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

Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky. Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

What the Celsius Freeze Could Mean for Crypto; Recapping Coinbase’s Turbulent Month

By Aidan Ryan · Jun 15, 2022 2:44pm PDT

As crypto prices continue to plunge, all eyes are on big crypto investors and the lenders that helped speculative investors juice their bets. Trouble in recent days at crypto lender Celsius and crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital has placed the industry on edge just weeks after the implosion of the algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD—in turn... As crypto prices continue to plunge, all eyes are on big crypto investors and the lenders that...

From left, DataRobot executives Tom Levey, Dan Wright (CEO) and Damon Fletcher (CFO). Art by Mike Sullivan

As DataRobot Struggled, Executives Sold Private Shares at Peak Valuation

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jun 15, 2022 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Last year, five top executives at artificial intelligence software startup DataRobot collectively sold $32 million worth of shares to investors, according to confidential documents outlining the sales. The sales occurred after the company was privately valued at $6.3 billion in a funding round. The other 1,200 or so employees, some of whom had... Last year, five top executives at artificial intelligence software startup DataRobot collectively...

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Questions Raised by Coinbase's Job Cuts

By Martin Peers · Jun 14, 2022 5:00pm PDT

How quickly we’ve switched from companies “slowing hiring” to mass layoffs. Coinbase wasn’t the only company from the broadly defined tech sector to institute job cuts today (see below). But the crypto exchange’s decision on Tuesday to slash its workforce by 18% was the most clearly symbolic of how fast the environment has changed, in crypto and... How quickly we’ve switched from companies “slowing hiring” to mass layoffs. Coinbase wasn’t the...

Kim Nortman, co-founder and CEO of Tellie. Credit: Kim Nortman

Startup Tellie to Test Whether Creator NFTs Can Withstand a Crypto Winter

By Mahira Dayal · Jun 14, 2022 4:07pm PDT

Kim Nortman, co-founder and CEO of Tellie. Credit: Kim Nortman

Creator Economy

Startup Tellie to Test Whether Creator NFTs Can Withstand a Crypto Winter

By Mahira Dayal · Jun 14, 2022 4:07pm PDT

Cryptocurrencies and crypto companies are in a tailspin. On Tuesday, crypto exchange Coinbase laid off 18% of its staff, CEO Brian Armstrong suggested we’re headed for a “crypto winter,” and the price of bitcoin fell to more than 50% from its peak. The violent reversal from the crypto euphoria experienced just a few months ago poses a big test... Cryptocurrencies and crypto companies are in a tailspin. On Tuesday, crypto exchange Coinbase...

The separator that QuantumScape claims prevents dendrites. Photo: QuantumScape

The Electric: An Executive Departure Rocks a Highly Touted Battery Maker

By Steve LeVine · Jun 14, 2022 3:37pm PDT

For almost two years, QuantumScape, a prominent U.S. next-generation battery company, has counseled investors to be patient while it builds factories to manufacture lithium-metal batteries that would increase electric vehicle range by up to 50%. By 2024 or 2025, it said, its batteries will be ready to power electric automobiles made by... For almost two years, QuantumScape, a prominent U.S. next-generation battery company, has...

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav. Photo by Bloomberg.

Warner Bros Discovery to Cut as Much as 30% of Advertising Sales Force

By Jessica Toonkel · Jun 14, 2022 12:54pm PDT

Warner Bros. Discovery will this week offer buyouts to members of its U.S. ad sales team, as part of a plan to shrink the global sales force by as much as 30%, according to people familiar with the situation. The buyouts are one of the first big cost-cutting steps taken since the formation of the company from Discovery’s acquisition of... Warner Bros. Discovery will this week offer buyouts to members of its U.S. ad sales team, as part...

Netflix co-CEO Reed Hastings. Photo by Bloomberg.

Netflix Talks With Roku, Comcast About Getting Help on Ad Sales, Ad Tech

By Jessica Toonkel · Jun 14, 2022 6:00am PDT

To jump into advertising, Netflix is getting a little help from its rivals. Executives from the streaming giant in recent weeks have met with representatives of both Roku and Comcast to discuss arrangements under which those companies would handle either the ad sales or the technical infrastructure for Netflix’s forthcoming ad-supported... To jump into advertising, Netflix is getting a little help from its rivals. Executives from the...

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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’...