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

Pavel Durov, CEO of Telegram, in 2016. Photo by Bloomberg

Telegram Founder in Talks to Raise Debt Amid App’s Explosive Growth

By Alex Heath and Cory Weinberg · Jan 13, 2021 11:04am PST

Telegram in the past week experienced a sharp influx of new users who flocked to the private messaging app after rival WhatsApp changed its privacy policies and Facebook and Twitter took a harder line on President Donald Trump and users promoting violence. That growth comes with mounting costs. The Dubai-based startup, which has yet to generate... Telegram in the past week experienced a sharp influx of new users who flocked to the private...

An advertisement for Tencent's WeChat Pay displayed outside a restaurant in Hong Kong last September. Photo: Bloomberg

Tencent Ramps Up Consumer Lending as Rival Ant Group Struggles

By Wayne Ma · Jan 13, 2021 6:00am PST

Chinese tech giant Tencent is planning a big new push into consumer lending in China just as its archrival, Alibaba affiliate Ant Group, is reeling from a regulatory crackdown. Tencent, already a force in payments through its hugely popular WeChat messaging app, is working with a consortium of investors to form a consumer finance company, a... Chinese tech giant Tencent is planning a big new push into consumer lending in China just as its...

Zoom CEO Eric Yuan and others celebrate the day Zoom went public, in April 2019. Photo by Bloomberg

Zoom Stock Offering Hints at Future Deals: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jan 12, 2021 5:00pm PST

Zoom Video Communications sent a signal it may be planning a sizable acquisition. The corporate star of the pandemic era is raising $1.5 billion in stock, cashing in on the incredible run-up in its stock over the past year. In case you’ve forgotten, the videoconferencing company’s stock started last year trading at $68 and reached a... Zoom Video Communications sent a signal it may be planning a sizable acquisition. The corporate...

Sam Lessin

How Blocking Trump Puts the Future of the Internet at Risk

By Sam Lessin · Jan 12, 2021 6:01am PST · 43 comments

Sam Lessin

Modest Proposals

How Blocking Trump Puts the Future of the Internet at Risk

By Sam Lessin · Jan 12, 2021 6:01am PST · 43 comments

The move by social networks to deplatform President Trump last week was the right call. In reality, he left Facebook and Twitter no other choice. That said, the first week of 2021 is going to be remembered as a watershed moment for the history of free speech and the globally open internet. It has the potential to be a tinderbox that undoes the... The move by social networks to deplatform President Trump last week was the right call. In...

Facebook's Menlo Park, Calif., campus. Photo by Bloomberg

Following Trump Ban, Facebook Tells Employees to Avoid Wearing Company-Branded Apparel

By Alex Heath · Jan 11, 2021 5:40pm PST · 5 comments

Facebook on Monday told employees to avoid wearing or carrying company-branded clothing and other items in public following the company’s suspension last week of President Donald Trump’s account and its more recent crackdown on content mentioning “Stop the Steal,” an online movement that falsely claimed the presidential... Facebook on Monday told employees to avoid wearing or carrying company-branded clothing and other...

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Photo by Bloomberg

Most Subscribers See Trump, Parler Bans as Precedent-Setting: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jan 11, 2021 5:01pm PST · 5 comments

A sizable majority of The Information’s subscribers responding to a survey today see the decisions by tech companies to block Parler and President Trump as setting long-term precedents, rather than being specific to the events of Jan. 6. That view raises the fundamental question for all tech companies blocking Parler: Are they going to... A sizable majority of The Information’s subscribers responding to a survey today see the...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan

Why Snowflake Stock Needs to Come Down to Earth

By Ross Matican · Jan 11, 2021 9:01am PST · 6 comments

Snowflake shares have floated a little closer to earth over the past month since the high-flying enterprise software stock hit a high of $390, valuing it at nearly as much as computing pioneer IBM. But even at their recent price of around $300, Snowflake shares are still trading at a valuation that can only be described as bubble-like. The stock... Snowflake shares have floated a little closer to earth over the past month since the high-flying...

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Can Mayor Francis Suarez Bring Silicon Valley to Miami?

By Zoë Bernard · Jan 11, 2021 6:01am PST · 6 comments

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Can Mayor Francis Suarez Bring Silicon Valley to Miami?

By Zoë Bernard · Jan 11, 2021 6:01am PST · 6 comments

Rumors about who might be moving to Miami to escape the supposed decline of the San Francisco Bay Area are spreading faster than the VC funding buzz around hot tech startups. Someone who works with a person who knows Naval Ravikant, founder of tech investment site AngelList, said he heard Ravikant might be coming to Miami to “check it... Rumors about who might be moving to Miami to escape the supposed decline of the San Francisco Bay...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan

Let’s Not Celebrate the Platforms for Kicking Trump Off

By Mark S. Luckie · Jan 10, 2021 1:01pm PST · 18 comments

Calling for violence on social media is OK and spreading disinformation is fine, especially if you’re the president of the United States. At least, that is the message tech platforms have been sending by allowing his accounts to thrive until now. In addition to President Donald Trump’s unceasing attempts to undermine the 2020... Calling for violence on social media is OK and spreading disinformation is fine, especially if...

Big Tech Has Exerted Its Power. Now What?

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 9, 2021 8:01am PST · 6 comments

The horrific events at the U.S. Capitol this week represented a tragic low point in our nation’s history—and the high point of the power of technology platforms over speech. On Friday, Twitter banned President Donald Trump from using the service and wiped away his Twitter history. Facebook earlier indefinitely banned him, and Snap... The horrific events at the U.S. Capitol this week represented a tragic low point in our...

President Trump. Photo by Bloomberg

Twitter’s Trump Ban: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jan 8, 2021 5:31pm PST · 1 comment

Big tech took two daring steps today to deal with Trump and right-wing misinformation—Twitter banned Donald Trump’s account permanently, including deleting all his past tweets. That’s a ground-shaking move in itself. Separately, BuzzFeed reported that Apple has threatened to ban Parler, the social media site popular with... Big tech took two daring steps today to deal with Trump and right-wing...

The Information’s 411 — Googlers of the World, Unite!

By Tom Dotan · Jan 8, 2021 2:56pm PST

The Information’s 411 — Googlers of the World, Unite!

By Tom Dotan · Jan 8, 2021 2:56pm PST

Following the announcement of the new employee union at Google parent Alphabet, we look at what’s behind the recent labor activism in the tech industry, and talk to some of the people behind the organizing efforts. Plus, Cory talks to Alex about the fallout for social media companies following President Trump's incitement of the mob... Following the announcement of the new employee union at Google parent Alphabet, we look at...

AWS CEO Andy Jassy and WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar. Photos by Bloomberg

WarnerMedia Extended AWS Deal to Win Key HBO Max Concession

By Jessica Toonkel · Jan 8, 2021 9:54am PST · 5 comments

For six months after WarnerMedia launched HBO Max, the growth of the high-profile new streaming service suffered because the company couldn’t reach deals to distribute the service on popular streaming devices, including those made by Amazon. The impasse was so paralyzing that John Stankey—CEO of WarnerMedia’s parent company,... For six months after WarnerMedia launched HBO Max, the growth of the high-profile new streaming...

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Photo by Bloomberg

BuzzFeed Has Held Discussions With Rascoff’s SPAC

By Ross Matican and Jessica Toonkel · Jan 8, 2021 6:00am PST

BuzzFeed has held discussions with at least one special purpose acquisition company, Spencer Rascoff’s Supernova Partners Acquisition Co., in a sign that it is actively exploring going public, say people familiar with the situation. BuzzFeed’s interest comes as Group Nine Media has launched its own SPAC to raise $200 million for... BuzzFeed has held discussions with at least one special purpose acquisition company, Spencer...

Trump speaking to protesters on Wednesday before the riot. Photo by Bloomberg

Social Media’s Fuzzy Line in the Sand: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Jan 7, 2021 5:01pm PST

Facebook’s decision to ban Trump for at least the next two weeks got a lot of airplay today, as the most decisive action yet by the social network to deal with disinformation from the president. But it’s doubtful this constitutes any major sea change in Facebook’s historically hands-off approach to dealing with toxic speech. ... Facebook’s decision to ban Trump for at least the next two weeks got a lot of airplay...

President-elect Joe Biden campaigned in Atlanta on Monday with then-Senate candidates Raphael Warnock, center, and Jon Ossoff, left. Photo: AP

Big Tech, Already in the Hot Seat, Faces New Threats From Democratic Senate

By Christopher Stern · Jan 7, 2021 3:59pm PST

President-elect Joe Biden campaigned in Atlanta on Monday with then-Senate candidates Raphael Warnock, center, and Jon Ossoff, left. Photo: AP

Big Tech, Already in the Hot Seat, Faces New Threats From Democratic Senate

By Christopher Stern · Jan 7, 2021 3:59pm PST

Silicon Valley’s tech titans, under siege by federal regulators and lawmakers seeking to rein in their influence, are expected to face forceful new challenges to their power as the Democrats assume control of the White House and both houses of Congress. High on the Democrats’ agenda, policy experts said, are changes to antitrust law... Silicon Valley’s tech titans, under siege by federal regulators and lawmakers seeking to...

Hipcamp campers at a site in Maryland last year. Photo: AP

Hipcamp, ‘Airbnb of the Outdoors,’ Raises $57 Million

By Cory Weinberg · Jan 7, 2021 9:45am PST · 1 comment

Hipcamp, a VC-backed startup that offers people places to stay or pitch a tent in rural areas, closed a $57 million funding round that values it at more than $300 million, according to financial filings, more than double the valuation of its last major financing in 2019. New investors in the round include Index Ventures and Mary Meeker’s... Hipcamp, a VC-backed startup that offers people places to stay or pitch a tent in rural areas,...

Syndio CEO Maria Colacurcio. Photo provided by Syndio

Pay Equity Startup Raises $17.1 Million in Round Led by Bessemer

By Nick Wingfield · Jan 7, 2021 8:46am PST · 1 comment

Most subscription software companies aren’t at the white-hot center of social justice movements, but one that is—Syndio—has seen a surge in corporate customers, including Coinbase. Syndio’s product identifies employee pay disparities based on gender, race and ethnicity. Now Syndio is taking advantage of the growth in its... Most subscription software companies aren’t at the white-hot center of social justice...

Chris Britt. Photo courtesy of Chime.

The Big Interview

How $14.5 Billion Chime Proved Silicon Valley Investors Wrong

By Kate Clark · Jan 7, 2021 6:02am PST · 8 comments

Chime co-founders Chris Britt and Ryan King pitched more than 200 investors in Silicon Valley during the banking startup’s first four years. Nearly every firm passed on it. “It was a little bit of a rocky road just trying to get our footing,” said Britt. The eight-year-old startup, which provides fee-free debit cards for... Chime co-founders Chris Britt and Ryan King pitched more than 200 investors in Silicon Valley...

Guards at the U.S. capitol try to stop pro-Trump mob from entering a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. Credit: Bloomberg

After Capitol Violence, Some Facebook Employees Call For Ban of Trump

By Alex Heath · Jan 6, 2021 6:07pm PST

Guards at the U.S. capitol try to stop pro-Trump mob from entering a joint session of Congress on Wednesday. Credit: Bloomberg

After Capitol Violence, Some Facebook Employees Call For Ban of Trump

By Alex Heath · Jan 6, 2021 6:07pm PST

Facebook temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from posting on the site after dozens of the company’s employees asked CEO Mark Zuckerberg to suspend or ban his account. Trump had falsely claimed in a video post on Wednesday that the election was “stolen” and praised rioters who had earlier stormed the U.S. Capitol. For an... Facebook temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from posting on the site after dozens of the...