrency linked to schadenfreude? Because you can bet its price would have skyrocketed this week on the news of Meta suffering the biggest wipeout in U.S. corporate history, losing $230 billion in market value in a single day. It’s a safe bet that no tech company in history has built up the ill will... Hi, welcome to your Weekend!Is there a cryptocurrency linked to schadenfreude? Because you can...

Art by Haejin Park.

Death of a Duopoly: Why It’s Time to Reconsider the Facebook-Google Rivalry

By Jessica E. Lessin · Feb 5, 2022 5:00am PST · 4 comments

Before I was an entrepreneur, my career as a tech journalist was marked by covering one story: the rise of the Facebook and Google advertising duopoly and everything it shaped.I started following Facebook as a cub college reporter when it had a few hundred users. Google was my first big corporate beat at The Wall Street Journal, and I spent... Before I was an entrepreneur, my career as a tech journalist was marked by covering one story:...

Meta Platforms' Menlo Park headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg.

Believing in Zuckerberg’s Startup Chops

By Martin Peers · Feb 4, 2022 5:00pm PST

Here’s a question for investors and employees contemplating Meta Platforms after this week’s stock drop: Do you think Mark Zuckerberg can do it again? If you believe the co-founder of Facebook still has the startup chops to turn Meta’s metaverse investment into a lucrative business, then you’re probably going to be buying Meta stock right now.... Here’s a question for investors and employees contemplating Meta Platforms after this week’s...

From top, Brit Morin, Tyra Banks, Jaime Schmidt and Mila Kunis. Art by Haejin Park. Photographs AP and courtesy BFF.

‘The Boys Are Getting Loaded Rich.’ Now Women-Led Crypto Groups Demand Their Turn

By Kate Clark · Feb 4, 2022 12:30pm PST · 1 comment

For Mila Kunis, the actress known for her starring roles in “That ’70s Show,” “Bad Moms” and “Black Swan,” the journey down the crypto rabbit hole involved a lot of lost sleep and some new gray hairs. As she developed the adult animated series “Stoner Cats”, which launched last summer with a collection of non-fungible tokens that grossed $8... For Mila Kunis, the actress known for her starring roles in “That ’70s Show,” “Bad Moms” and “...

‘Oozing, Dripping, Melting, Stretching’: The Art and Science Behind TikTok’s Viral Food Videos

By Flora Tsapovsky · Feb 4, 2022 12:00pm PST

‘Oozing, Dripping, Melting, Stretching’: The Art and Science Behind TikTok’s Viral Food Videos

By Flora Tsapovsky · Feb 4, 2022 12:00pm PST

I’m a food artist and made my eggs into cubes today,” says the robotic British voice-over narrating TikTok sensation David Ma’s recent cooking video. “Let’s look inside!” Over the thrumming beat of Awolnation’s “Sail,” a slicer slowly segments an egg, unveiling—gasp!—a yolk in the shape of a square, a climax befitting a Hitchcock murder mystery... I’m a food artist and made my eggs into cubes today,” says the robotic British voice-over...

Art by Haejin Park.

Dear Parentverse: My Four-Year-Old Trusts Amazon’s Alexa More Than Me

By Emily Dreyfuss · Feb 4, 2022 12:00pm PST · 4 comments

This is Parentverse, The Information Weekend’s advice column for tech-savvy parents. Email us your questions at [email protected]. Or, if you don’t mind sharing them with your fellow subscribers, post them in the comments below. Dear Parentverse: My four-year-old daughter asks Alexa everything—I mean everything. I thought it was... This is Parentverse, The Information Weekend’s advice column for tech-savvy parents. Email us...

Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg in 2019. Photo by Bloomberg

‘Fleeing Facebook’: Why a $115 Billion Ad Business Hit a Wall

By Sarah Krouse and Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Feb 4, 2022 11:53am PST

When Liz Curtis, CEO of event business Fulcrum Group, made a marketing push during the holiday season late last year, she purchased ads on Instagram and Google but stayed away from Facebook, which like Instagram is owned by Meta Platforms. Curtis said Facebook is a “louder and more chaotic place” than its sibling app Instagram, and... When Liz Curtis, CEO of event business Fulcrum Group, made a marketing push during the holiday...

The Biggest Winners of Pre-IPO Funding Rounds

By Aidan Ryan · Feb 4, 2022 6:36am PST

There’s a reason hedge funds like Tiger Global Management have moved aggressively into the venture capital market over the last few years: The gains from buying private shares in startups like Zoom, Coinbase or Affirm, even in the last rounds before a public listing, can be huge. That’s especially true when compared to the... There’s a reason hedge funds like Tiger Global Management have moved aggressively into the...

An advertisement for Big Cats NFT on an electronic billboard in Times Square, NY. Photo: Bloomberg

Tiger’s Fund Flex; Bored Apes Funding Goes Bananas

By Aidan Ryan · Feb 3, 2022 6:09pm PST

An advertisement for Big Cats NFT on an electronic billboard in Times Square, NY. Photo: Bloomberg

Tiger’s Fund Flex; Bored Apes Funding Goes Bananas

By Aidan Ryan · Feb 3, 2022 6:09pm PST

As Crypto Global was about to go to press, my colleagues Kate Clark and Berber Jin published a scoop about Tiger Global Management’s fundraising. The New York-based hedge fund has so far raised more than $11 billion for its latest venture capital fund, which is expected to close in March with a total of $12 billion.Tiger’s ability to push past... As Crypto Global was about to go to press, my colleagues Kate Clark and Berber Jin published a...

Evan Spiegel, co-founder and chief executive officer of Snap Inc., Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

Snap’s Spotlight Viewers Rise; Pinterest’s Ups and Downs; Cameo Joins the Crypto Party

By Mahira Dayal · Feb 3, 2022 5:30pm PST

Snap’s earnings report Thursday, in which it reported its first-ever quarterly profit, sent shares soaring 60% in after-hours trading. The report was a bright spot in a week that contained some disappointments for social media companies, including YouTube’s slowdown in ad revenue growth and Meta Platforms’ drop in users. Snap’s profit comes... Snap’s earnings report Thursday, in which it reported its first-ever quarterly profit, sent...

Evan Spiegel. Photo by Bloomberg.

Snap Shows Up Meta

By Martin Peers · Feb 3, 2022 5:00pm PST

Talk about a mood-altering drug. All three of the tech companies reporting fourth-quarter numbers this afternoon—Amazon, Snap and Pinterest—had some good news to deliver. The result was a dramatic change in mood on Wall Street. For hours tech stocks had been hammered, thanks to Meta Platforms’ downbeat report on Wednesday night. But stocks... Talk about a mood-altering drug. All three of the tech companies reporting fourth-quarter numbers...

Chase Coleman (l) and Scott Shleifer of Tiger Global Management. Photo: Bloomberg. Illustration: Haejin Park.

Tiger Global Raised $11 Billion for New Venture Fund, Exceeding Target

By Kate Clark and Berber Jin · Feb 3, 2022 4:02pm PST · 3 comments

Tiger Global Management, the New York–based hedge fund that made more private tech investments than any other firm last year, raised more than $11 billion for its latest venture capital fund as of January, according to a person familiar with the matter. The firm plans to close the fund, Private Investment Partners 15, in March with a total... Tiger Global Management, the New York–based hedge fund that made more private tech...

A stage presentation for the first Quest headset in 2018. Photo: Bloomberg.

Meta’s New VR Content Stats; HoloLens Turmoil; Behind a VR MMO Launch

By Mathew Olson · Feb 3, 2022 11:04am PST · 1 comment

A stage presentation for the first Quest headset in 2018. Photo: Bloomberg.

Meta’s New VR Content Stats; HoloLens Turmoil; Behind a VR MMO Launch

By Mathew Olson · Feb 3, 2022 11:04am PST · 1 comment

Meta Platforms, remaining tight-lipped about Quest unit sales during its fourth quarter earnings report, instead dangled a juicy datapoint about VR software sales. More than $1 billion has been spent in the Quest Store since its launch in 2019. While this is promising news for developers who’ve made it on the Quest Store, the more you try to... Meta Platforms, remaining tight-lipped about Quest unit sales during its fourth quarter earnings...

Affirm Is Finally Shaking Its Reliance On Peloton — And It Has Amazon to Thank

By Malique Morris · Feb 3, 2022 6:00am PST · 1 comment

Investors who are worried about Affirm’s ties to Peloton may not be giving the fintech firm enough credit for branching out. Peloton has long been Affirm’s biggest revenue driver, accounting for between 20% and 30% of revenue in recent years. Peloton’s sales surge early in the pandemic was a boost for Affirm, which provides... Investors who are worried about Affirm’s ties to Peloton may not be giving the fintech firm...

PayPall app. Photo: Bloomberg.

PayPal Can’t Depend on Crypto to Rejuvenate Earnings

By Akash Pasricha · Feb 2, 2022 6:10pm PST

Big tech companies may be investing in blockchain. But sometimes they ought to focus on their core business. PayPal is one example. On Wednesday, shares of the payment giant sank nearly 25% after the company issued a lackluster earnings forecast for 2022 and axed earlier customer growth targets. The company launched a feature to buy, sell... Big tech companies may be investing in blockchain. But sometimes they ought to focus on their...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

Meta Goes All-In on Reels; a Meme Account Gets VC Funding; Biden Moves on TikTok’s Security Threat

By Mahira Dayal · Feb 2, 2022 5:18pm PST

Meta Platforms is all in on Reels, the short-form video feature on its Instagram and Facebook apps. CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other executives mentioned it repeatedly, both in answer to analyst questions and as a top priority for the company. The metaverse, in contrast, got barely a mention. Meta’s earnings showed some disappointing stats,... Meta Platforms is all in on Reels, the short-form video feature on its Instagram and Facebook...

Ramp co-founders Karim Atiyeh (left) and Eric Glyman. Photo courtesy of Ramp. Illustration by Haejin Park

Founders Fund Invests in Corporate Card Startup Ramp at $8 Billion Valuation

By Kate Clark and Berber Jin · Feb 2, 2022 5:04pm PST

Ramp co-founders Karim Atiyeh (left) and Eric Glyman. Photo courtesy of Ramp. Illustration by Haejin Park

Founders Fund Invests in Corporate Card Startup Ramp at $8 Billion Valuation

By Kate Clark and Berber Jin · Feb 2, 2022 5:04pm PST

Venture capital firm Founders Fund has led a new investment in Ramp, a corporate credit card and spending management software startup that is less than three years old, at an $8 billion valuation, including the investment, said two people familiar with the matter. The deal, initially struck in December, reflects venture capitalists’... Venture capital firm Founders Fund has led a new investment in Ramp, a corporate credit card and...