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

Five times/week

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.

By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy

Recent Editions

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Photo by Bloomberg

In Defense of Tim Cook

By Nick Wingfield · Aug 24, 2021 5:31pm PDT

Tuesday was a good day for Tim Cook. On the 10-year anniversary of his appointment as Apple CEO, tributes to his leadership of the company began flowing—drowning out, for a moment, the gripes from some of his critics.The most common of the Cook complaints is that Apple has lost its creative razzle-dazzle. His predecessor, Steve Jobs, hit a... Tuesday was a good day for Tim Cook. On the 10-year anniversary of his appointment as Apple CEO,...

Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

The Race for Social Shopping is Wide Open; OnlyFans CEO Speaks Out

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 24, 2021 4:12pm PDT

Nearly every social network now offers some sort of in-app shopping, including Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest. And why not? These features could lead to new sources of income, say by sales commissions, and help attract creators, who often promote products. But despite the wide interest, it’s not clear how successful any of them have been.On... Nearly every social network now offers some sort of in-app shopping, including Instagram,...

Artist Cai Guo-Qiang and his self-portrait Exploding the Self, which is being sold as an NFT next month. Photo by Luo Sang, courtesy of Cai Studio.

Stablecoin Wars Heat Up; A $999 High-Art NFT; Infrastructure Bill Is Back

By Hannah Miller · Aug 24, 2021 3:15pm PDT

Paxos, one of the smaller companies competing for share in the growing market for stablecoins, is undergoing an image makeover. The New York-based company said Tuesday that it renamed its Paxos Standard stablecoin as Pax Dollar, with USDP as its ticker symbol. Paxos said the change will help customers more easily grasp that USDP is backed by the... Paxos, one of the smaller companies competing for share in the growing market for stablecoins, is...

Sequoia Capital China's Neil Shen. Photo by Bloomberg

Sequoia Capital’s China Affiliate Launches Hedge Fund for Health, Biotech Stocks

By Juro Osawa · Aug 24, 2021 12:51pm PDT

Sequoia Capital China's Neil Shen. Photo by Bloomberg

Sequoia Capital’s China Affiliate Launches Hedge Fund for Health, Biotech Stocks

By Juro Osawa · Aug 24, 2021 12:51pm PDT

Sequoia Capital China, the Chinese affiliate of the Silicon Valley venture capital firm, has quietly launched a new fund to buy and sell shares of publicly listed health and biotech companies, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. This marks the firm’s second hedge fund as the traditional boundaries between public and... Sequoia Capital China, the Chinese affiliate of the Silicon Valley venture capital firm, has...

A scene in "I Expect You to Die 2: The Spy and the Liar." Credit: Schell Games

A Veteran Designer Talks VR’s ‘Commodore 64 Moment’

By Mathew Olson · Aug 24, 2021 11:00am PDT

Game designer Jesse Schell, the CEO and founder of Schell Games, has worked on VR since the early ‘90s, pushing primitive hardware to its limits with teams of Disney Imagineers and student researchers at Carnegie Mellon University. Along the way, Schell also helped create one of VR gaming’s biggest hits: “I Expect You to Die,” a puzzler where... Game designer Jesse Schell, the CEO and founder of Schell Games, has worked on VR since the early...

David Sykes, head of Klarna North America. Photo: Klarna

Q&A

Klarna’s U.S. Chief: Expect a 12-Month ‘Land Grab’ in Buy Now, Pay Later Services

By Malique Morris and Mark Di Stefano · Aug 24, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Stockholm-based Klarna, the oldest and biggest of the payment firms dedicated to buy now, pay later services, isn’t a household name in the U.S. But that may soon change. Klarna has been going directly after deals with large U.S. retailers such as Macy’s, Sephora and Nike. Targeting big retailers—rather than focusing on deals... Stockholm-based Klarna, the oldest and biggest of the payment firms dedicated to buy now, pay...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg

Facebook's Own Goal on Giphy

By Amir Efrati · Aug 23, 2021 5:23pm PDT

Last week, Federal Trade Commission lawyers made clumsy arguments when they refiled their antitrust case against Facebook. This week, it’s Facebook’s turn to look dumb and arrogant in its dealings with the FTC and the public.When Facebook acquired Giphy—a provider of animated GIFs—in May 2020, it structured the roughly $400 million deal in order... Last week, Federal Trade Commission lawyers made clumsy arguments when they refiled their...

Photos featured on the Accidentally Wes Anderson Instagram account. Photo credit: Wally Koval, @accidentallywesanderson, @sarahisle, @wherehayleygoes, @friiidaberg, @colewhitworth

The OnlyFans Fallout Continues; Q&A With Instagram Account ‘Accidentally Wes Anderson’

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 23, 2021 4:10pm PDT

Photos featured on the Accidentally Wes Anderson Instagram account. Photo credit: Wally Koval, @accidentallywesanderson, @sarahisle, @wherehayleygoes, @friiidaberg, @colewhitworth

Creator Economy

The OnlyFans Fallout Continues; Q&A With Instagram Account ‘Accidentally Wes Anderson’

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 23, 2021 4:10pm PDT

OnlyFans’ big announcement last week that it will ban sexually explicit content is still prompting a lot more questions from some performers—and observers—than answers. The latest: Over the weekend, OnlyFans responded to a backlash among sex workers to its policy change by acknowledging their importance to the U.K startup’s sucess. “The... OnlyFans’ big announcement last week that it will ban sexually explicit content is still...

Article Image Caption Tron CEO Justin Sun in Hong Kong in May, 2020. Sun said he spent $600,000 on an EtherRock. Photo: Bloomberg

PayPal Helps Push Bitcoin Past $50,000; The Problem With EtherRocks

By Hannah Miller · Aug 23, 2021 3:43pm PDT · 1 comment

The price of bitcoin crossed the $50,000 threshold for the first time since May on Sunday and then reached as high as $50,482 following news that PayPal now allows its customers in the U.K. to buy, hold and sell bitcoin, ether, litecoin and bitcoin cash. PayPal’s expansion marks the first time the payment service’s crypto offerings are... The price of bitcoin crossed the $50,000 threshold for the first time since May on Sunday and...

Jeremy King, Pinterest's head of engineering. Collage by Joanna Lin Su. Photo by Bloomberg

Q&A

How Pinterest Learned to Control Cloud Costs

By Kevin McLaughlin · Aug 23, 2021 2:25pm PDT · 6 comments

Like many other large Amazon Web Services customers, Pinterest at times has struggled to accurately forecast its cloud capacity needs in advance, causing it to pay for additional capacity at a higher price. But some of the measures implemented in recent years by Jeremy King, Pinterest’s head of engineering, show how the scrapbooking app... Like many other large Amazon Web Services customers, Pinterest at times has struggled to...

How Facebook Workrooms Compares to Other VR Work Apps

By Mathew Olson · Aug 23, 2021 11:00am PDT

Facebook’s Workrooms is far from the only VR meeting app around. When comparing it against just a handful of its competitors on a limited set of features, it’s clear that there are many aspects of Workrooms that Facebook can improve. And there are many ways that apps from smaller companies have better features than Workrooms, at least for now.To... Facebook’s Workrooms is far from the only VR meeting app around. When comparing it against just a...

Collage by Joanna Lin Su. Photos by Bloomberg (buildings), Flickr (flag)

After Beijing Takes ByteDance Board Seat, Tencent and Alibaba May Be Next

By Shai Oster and Juro Osawa · Aug 23, 2021 6:01am PDT

Collage by Joanna Lin Su. Photos by Bloomberg (buildings), Flickr (flag)

After Beijing Takes ByteDance Board Seat, Tencent and Alibaba May Be Next

By Shai Oster and Juro Osawa · Aug 23, 2021 6:01am PDT

The move by Chinese authorities to take an equity stake and board seat in ByteDance’s China subsidiary isn’t a one-off. It’s part of Beijing’s effort to increase oversight of all social media and news, which means other major owners of online content platforms, such as Tencent, Alibaba and Kuaishou, will likely be on the... The move by Chinese authorities to take an equity stake and board seat in ByteDance’s China...

Image: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto/AP

EV Hackers Are Coming—and a Fortune Awaits Their Foes

By Steve LeVine · Aug 22, 2021 2:00pm PDT

Starting around 2025, the world’s cyberspace bad actors will suddenly have a gigantic and fast-expanding new arena in which to operate—some 50 million electric vehicles that by then are expected to be plying roads everywhere, with hundreds of millions more to come in subsequent years. All of them will be connected to the internet through dozens... Starting around 2025, the world’s cyberspace bad actors will suddenly have a gigantic and...

‘Speed’ and ‘Growth’ and WTF 2021

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 21, 2021 7:45am PDT

A lot of words seem to capture the last 18 months, none of them terribly positive: Virus, death, upheaval and tragedy are some that come to mind.But two more positive ones that I don’t think are getting enough attention are speed and growth. Throughout the business world—and especially in tech, media and finance—these words capture what so many... A lot of words seem to capture the last 18 months, none of them terribly positive: Virus, death,...

A rendering of the Propel Center, a tech-focused learning hub Apple is funding in Atlanta. Image provided by Apple.

Apple’s Unsavory Lobbying; Musk’s Autopilot Dream Is Still Far Off

By Nick Wingfield · Aug 20, 2021 5:41pm PDT

It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone when companies pull out the stops to lobby against legislation they view as harmful to their interests. And yet, a new examination of Apple’s lobbying tactics contained a detail about Apple’s tactics in a recent battle with Georgia state lawmakers that was jaw-dropping, especially for a company that often... It shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone when companies pull out the stops to lobby against...

Dan Rose (left), Thomas Laffont (center) and Philippe Laffont (right) of Coatue Management. Photo of Rose and Philippe Laffont by Bloomberg. Thomas Laffont photo by Erin Beach.

Coatue’s Newer Growth Funds Return More Than 45% Annually, Internal Data Show

By Berber Jin · Aug 20, 2021 2:31pm PDT · 5 comments

Dan Rose (left), Thomas Laffont (center) and Philippe Laffont (right) of Coatue Management. Photo of Rose and Philippe Laffont by Bloomberg. Thomas Laffont photo by Erin Beach.

Coatue’s Newer Growth Funds Return More Than 45% Annually, Internal Data Show

By Berber Jin · Aug 20, 2021 2:31pm PDT · 5 comments

The private tech funds of Coatue Management, the New York hedge fund that’s become one of Silicon Valley’s biggest investors, have started to outpace the returns of rival VC firms in recent years as the size of those funds swelled, according to internal data reviewed by The Information. Coatue’s third venture growth fund, which... The private tech funds of Coatue Management, the New York hedge fund that’s become one of...

A semitruck hauling Amazon cargo in February. Photo by Bloomberg

New Amazon Tracking Device to Monitor Trucker Safety, Collect Data

By Paris Martineau · Aug 20, 2021 6:06am PDT

Amazon is moving to more directly monitor the hours truck drivers spend transporting freight between its warehouses, which could give it better insight into possible safety violations—and capture a wealth of other data. The internet retailer has developed its own version of a technology, known as an electronic logging devices, to track... Amazon is moving to more directly monitor the hours truck drivers spend transporting freight...

The Federal Trade Commission building in Washington, D.C. Photo by Bloomberg

The FTC’s Clumsy Second Salvo Against Facebook

By Amir Efrati · Aug 19, 2021 5:51pm PDT

Two months ago, the Federal Trade Commission was chastened by a federal judge who summarily dismissed the agency’s antitrust lawsuit against Facebook in which it sought to force the company to spin off Instagram and WhatsApp. Now the agency seems to be asking for another lashing from the jurist—and a similar result.On Thursday the agency filed a... Two months ago, the Federal Trade Commission was chastened by a federal judge who summarily...

Photo: Bloomberg

Creator Economy

Who Wins as OnlyFans Sheds Its Porn Past

By Kaya Yurieff · Aug 19, 2021 4:21pm PDT · 1 comment

OnlyFans was one of the startups that became synonymous with the rise of the creator economy last year, as it grew to a $383 million-revenue company on subscriptions and tips that went directly to performers, who were largely producing sexually explicit content. So it’s huge news that it’s getting out of the business that made it such a... OnlyFans was one of the startups that became synonymous with the rise of the creator economy last...

Jay Clayton, former chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in 2019. Photo: Bloomberg

Ex-SEC Chair Joins Crypto Firm; Coinbase Japan Goes Live

By Hannah Miller · Aug 19, 2021 2:30pm PDT

Jay Clayton, former chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in 2019. Photo: Bloomberg

Ex-SEC Chair Joins Crypto Firm; Coinbase Japan Goes Live

By Hannah Miller · Aug 19, 2021 2:30pm PDT

Jay Clayton, who served as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission under former President Donald Trump, has joined the advisory board of Fireblocks, a digital asset custodian that raised $310 million at a $2 billion valuation last month from investors including Sequoia Capital, Spark Capital and Coatue Management. Clayton... Jay Clayton, who served as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission under former...