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

From left, former Katerra CEO Michael Marks, Foxconn founder Terry Gou and SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son in Taiwan, 2019.

Bankrupt Startup That Blew $2 Billion From SoftBank Sues Ex-CEO, Board Directors Over ‘Self-Dealing’

By Cory Weinberg · Apr 25, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

In early 2018, SoftBank, the world’s biggest investor in tech startups, directed accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers to assess a construction startup in which it had just led an $865 million investment. The three-year-old startup, Katerra, was led by a former CEO of Tesla and had hired other experienced Silicon Valley executives and... In early 2018, SoftBank, the world’s biggest investor in tech startups, directed accounting...

A lithium brine pool in Calama, Chile, run by Albemarle. Photo: Cristobal Olivares/Bloomberg

Just How Many EVs Can Be Made? Far Fewer Than Expected

By Steve LeVine · Apr 24, 2022 2:00pm PDT

Save the date: In large parts of the world, when you say “electric vehicle” you don’t mean a car or an SUV, but a scooter—a two-wheeler, as they are better known. And today’s greatest two-wheeler mania of all is perhaps in India, pioneered by Hero Electric, the country’s largest manufacturer of electric two-wheelers, and its managing director, ... Save the date: In large parts of the world, when you say “electric vehicle” you don’t mean a car...

Rosie the Riveting: The Stunning Success Story of Fanhouse Founder Rosie Nguyen

Rosie the Riveting: The Stunning Success Story of Fanhouse Founder Rosie Nguyen

By Jon Steinberg · Apr 23, 2022 8:00am PDT

Hi, welcome to your Weekend! If you were one of those insatiably curious kids who liked to rip apart toasters or ham radios and figure out how to reassemble them (a pretty common hobby in Silicon Valley, I’d wager), you’re going to love Stephen’s story about Lumafield. The CT scanning startup, with offices in Cambridge, Mass. and San... Hi, welcome to your Weekend! If you were one of those insatiably curious kids who liked to...

What to Expect From Next Week’s Tech Earnings Onslaught

What to Expect From Next Week’s Tech Earnings Onslaught

By Martin Peers · Apr 22, 2022 5:00pm PDT

What to Expect From Next Week’s Tech Earnings Onslaught

What to Expect From Next Week’s Tech Earnings Onslaught

By Martin Peers · Apr 22, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Farewell, FAANG. With its stock price collapse this week, Netflix became the second member of the iconic group of high-flying big tech stocks—Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google—to get kicked to the curb this year. The other, of course, was Facebook parent Meta Platforms, whose stock was pummeled after its bleak fourth-quarter earnings... Farewell, FAANG. With its stock price collapse this week, Netflix became the second member of the...

Art: Clark Miller. All photographs: Rosie Nguyen

“She Has Always Played Life on Hard Mode”: A Female Founder on Battling Poverty, Online Harassers and Tim Cook

By Margaux MacColl · Apr 22, 2022 3:13pm PDT · 1 comment

“This account is a safe space for horny women,” Rosie Nguyen announced to her 156,000 Twitter followers earlier this week. “You are loved and seen.” The sentiment was actually a bit tame for Nguyen, who’s gained a large and loyal social media following for her often racy tweets posted under the handle @Jasminericegirl. Nguyen broadcasts the... “This account is a safe space for horny women,” Rosie Nguyen announced to her 156,000 Twitter...

Broadcom headquarters in San Jose, Calif. Photo by Bloomberg

Broadcom is Under Antitrust Scrutiny from the FTC—Again

By Josh Sisco · Apr 22, 2022 1:47pm PDT

Less than six months after Broadcom and the Federal Trade Commission formally settled an antitrust probe of the chip giant, the company is back in the agency’s crosshairs following complaints that it is once again forcing exclusive agreements with customers, according to people with knowledge of the situation and a document seen by The... Less than six months after Broadcom and the Federal Trade Commission formally settled an...

Art by Clark Miller.

Scene and Heard

Dining With Apes: A Visit to the World’s First NFT-Themed Restaurant

By Brandon Reynolds · Apr 22, 2022 1:30pm PDT · 1 comment

In Southern California, it is requisite to compare any food item remotely resembling a hamburger to an In-N-Out burger. So when I visited Bored & Hungry, the world’s first NFT-branded hamburger joint, on Tuesday afternoon, I had In-N-Out on my mind. The new place, formerly a Louisiana Fried Chicken, is at a busy intersection of Long Beach,... In Southern California, it is requisite to compare any food item remotely resembling a hamburger...

Netflix's headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif. Photo by Bloomberg.

Netflix Employees Press for More Pay Flexibility as Stock Drop Wipes Out Option Value

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 22, 2022 12:24pm PDT · 6 comments

Netflix's headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif. Photo by Bloomberg.

Netflix Employees Press for More Pay Flexibility as Stock Drop Wipes Out Option Value

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 22, 2022 12:24pm PDT · 6 comments

Netflix’s stock collapse this week has wiped out the value of all stock options issued to company employees since 2018. It didn’t take long for employees to complain: At a staff meeting the day after the company’s earnings report on Tuesday, employees pressed the company to consider changes to existing compensation arrangements... Netflix’s stock collapse this week has wiped out the value of all stock options issued to...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Nina Jankowicz Wishes She Didn’t Have to Write ‘How to Be a Woman Online’

By Jillian Goodman · Apr 22, 2022 12:00pm PDT

This is10 Questions,a column in which we ask tech authors to pull back the covers on their recently released books. Interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity. Nina Jankowicz may be a former adviser to the Ukrainian government and a global fellow at the Wilson Center working on counter-disinformation programs for the Department of... This is10 Questions,a column in which we ask tech authors to pull back the covers on their...

A pair of Beats Solo headphones as seen by a Lumafield CT scanner.
Art by Mike Sullivan.

What’s Inside Those Beats Headphones? A Startup Gives Product Manufacturers X-Ray Vision

By Stephen Nellis · Apr 22, 2022 12:00pm PDT

Modern running shoes are marvels of technology. In the case of Waltham, Mass.-based footwear company Saucony, that means inserting a carbon fiber plate inside the footbed to provide springiness, implanting advanced foams in the midsoles to give back 90% of the energy a runner puts in, and minutely altering the curvature of a shoe’s sole... Modern running shoes are marvels of technology. In the case of Waltham, Mass.-based footwear...

Photos by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Netflix’s Best Advertising Bet Won’t Require Software

By Andrew A. Rosen · Apr 22, 2022 9:00am PDT · 7 comments

PARQOR is part of The Information’s newsletter network. To receive it in your inbox every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, sign up here. Let’s start with a controversial take: Netflix won’t pivot to a Hulu- or YouTube-like ad-supported model. That is to say, it will find additional revenue in ads, but not with the type... PARQOR is part of The Information’s newsletter network. To receive it in your inbox every...

Illustration by Josh Brill

Tech IPO Market Shows Signs of Life—But Don’t Expect Insane Valuations

By Berber Jin · Apr 22, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Illustration by Josh Brill

Tech IPO Market Shows Signs of Life—But Don’t Expect Insane Valuations

By Berber Jin · Apr 22, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

After a near shutdown in the market for initial public offerings, some tech companies are gearing up for new listings in the next few months. But they’re also coming to terms with valuations likely to be more muted than the ones during last year’s red-hot IPO market, bankers who work on such deals say. One of the first out of the... After a near shutdown in the market for initial public offerings, some tech companies are gearing...

Screenshot of Evan Spiegel via YouTube

Creator Economy

Snap Tests Ads on Spotlight; Q&A With TikToker Kallmekris

By Mahira Dayal · Apr 21, 2022 5:14pm PDT

Snap’s warning that global economic problems are tripping up its business largely overshadowed the rest of its first-quarter results, including a healthy jump in users. But the accompanying call with investors did include an update on its creator products that’s worth noting, especially since they could make its Snapchat app a more fierce rival... Snap’s warning that global economic problems are tripping up its business largely overshadowed...

Evan Spiegel. Photo by Bloomberg.

Snap’s Downbeat Q2 Outlook; Elon Musk’s Twitter “Financing”

By Martin Peers · Apr 21, 2022 5:00pm PDT

Well, next week is shaping up to be grim, at least when it comes to big tech earnings reports. Snap kicked off the digital ad sector’s first-quarter report today with what looked like a solid result of 38% higher revenue than a year earlier. But Snap executives rained on their own party with a relatively gloomy projection of just 20% to 25%... Well, next week is shaping up to be grim, at least when it comes to big tech earnings reports....

Sarah Levy, Mary-Catherine Lader, Tegan Kline, Christine Moy. Photo courtesy of speakers. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Key Crypto Takeaways from The Information’s Women in Fintech Summit

By Akash Pasricha · Apr 21, 2022 4:17pm PDT

On Thursday, The Information hosted a day-long fintech summit as part of our Women in Tech Leadership Forum. Crypto and blockchain were hot topics of discussion, with executives talking about everything from how to get a job at a blockchain startup to the big opportunities at the intersection of crypto and automated investing. Here are four... On Thursday, The Information hosted a day-long fintech summit as part of our Women in Tech...

A Netflix sign in New York. Photo by Bloomberg.

Before Netflix About-Face on Advertising, Months of Debate

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 21, 2022 12:34pm PDT · 3 comments

A Netflix sign in New York. Photo by Bloomberg.

Before Netflix About-Face on Advertising, Months of Debate

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 21, 2022 12:34pm PDT · 3 comments

When Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings interrupted a colleague on Tuesday’s quarterly earnings call to reveal plans for an ad-supported tier, it wasn’t only analysts and investors who were taken by surprise. Earlier this week, Netflix executives indicated to staffers no decision had yet been made on the advertising move, which had been... When Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings interrupted a colleague on Tuesday’s quarterly earnings...

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel at Google's Pixel 6 phone event last year. Photo: Bloomberg.

A Big Week Ahead for Snap; Epic Invests More in 3D Scanning

By Mathew Olson · Apr 21, 2022 11:00am PDT

Snap will report its first quarter results later today. As my colleague Kaya Yurieff laid out in her latest Creator Economy newsletter, Snap’s ads strength and the performance of its TikTok clone are the big questions looming over today’s financials, but do also pay close attention to any new AR stats CEO Evan Spiegel touts. They may give an... Snap will report its first quarter results later today. As my colleague Kaya Yurieff laid out in...

Tech Pay Rundown: Snap Surges While Netflix Sinks

By Mark Matousek · Apr 21, 2022 6:04am PDT · 1 comment

Tech workers saw their paychecks swell last year as their employers became increasingly desperate to hire and retain them, but the gains were unevenly distributed. Take Snap and Netflix. The median salary at the social media firm increased 28% last year, an analysis of company disclosures shows. But at the streaming giant, median pay actually... Tech workers saw their paychecks swell last year as their employers became increasingly desperate...

Crusoe Energy co-founders Cully Cavness, left, and Chase Lochmiller, right. (Photo courtesy of Crusoe Energy. Art by Mike Sullivan.)

Crusoe Energy Valued at $1.75 Billion For Clean Bitcoin Mining

By Akash Pasricha · Apr 20, 2022 5:48pm PDT

One of the biggest critiques of crypto is the energy consumption of digital assets. Bitcoin mining, the process by which computers solve complicated mathematical puzzles to keep the blockchain running, uses more energy than some small countries. Crusoe Energy is one of a handful of startups offering a greener alternative.The Denver company,... One of the biggest critiques of crypto is the energy consumption of digital assets. Bitcoin...

A Netflix office in Los Angeles. Photo by Bloomberg.

Netflix Is Now Just Another TV Firm in Wall Street’s Eyes

By Martin Peers · Apr 20, 2022 5:03pm PDT · 1 comment

A Netflix office in Los Angeles. Photo by Bloomberg.

Netflix Is Now Just Another TV Firm in Wall Street’s Eyes

By Martin Peers · Apr 20, 2022 5:03pm PDT · 1 comment

What goes around, comes around. Netflix’s stunning 35% collapse on the stock market today should be a lesson to investors in all high-flying companies (I’m thinking of you, Tesla shareholders). The same investors who rush in helter-skelter while a business is expanding, happily paying any price, rush right back out again as soon as growth comes... What goes around, comes around. Netflix’s stunning 35% collapse on the stock market today should...