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

Chock-a-blockchain - The 411 Podcast

By The Information Staff · Dec 17, 2021 11:54am PST

Sand Hill Road has gone crypto-crazy (exhibit A and exhibit B), making it the best time ever to be a cryptocurrency or blockchain-based startup. Six such companies drew our attention enough to make it into this year’s The Information 50 list of promising startups. They range from an environmentally friendly... Sand Hill Road has gone crypto-crazy (exhibit A and exhibit B), making it the best time...

Tech’s Most Powerful Stories Are Being Written by Women

By E.B. Boyd · Dec 17, 2021 10:10am PST · 3 comments

So there she was. Julie Zhuo. Just two years out of Stanford. At 25, a newly promoted manager at Facebook, wandering around the business sections of Bay Area bookstores, desperately looking for something that would tell her how to lead the team she’d just been battlefield-promoted to run. And finding nothing. It was 2008, early days at Facebook.... So there she was. Julie Zhuo. Just two years out of Stanford. At 25, a newly promoted manager at...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Elon vs. Everyone

“Tesla Is Not as Cool as It Used to Be”

By Bradley Berman · Dec 17, 2021 9:00am PST · 39 comments

When Joseph Kwong decided to buy his first electric vehicle in 2014, the choice was a no-brainer. Kwong, chief executive of EVEN Recharge—a startup developing neighborhood EV charging solutions—lives in Fremont, Calif., a few miles away from Tesla’s main factory. He was thrilled to plunk down $83,000 to buy his first Tesla Model S. “I knew that... When Joseph Kwong decided to buy his first electric vehicle in 2014, the choice was a no-brainer....

Art by Haejin Park

Can I Let One Kid Play Violent Video Games and Not the Other?

By Emily Dreyfuss · Dec 17, 2021 6:00am PST · 1 comment

Art by Haejin Park

Can I Let One Kid Play Violent Video Games and Not the Other?

By Emily Dreyfuss · Dec 17, 2021 6:00am PST · 1 comment

This is Parentverse, The Information Weekend’s advice column for tech-savvy parents raising kids in a tech-dependent world.Email us your parenting questions [email protected]. Or, if you don’t mind sharing them with your fellow subscribers, post them in the comments below. Dear Parentverse: I have two kids who are just different... This is Parentverse, The Information Weekend’s advice column for tech-savvy parents raising kids...

Illustration by Josh Brill

The Year Startup Investors and Founders Went Ape Over Crypto

By Kate Clark · Dec 17, 2021 6:00am PST · 4 comments

Erick Calderon is an entrepreneur down to his bones. In college, he opened a snow cone stand across from the University of Texas at Austin. For the past 18 years, the 40-year-old has run a business in Houston that imports high-end porcelain and ceramic tiles from Spain and Italy. But both ventures pale in comparison with Calderon’s success... Erick Calderon is an entrepreneur down to his bones. In college, he opened a snow cone stand...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero.

How to Gift Someone a Last-Second NFT in Six (Somewhat) Simple Steps

By Amrita Khalid · Dec 17, 2021 6:00am PST

It’s one week until Christmas, and time to face the music: The non-fungible token is undoubtedly the gift of the season. It’s endlessly customizable, doesn’t require shipping, and is completely unaffected by the supply chain. Ian Rogers would know; he’s the chief experience officer of Ledger, a crypto hardware wallet, who gifted NFTs (including... It’s one week until Christmas, and time to face the music: The non-fungible token is undoubtedly...

Photo: Courtesy QuantumScape

QuantumScape Claims Another Breakthrough For Lithium Metal Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Dec 17, 2021 4:25am PST

QuantumScape, a next-generation battery company backed by Volkswagen, is years away from a fully scaled-up product and achieving any revenue. But it has attracted persistent industry and investor attention with a drumbeat of claimed breakthroughs to fundamental battery problems that have long stumped everyone else. The latest was last week,... QuantumScape, a next-generation battery company backed by Volkswagen, is years away from a fully...

Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, Calif., home to the VC industry. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cringeworthy VCs in the Creator Economy

By Martin Peers · Dec 16, 2021 5:00pm PST

Sand Hill Road in Menlo Park, Calif., home to the VC industry. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cringeworthy VCs in the Creator Economy

By Martin Peers · Dec 16, 2021 5:00pm PST

In theory, venture capitalists are unusually smart people, given their responsibilities to deploy tens of millions of dollars on behalf of pension funds, university endowments and other investors. But then you read a story, like this one in The Information today, and it’s hard to avoid the feeling that there are at least a few not-so-smart... In theory, venture capitalists are unusually smart people, given their responsibilities to deploy...

Photos: Supernatural VR

FTC Slows Meta Platforms’ Metaverse Strategy By Extending Antitrust Probe of VR Deal

By Josh Sisco · Dec 16, 2021 4:18pm PST · 1 comment

Meta Platforms’ Oculus virtual reality headsets are a vital step toward creating what its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, calls the metaverse, an immersive internet in which people can interact in digital spaces. In addition to building Oculus, Meta has acquired at least six companies that made some of the most popular games and other apps for the... Meta Platforms’ Oculus virtual reality headsets are a vital step toward creating what its...

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Coinbase Enters the Metaverse; An Exodus from Meta’s Novi Unit

By Hannah Miller · Dec 16, 2021 4:00pm PST

Coinbase wants a piece of the metaverse. But instead of building its own virtual world, the crypto exchange is focusing on how to manage people’s identities within this three-dimensional, immersive version of the internet. The company’s goals could put it at odds with tech giants like Meta Platforms, which plans to spend $10 billion on its... Coinbase wants a piece of the metaverse. But instead of building its own virtual world, the...

Tori Dunlap, Founder of Her First 100K. Photo: Courtesy Tori Dunlap

Creator Economy

Boot-Strapping the Creator Economy; TikTok Tweaks its Algorithm

By Kaya Yurieff · Dec 16, 2021 2:41pm PST

We published a feature on Thursday morning about some of the difficulties female founders of startups have encountered while fundraising, and how those deals amounted to less than 5% of the sector’s funding in the first eight months of the year, according to The Information’s Creator Economy Database. One thread that emerged from our... We published a feature on Thursday morning about some of the difficulties female founders of...

Liz Reid announces Google Maps features at Google I/O 2021. Screengrab via YouTube.

Let’s Open Big Tech’s Financial Black Box

By Tim O'Reilly · Dec 16, 2021 9:00am PST · 1 comment

Liz Reid announces Google Maps features at Google I/O 2021. Screengrab via YouTube.

Let’s Open Big Tech’s Financial Black Box

By Tim O'Reilly · Dec 16, 2021 9:00am PST · 1 comment

Markets work best when everyone has access to the same information. That’s why the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission requires public companies to file 10-Qs and 10-Ks, and why insider trading rules prohibit trading on the basis of material nonpublic information. Companies are also required (though said requirement is weakly enforced... Markets work best when everyone has access to the same information. That’s why the U.S....

From left to right, Fave CEO Jacquelle Amankonah Horton, The Luupe CEO Keren Sachs, Lili CEO Lilac Bar David and Curastory CEO Tiffany Kelly. Photos courtesy of the companies.

Creators Are Mostly Women. Where’s the Money For Women-Led Creator Startups?

By Kaya Yurieff · Dec 16, 2021 6:00am PST · 3 comments

In 2019, Keren Sachs was pitching her new startup, which connects female photographers with business clients, to a partner at a midsize New York venture firm when he gave her some disheartening advice: Ditch entrepreneurship and focus on keeping her husband happy. A year later, when she was on the phone to discuss joining a fundraising... In 2019, Keren Sachs was pitching her new startup, which connects female photographers with...

Cryptocurrency investor Katie Haun in 2018.

What Crypto Investor Katie Haun’s Exit From Andreessen Horowitz Means

By Kate Clark · Dec 15, 2021 6:07pm PST · 4 comments

Surging public adoption of cryptocurrencies and investments in crypto-related startups this year has already forced major changes at some of the biggest venture capital firms, which have raced to catch up to VC upstarts specializing in the crypto sector. But the departure Wednesday of crypto-investment partner Katie Haun from Andreessen... Surging public adoption of cryptocurrencies and investments in crypto-related startups this year...

A Covid testing line in New York this week. Photo by AP

Covid Clouds Gather

By Martin Peers · Dec 15, 2021 5:00pm PST

This is shaping up to be another Christmas overshadowed by Covid-19. Lines for testing in New York City have suddenly lengthened. Apple shuttered three retail stores in North America after a rise in Covid-19 exposures among employees. Broadway theaters are canceling productions. Colleges are shifting exams to online only. What’s the bet that... This is shaping up to be another Christmas overshadowed by Covid-19. Lines for testing in New...

Andreessen Horowitz General Partner Katie Haun. Photo from Katie Haun. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Katie Haun Has a Crypto Fund of Her Own; Crypto Miners Pan for Gold

By Hannah Miller · Dec 15, 2021 4:12pm PST · 1 comment

Andreessen Horowitz General Partner Katie Haun. Photo from Katie Haun. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Katie Haun Has a Crypto Fund of Her Own; Crypto Miners Pan for Gold

By Hannah Miller · Dec 15, 2021 4:12pm PST · 1 comment

Katie Haun’s decision to leave Andreessen Horowitz to start her own crypto and Web3 fund gives a big stamp of approval to these spaces. Andreessen Horowitz has been steadily building its crypto team and raising massive funds dedicated to the industry. But Haun’s willingness to strike out on her own shows her confidence in crypto. After... Katie Haun’s decision to leave Andreessen Horowitz to start her own crypto and Web3 fund gives a...

Tyler Faux, Co-Founder & CEO, Supergreat

Creator Economy

Shopify Backs a Creator Economy Startup; Q&A With TikToker Lex del Valle

By Mahira Dayal · Dec 15, 2021 3:22pm PST

Supergreat, a beauty-focused live streaming and shopping app, has raised $20 million in a funding round led by Greenoaks and joined by Shopify. Existing investors such as Benchmark, which led Supergreat’s $10 million Series A investment in July, along with Thrive Capital, TQ Ventures, Shrug Capital and Third Kind also participated. Details of... Supergreat, a beauty-focused live streaming and shopping app, has raised $20 million in a funding...

Traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Monday. Photo by Bloomberg.

Once-Hot Enterprise Software Stocks Cool as Investors Get Picky

By Aidan Ryan · Dec 15, 2021 11:33am PST

Enterprise software, long one of the hottest sectors of the tech industry on the public market, has suddenly turned cold. Fears about rising interest rates and a slowdown from pandemic-driven growth surges have delivered a double whammy to enterprise software stocks in recent months. A group of 46 such firms are down 3% so far this year,... Enterprise software, long one of the hottest sectors of the tech industry on the public market,...

Conor Russomanno, left, checking Galea devices attached to Valve Index VR headsets. Photo: OpenBCI

OpenBCI Gets VC Funding; Teasing Out Snap AR Trends

By Mathew Olson · Dec 15, 2021 11:00am PST

Brooklyn-based startup OpenBCI, which is working on a VR headset accessory designed in partnership with Valve and the eye-tracking company Tobii, is raising its first round of venture capital. Coming eight years after its founding, the funding round of undisclosed size signals that OpenBCI wants to get ahead of increased momentum in the sector.“... Brooklyn-based startup OpenBCI, which is working on a VR headset accessory designed in...

Art by Mike Sullivan

AWS Is Too Big to Fail

By Corey Quinn · Dec 15, 2021 9:00am PST · 6 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan

AWS Is Too Big to Fail

By Corey Quinn · Dec 15, 2021 9:00am PST · 6 comments

Amazon Web Services, Amazon’s stunningly profitable cloud division, powers the online presences of millions of users—and by users, I mean Fortune Global 2000 heavyweights ranging from Netflix to iRobot to the Nasdaq stock exchange. Quite simply, AWS is too big and has too many customers for the good of society. I say this as both an... Amazon Web Services, Amazon’s stunningly profitable cloud division, powers the online...