The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica E. 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

Google CEO Sundar Pichai. Photo by Bloomberg

Why DOJ’s Damaging Evidence Against Google May Not Be Enough to Break Up the Company

By Jon Victor · Jan 26, 2023 6:25pm PST · 1 comment

Justice Department lawyers on Tuesday revealed embarrassing details about Google’s conduct in the online ad industry as part of a new antitrust lawsuit. Despite evidence and allegations that Google rigged advertising auctions and effectively stole money from website publishers that rely on the company’s advertising tools, the DOJ... Justice Department lawyers on Tuesday revealed embarrassing details about Google’s conduct...

John and Patrick Collison. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why Stripe Won’t Go Public Soon

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 26, 2023 5:00pm PST

Sorry, Silicon Valley. Stripe isn’t going public anytime soon. Today, The Information was the first to report that the Silicon Valley payments company told employees it would go public in the next year or find another way for them to cash out of some of their stock. In an icy-cold IPO market, the news sparked a glimmer of hope that the... Sorry, Silicon Valley. Stripe isn’t going public anytime soon. Today, The Information was...

Stripe's revenue growth fell sharply last year. Photo via Bloomberg.

Stripe’s Revenue Growth Slid Last Year as Firm Burned Through Cash

By Cory Weinberg · Jan 26, 2023 3:40pm PST · 3 comments

Stripe’s revenue growth fell sharply last year and the firm was unprofitable, factors the payments giant will need to navigate while planning to either go public or raise money privately in the next year. The company’s gross revenue—the amount of sales it pulls in before paying out a significant chunk to credit card... Stripe’s revenue growth fell sharply last year and the firm was unprofitable, factors...

Keren Baruch, LinkedIn’s director of product management. Photo: Courtesy of subject

LinkedIn’s Newsletter Subscribers Quadrupled as Meta, Twitter Axed Products

By Kaya Yurieff · Jan 26, 2023 2:26pm PST · 2 comments

Keren Baruch, LinkedIn’s director of product management. Photo: Courtesy of subject

Creator Economy

LinkedIn’s Newsletter Subscribers Quadrupled as Meta, Twitter Axed Products

By Kaya Yurieff · Jan 26, 2023 2:26pm PST · 2 comments

LinkedIn is the only big social media company that’s sticking with newsletters. This month, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and Twitter both shuttered their respective newsletter products as these tech companies cut costs, including shutting down products for creators, after overspending during the tech boom. But for LinkedIn, newsletters are... LinkedIn is the only big social media company that’s sticking with newsletters. This month,...

Photo via Getty Images

Another Software Shakeup: Confluent Chief Revenue Officer Departs

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jan 26, 2023 11:39am PST · 8 comments

As software gets harder to sell, top sales leaders are increasingly getting replaced. Larry Shurtz, chief revenue officer at data analytics firm Confluent, is leaving about 18 months after joining from Salesforce, according to a person with direct knowledge. His departure follows similar removals of sales leaders at major enterprise software... As software gets harder to sell, top sales leaders are increasingly getting replaced. Larry...

Stripe co-founder and CEO Patrick Collison. Photo via Bloomberg

Stripe Should Have Gone Public Already; Volition Raises $675 Million Fund

By Kate Clark · Jan 26, 2023 11:32am PST

You can’t overstate the reverberations a Stripe initial public offering—or even the glimmer of one—would have on startup investing. As my colleagues reported today, the payment software company has told employees it plans to go public or allow them to sell stock in the next year.I doubt even a looming deadline for early stock awards could force... You can’t overstate the reverberations a Stripe initial public offering—or even the glimmer of...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan

At Google, Meta and Other Tech Companies, the Layoffs Are Streaming Live on TikTok

By Chris Stokel-Walker · Jan 26, 2023 10:21am PST · 4 comments

Like many of the 12,000 workers laid off by Google last Friday, Zac Bowling didn’t see it coming. The software engineer, who had worked at the tech giant since May 2015, was building what Google has billed as the future of operating systems, its Fuschia project. He thought his company and his job were safe from the widespread layoffs... Like many of the 12,000 workers laid off by Google last Friday, Zac Bowling didn’t see it...

Patrick Collison, CEO of Stripe. Photo by Bloomberg.

Stripe Plans to Go Public in Next Year or Make a Deal to Resolve Employee Stock Squeeze

By Cory Weinberg, Becky Peterson and Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 26, 2023 8:05am PST · 1 comment

Patrick Collison, CEO of Stripe. Photo by Bloomberg.

Stripe Plans to Go Public in Next Year or Make a Deal to Resolve Employee Stock Squeeze

By Cory Weinberg, Becky Peterson and Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 26, 2023 8:05am PST · 1 comment

Stripe plans to either go public or make a deal that will allow employees to sell stock within the next year, the company told employees and investors Thursday, moves that would be aimed at easing a looming stock crunch for some veteran employees. The company is considering both a direct listing and a private-market transaction that would give... Stripe plans to either go public or make a deal that will allow employees to sell stock within...

Photo by Bloomberg.

Microsoft Readies Service to Let Cloud Customers Pool Data Safely

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jan 26, 2023 6:00am PST · 6 comments

As Microsoft weaves more artificial intelligence into its Azure cloud services and applications, it is also working on security and privacy software to assure customers their information doesn’t fall into the wrong hands when stored on cloud servers shared by multiple customers. As part of this goal, Microsoft is developing an Azure cloud... As Microsoft weaves more artificial intelligence into its Azure cloud services and applications,...

Manchin. Photo: Eric Lee/Bloomberg

The Electric: Manchin Uses a Threat to EV Tax Credits to Fight the Battery War His Way

By Steve LeVine · Jan 26, 2023 4:30am PST

For the last three weeks, U.S. buyers of electric cars have been eligible for a $7,500 tax credit, courtesy of the climate law passed by Congress last year. Now the senator most responsible for the credits, angry over how the Biden administration is implementing the law, is threatening to take them away and possibly force consumers who have... For the last three weeks, U.S. buyers of electric cars have been eligible for a $7,500 tax...

Left photo by Getty Images. Right photo by Bloomberg.

Trump’s Meta Return; Massage Therapists, Matthew McConaughey and Elon Musk

By Martin Peers · Jan 25, 2023 5:00pm PST

So much for Facebook’s efforts to become less political. Meta Platforms’ decision Wednesday to allow former President Donald Trump back onto both Facebook and Instagram threatens to undermine efforts Meta has made over the past two years to reduce the amount of political content people see in their Facebook feed. That promises to be bad for... So much for Facebook’s efforts to become less political. Meta Platforms’ decision Wednesday to...

Photo by Getty Images

How Crypto Deal Activity Could Pick Up Soon; Gemini and DCG’s Latest Woes

By Aidan Ryan · Jan 25, 2023 3:59pm PST

Photo by Getty Images

How Crypto Deal Activity Could Pick Up Soon; Gemini and DCG’s Latest Woes

By Aidan Ryan · Jan 25, 2023 3:59pm PST

The crypto crash of 2022 led several companies to fall and file for bankruptcy. That could lead to more dealmaking in the coming months.On the venture side, a slew of startup stakes will soon be up for grabs from bankrupt crypto firms Three Arrows Capital and FTX. Akash and I reported on Friday that Three Arrows is gearing up to sell off its... The crypto crash of 2022 led several companies to fall and file for bankruptcy. That could lead...

Photo via Shutterstock

Creator Economy

TikTok Expands Direct Messaging; Twitch Pens Letter To Creators

By Kaya Yurieff · Jan 25, 2023 1:51pm PST · 2 comments

TikTok is quietly expanding its use of direct messaging, a feature that’s become a mainstay of rival Instagram. It’s just the latest way TikTok is grafting social network features onto its entertainment feed, as it tries to boost time spent on the app.On Tuesday, TikTok sent an email to some users to highlight changes it made in November to... TikTok is quietly expanding its use of direct messaging, a feature that’s become a mainstay of...

Photo via Shutterstock.

Microsoft Plans Security Features, Wider Release for Its OpenAI-Powered Coding Tool

By Aaron Holmes · Jan 25, 2023 6:00am PST

ChatGPT has generated headlines and hype since its release last year, with its humanlike responses to written prompts. But the business impact of the technology behind the chatbot may first emerge in a different arena: software development. In 2021, Microsoft-owned GitHub, a popular repository for open-source programs, and OpenAI, creator of the... ChatGPT has generated headlines and hype since its release last year, with its humanlike...

Jonathan Kanter, assistant attorney general of antitrust for the US Department of Justice, speaks during a news conference on January 24. Photo by Bloomberg.

DOJ’s Latest Case Against Google Is Intricate But Important

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 24, 2023 5:01pm PST

Over my career as a tech reporter, regulators have sued or threatened to sue Google for exerting monopoly power in its ads business so many times it’s hard to keep track. Today the U.S. Department of Justice and eight states filed the fifth challenge by U.S. officials against the company, building on a case several states filed back in... Over my career as a tech reporter, regulators have sued or threatened to sue Google for exerting...

CEO Maju Kuruvilla. Photo: Getty Images

Bolt CEO Cuts Staff a Third Time as Revenue Lags

By Erin Woo · Jan 24, 2023 4:23pm PST · 3 comments

CEO Maju Kuruvilla. Photo: Getty Images

Bolt CEO Cuts Staff a Third Time as Revenue Lags

By Erin Woo · Jan 24, 2023 4:23pm PST · 3 comments

Bolt, the one-click checkout startup that slashed staff at least twice last year as growth fell short of its goals, laid off around 10% of employees on Tuesday, or at least 50 people, according to two people with direct knowledge. In total, the company, which previously raised $1 billion from investors, has cut more than half of its headcount... Bolt, the one-click checkout startup that slashed staff at least twice last year as growth fell...

Jack Conte. Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

Where Patreon Goes From Here

By Mahira Dayal · Jan 24, 2023 3:03pm PST

Patreon, a nearly 10-year-old startup, became a pandemic success story when lockdowns left artists dependent on online sources for income. But its newfound stature and freshly minted, $4 billion valuation, masked years of mismanagement by founder and CEO Jack Conte and his inner circle, my colleague Paris reported Tuesday. The report covers... Patreon, a nearly 10-year-old startup, became a pandemic success story when lockdowns left...

Art by Shane Burke/Shutterstock.

CISOs Beware: The Government Is Watching

By Don Aviv and Jeremy Hurewitz · Jan 24, 2023 9:00am PST · 2 comments

Uber’s former chief of security, Joe Sullivan, was convicted in October of obstructing a federal government investigation and concealing a felony from the Federal Trade Commission. The trial got plenty of attention, particularly from those working as chief information security officers. Not only was this about Uber, one of the... Uber’s former chief of security, Joe Sullivan, was convicted in October of obstructing a...

Patreon CEO Jack Conte. Art by Mike Sullivan

At Patreon, Mismanagement Thwarts a Pandemic-Era Star

By Paris Martineau · Jan 24, 2023 6:00am PST · 3 comments

Two years ago, Jack Conte seemed to have pulled off one of the most remarkable makeovers in recent Silicon Valley memory. A musician and popular YouTuber, Conte had found his rhythm as an entrepreneur through Patreon, the startup he co-founded to help creators like himself find fans willing to support them financially. The number of creators... Two years ago, Jack Conte seemed to have pulled off one of the most remarkable makeovers in...

The back windshield of a Waymo Chrysler Pacifica robotaxi prototype. Photo by Bloomberg

Alphabet’s Waymo Robotaxi Subsidiary Cuts Staff, Including Trucking Engineers

By Jon Victor · Jan 23, 2023 10:41pm PST · 2 comments

The back windshield of a Waymo Chrysler Pacifica robotaxi prototype. Photo by Bloomberg

Alphabet’s Waymo Robotaxi Subsidiary Cuts Staff, Including Trucking Engineers

By Jon Victor · Jan 23, 2023 10:41pm PST · 2 comments

Alphabet’s self-driving vehicle unit Waymo quietly laid off staff Monday, continuing a wave of job cuts at the parent company of Google, according to LinkedIn posts from affected employees and one person briefed about the move. The posts indicated that Waymo cut recruiters, people who help train other employees to operate... Alphabet’s self-driving vehicle unit Waymo quietly laid off staff Monday, continuing a wave...