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

Roblox CEO David Baszucki. Photo: Roblox

Roblox’s Ill-Timed Outage; More on Meta

By Mathew Olson · Nov 1, 2021 11:00am PDT

While techies around the world spent the weekend mulling over Facebook’s new name, the company that arguably is the closest to having a functioning metaverse was in a major bind. Roblox, the beloved-by-kids game platform with over 43 million daily active users, suffered a complete outage lasting from Thursday afternoon to late Sunday.The... While techies around the world spent the weekend mulling over Facebook’s new name, the company...

Alex Mather. Photo by Erin Beach

DraftKings Was Among Bidders for The Athletic

By Jessica Toonkel and Sahil Patel · Nov 1, 2021 10:25am PDT

Fantasy and sports betting provider DraftKings was among a number of companies that have submitted bids to buy sports news site The Athletic, according to people familiar with the situation. Another sports betting firm, FanDuel, talked with The Athletic but decided not to bid, one of the people said. FanDuel on Tuesday denied an earlier... Fantasy and sports betting provider DraftKings was among a number of companies that have...

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of the company formerly called Facebook, unveiling its new name last week. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook, Snap Eye Commerce Expansion as Apple Roils Ads Businesses

By Sahil Patel and Sarah Krouse · Nov 1, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Buffeted by Apple’s clampdown on user tracking, Facebook—now known as Meta Platforms—is moving quickly to revamp its ad business. Like its smaller rival Snap, whose business Apple’s changes affected even more, Facebook’s efforts include both ad tech modifications and a more intense focus on bringing merchants into... Buffeted by Apple’s clampdown on user tracking, Facebook—now known as Meta...

Construction of Tesla's Gigafactory Berlin in Gruenheide, Germany. Photo: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

The Battery Metals Shortage Could Kill Up To 35 Million EV Sales

By Steve LeVine · Oct 31, 2021 2:00pm PDT

Construction of Tesla's Gigafactory Berlin in Gruenheide, Germany. Photo: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

The Battery Metals Shortage Could Kill Up To 35 Million EV Sales

By Steve LeVine · Oct 31, 2021 2:00pm PDT

Welcome back to The Electric!Electric vehicle developers and entrepreneurs are on track to produce far more battery plants, known as gigafactories, than the EV industry is projected to need this decade. Like the boom in railroads in the late nineteenth century and in low-orbit satellites in the 1990s, the gigafactory fever may be headed for a... Welcome back to The Electric!Electric vehicle developers and entrepreneurs are on track to...

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why Q4 Is Looking Ugly for Much of Big Tech

By Martin Peers · Oct 29, 2021 5:01pm PDT · 2 comments

What a week. It’s now crystal clear just how badly the global supply shortages—both in chips and a broader range of consumer goods—are rippling through consumer-focused tech companies, most notably Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Snap. That sets the scene for an ugly fourth quarter, as all four companies have warned that conditions will worsen. The... What a week. It’s now crystal clear just how badly the global supply shortages—both in chips and...

Clockwise from top-left: Aya Kanai, Aaron DeBevoise, Sean Atkins, Marina Mogilko, Paco Suro. Photos courtesy of companies.

Creator Economy Summit

10 Takeaways from The Information’s Creator Economy Summit

By The Information Staff · Oct 29, 2021 3:22pm PDT · 3 comments

What Snap executives think about the metaverse. How China provides a road map to the U.S. creator economy. Whether membership platform Patreon will soon offer crypto products. These are some of the insights from The Information’s Creator Economy Summit on Thursday. Our speakers included the chief executives of Patreon and creator economy... What Snap executives think about the metaverse. How China provides a road map to the U.S. creator...

Art by Mike Sullivan/ Shutterstock

Amazon and Roku Gird for Battle Over Viewer Data in Latest Streaming Drama

By Jessica Toonkel and Josh Sisco · Oct 29, 2021 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

First it was Google that took a swipe at Roku, threatening to take YouTube, the most popular video-streaming service in the U.S., off Roku devices if the two companies couldn’t resolve a dispute. Now Roku is facing a battle with another tech giant, Amazon. The deal that lets Roku carry Amazon’s free ad-supported channel, IMDb TV, is... First it was Google that took a swipe at Roku, threatening to take YouTube, the most popular...

Mark Zuckerberg announcing Facebook's new name today. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook Goes Meta; Amazon’s Slowdown; Apple Hit by Shortages

By Martin Peers · Oct 28, 2021 5:00pm PDT

Mark Zuckerberg announcing Facebook's new name today. Photo by Bloomberg.

Facebook Goes Meta; Amazon’s Slowdown; Apple Hit by Shortages

By Martin Peers · Oct 28, 2021 5:00pm PDT

It’s not often you see big public companies survive a scandal without taking major action, such as booting the CEO. Think Boeing and the 737 Max drama, which prompted the resignation of CEO Dennis Muilenburg in 2019, or the uproar over Uber’s corporate culture that precipitated the exit of founding CEO Travis Kalanick in 2017. A lesser option,... It’s not often you see big public companies survive a scandal without taking major action, such...

Trends Fueling the Creator Middle Class

By The Information Staff · Oct 28, 2021 4:47pm PDT

During The Information’s Creator Economy Summit on October 28th, we hosted a masterclass session on “Fueling the Creator Middle Class,” in partnership with Accenture. The Creator Economy, much like the global economy, has a concentrated minority at the top and very few creators have financial security. In this masterclass, we... During The Information’s Creator Economy Summit on October 28th, we hosted a masterclass...

Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan.

Facebook’s NFT Play; Lightspeed’s Crypto Love

By Hannah Miller · Oct 28, 2021 4:00pm PDT

Facebook’s corporate name change to Meta Platforms wasn’t the only news coming out of Connect, the company’s annual augmented and virtual reality conference. The tech giant revealed Thursday that it’s looking at integrating non-fungible tokens into its metaverse business, a big stamp of approval for these digital blockchain-based assets, which... Facebook’s corporate name change to Meta Platforms wasn’t the only news coming out of Connect,...

Clockwise from top left: Creator Casey Neistat; YouTube CBO Robert Kyncl; UnitedMasters CEO Steve Stoute; Clubhouse CEO Paul Davison; Lightspeed partner Nicole Quinn. Photos: Getty, Bloomberg, AP and the companies. Illustration: Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy

YouTube’s Promise and Pitfalls: Highlights from The Creator Economy Summit

By Mahira Dayal · Oct 28, 2021 3:39pm PDT

At The Information’s Creator Economy Summit Thursday, YouTube’s Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl told Kaya the number of creators making a full-time living on YouTube has grown consistently for the last five years. That’s helped advertising revenue rise 40% year over year. This is an impressive stat given one might expect to see growth... At The Information’s Creator Economy Summit Thursday, YouTube’s Chief Business Officer Robert...

YouTube video blogger and entrepreneur Casey Niestat. Photo by Getty

YouTube Star Casey Neistat: TikTok Poses ‘Existential Risk’ to YouTube

By Sarah Krouse · Oct 28, 2021 12:20pm PDT · 2 comments

YouTube video blogger and entrepreneur Casey Niestat. Photo by Getty

Creator Economy Summit

YouTube Star Casey Neistat: TikTok Poses ‘Existential Risk’ to YouTube

By Sarah Krouse · Oct 28, 2021 12:20pm PDT · 2 comments

TikTok is “an existential risk” to YouTube, longtime video creator Casey Neistat said, adding that he spends more time scrolling through the ByteDance-owned short-video app than he spends on Netflix and YouTube combined. The comments by Neistat at The Information’s Creator Economy Summit underscore the fierce battle for user... TikTok is “an existential risk” to YouTube, longtime video creator Casey Neistat...

A look at the next Oculus headset, codenamed Project Cambria. Credit: Meta

The Most Important AR and VR News From Connect

By Mathew Olson · Oct 28, 2021 11:20am PDT

The Connect keynote is over, and the company formerly known as Facebook is now called Meta. That’s not the only news of note—here’s some detail and added context on several announcements from Connect 2021.Project Cambria Is the Next Oculus HeadsetOne of the big news items from Connect was the company’s revelation that it plans to release a new... The Connect keynote is over, and the company formerly known as Facebook is now called Meta. That’...

Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

Mark Zuckerberg on Why He Won’t Step Down as CEO and Facebook’s New Name

By Mathew Olson · Oct 28, 2021 11:19am PDT

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says he hasn’t thought “very seriously yet” about spinning off the company’s augmented and virtual reality and metaverse unit Reality Labs from the rest of the business. In an interview with The Information, Zuckerberg also said he had not considered stepping down as CEO. His comments to The... Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says he hasn’t thought “very seriously yet” about...

Clubhouse CEO Paul Davison. Art provided by subject. Illustration Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy Summit

Clubhouse CEO: We Want to Expand to Users Under 18

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 28, 2021 10:00am PDT · 1 comment

Unlike most other social networks, Clubhouse requires its users to be at least 18 years old to use the social audio app. But the company could loosen that age restriction in the future, CEO and co-founder Paul Davison said at The Information’s Creator Economy Summit on Thursday. “We would like to open it up to people who are younger... Unlike most other social networks, Clubhouse requires its users to be at least 18 years old to...

YouTube chief business officer Robert Kyncl. Photo by Bloomberg

YouTube’s Chief Business Officer: E-Commerce Will Become Creator ‘Juggernaut’

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 28, 2021 9:49am PDT · 1 comment

YouTube chief business officer Robert Kyncl. Photo by Bloomberg

Creator Economy Summit

YouTube’s Chief Business Officer: E-Commerce Will Become Creator ‘Juggernaut’

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 28, 2021 9:49am PDT · 1 comment

The booming creator economy could become a “juggernaut” thanks to e-commerce, as individuals with online followings sell products, taking a greater share of consumer spending, said YouTube Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl. “This distributed retail is definitely a force that is starting to build. And the people who will... The booming creator economy could become a “juggernaut” thanks to e-commerce, as...

UnitedMasters CEO Steve Stoute. Photo by AP

Creator Economy Summit

Andreessen Horowitz Values Music Startup UnitedMasters at $550 Million

By Berber Jin · Oct 28, 2021 8:00am PDT

UnitedMasters, a music distribution app for independent musicians, has raised $50 million in a round led by venture firm Andreessen Horowitz at a $550 million valuation, including the new investment. The New York–based startup will use the cash to further its international expansion into regions like Latin America and also pay for... UnitedMasters, a music distribution app for independent musicians, has raised $50 million in a...

Nicole Quinn. Photo provided by subject. Illustration Mike Sullivan

Creator Economy Summit

Lightspeed Targets Over $5.5 Billion for New Funds

By Kate Clark and Kaya Yurieff · Oct 28, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Lightspeed Venture Partners, the venture capital firm that made early bets on Snap and Affirm, is raising more than $5.5 billion for early- and late-stage investments, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The fresh pool of capital represents the largest fundraising yet for the two-decade-old firm and follows a string of... Lightspeed Venture Partners, the venture capital firm that made early bets on Snap and Affirm, is...

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why Snap’s Wall Street Messages Need a More Realistic Lens

By Martin Peers · Oct 27, 2021 5:00pm PDT

As today was a rest day for big tech company earnings—Apple and Amazon are tomorrow—it’s worth reflecting on what we’ve learned in the past few days about the current turmoil in the digital ad market. One takeaway may be that investors don’t understand the ad tech world very well. Otherwise they would have divined ahead of time how Apple’s... As today was a rest day for big tech company earnings—Apple and Amazon are tomorrow—it’s worth...

Acting Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Rostin Behnam. Photo by CFTC. Art by Mike Sullivan.

The Tussle to be Crypto’s Top Cop—and Top Dog

By Hannah Miller · Oct 27, 2021 4:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Acting Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Rostin Behnam. Photo by CFTC. Art by Mike Sullivan.

The Tussle to be Crypto’s Top Cop—and Top Dog

By Hannah Miller · Oct 27, 2021 4:00pm PDT · 1 comment

There’s no doubt that regulatory scrutiny is growing for crypto in the U.S., but it’s still unclear which government agency will have ultimate authority over the industry. That future became even cloudier Wednesday when Rostin Behnam, acting head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said the agency is prepared to become the main... There’s no doubt that regulatory scrutiny is growing for crypto in the U.S., but it’s still...