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

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Recent Editions

Sarah Smith. Photo courtesy of Sarah Smith Fund.

How One New Solo GP Is Using AI to Identify Promising Founders

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Jul 10, 2025 3:36pm PDT · 8 comments

When former Bain Capital Ventures partner Sarah Smith raised a $16 million fund to back early-stage startups earlier this year, she decided to use artificial intelligence to answer a question that venture capitalists say usually comes down to human instinct: Which founders are worth meeting?The Menlo Park, Calif.–based investor developed a... When former Bain Capital Ventures partner Sarah Smith raised a $16 million fund to back...

TikTok creator Bryce Hall. Photo courtesy of "Skillhouse."

Creator Economy

A New Influencer Horror Film Shot at the Sway House

By Kaya Yurieff · Jul 10, 2025 2:00pm PDT

Influencers aren’t just appearing on TV screens, but also increasingly on big screens. On Friday, a new horror film starring digital creators called “Skillhouse” will premiere in some AMC and Regal showhouses.The film follows 10 fictional influencers who are lured into a content house where they have to compete in social media challenges and... Influencers aren’t just appearing on TV screens, but also increasingly on big screens. On Friday,...

Art via Mike Sullivan

Why Some Companies Are Canceling ChatGPT Subscriptions

By Aaron Holmes · Jul 10, 2025 10:00am PDT · 1 comment

Companies that buy artificial intelligence chatbots for their workers have many options, and some of them have started looking for the cheapest option. That could explain new data from payments startup Ramp, showing a slight dip in the percentage of Ramp customers that spent money on AI products like ChatGPT between May and June, to 42% from... Companies that buy artificial intelligence chatbots for their workers have many options, and some...

Art by Mike Sullivan

What the OpenAI Web Browser Means; Musk Says Grok 4 is No. 1

By Amir Efrati · Jul 10, 2025 7:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

What the OpenAI Web Browser Means; Musk Says Grok 4 is No. 1

By Amir Efrati · Jul 10, 2025 7:00am PDT

OpenAI’s embrace of Google Cloud servers isn’t stopping it from launching a direct assault on several of Google’s core products. Its next target: Chrome.Reuters on Wednesday reported that OpenAI’s web browser is coming soon. It’s been eight months since we broke the first news about OpenAI’s development of the browser, including its hiring of... OpenAI’s embrace of Google Cloud servers isn’t stopping it from launching a direct assault on...

A cryptocurrency exchange in Istanbul advertises Tether.

Why New U.S. Crypto Rules Will Reverberate Globally

By Yueqi Yang · Jul 10, 2025 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

The most important cryptocurrency bill in history could become law next week, but its immediate effect on everyday Americans will be negligible. Instead, the biggest impact will occur overseas, where it will boost both crypto and the dollar in the global economy. The law will bolster confidence in stablecoins, cryptocurrencies pegged to a... The most important cryptocurrency bill in history could become law next week, but its immediate...

The stationary storage battery plant that Lyten acquired from Northvolt. Photo: Damian Lemanski/Bloomberg/Getty

The Electric: Scrappy Lyten Sees Survival in Drones and Acquisitions

By Steve LeVine · Jul 10, 2025 4:30am PDT

Last November, European battery developer Northvolt was struggling and looking for a buyer for its state-of-the-art lithium-metal manufacturing subsidiary in Silicon Valley. When none of the industry’s big players were interested, battery startup Lyten snapped up the assets, including $25 million in equipment, much of it new, and the... Last November, European battery developer Northvolt was struggling and looking for a buyer for...

Photo via Getty

Why Elon Musk’s AI Focus Doomed Linda Yaccarino

By Theo Wayt · Jul 9, 2025 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Oh, how times have changed! Just two years ago, Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino as the CEO of Twitter with a mandate to clean up relationships with advertisers, many of whom were worried about their products showing up next to hate speech. On Wednesday, Yaccarino unexpectedly announced her departure at a time when the merger of X with Musk’... Oh, how times have changed! Just two years ago, Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino as the CEO...

Jonathan Ross, CEO of Groq. Photo via Getty

Nvidia Challenger Groq Discusses $6 Billion Valuation

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Cory Weinberg · Jul 9, 2025 3:28pm PDT · 5 comments

Jonathan Ross, CEO of Groq. Photo via Getty

Nvidia Challenger Groq Discusses $6 Billion Valuation

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Cory Weinberg · Jul 9, 2025 3:28pm PDT · 5 comments

Groq, an Nvidia challenger that develops chips to power large language models, has talked to investors about raising between $300 million to $500 million at a $6 billion post-investment valuation, according to two people with direct knowledge of the fundraising effort. The deal discussions come as the company told investors its revenue will more... Groq, an Nvidia challenger that develops chips to power large language models, has talked to...

Linda Yaccarino. Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

Linda Yaccarino’s Legacy Turning X Into a Creator Destination

By Kaya Yurieff · Jul 9, 2025 2:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Everyone is buzzing about Linda Yaccarino stepping down as the CEO of Elon Musk’s X after two years at the helm. During her tenure, she often referenced creators in public remarks and in posts on X. But the company has had a mixed track record when it comes to creator tools and making it a more popular destination for influencers. Everyone is buzzing about Linda Yaccarino stepping down as the CEO of Elon Musk’s X after two...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta AI Researcher Warns of ‘Metastatic Cancer’ Afflicting Company Culture

By Kalley Huang · Jul 9, 2025 12:47pm PDT · 7 comments

Over the past month, Meta Platforms has overhauled its stumbling efforts in artificial intelligence by making a head-spinning series of hires of leaders and researchers from outside the company. But a key question has lingered: Why has Meta struggled so badly in AI that it’s injecting so much fresh blood into the company to lead a turnaround? ... Over the past month, Meta Platforms has overhauled its stumbling efforts in artificial...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Why Cloudflare Can’t Block Google From Scraping Websites For Its AI Products

By Erin Woo · Jul 9, 2025 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Cloudflare, which powers many of the world’s most prominent websites, made waves last week by introducing a default setting for new customers that would block bots that artificial intelligence firms such as OpenAI and Anthropic use to scrape sites to train artificial intelligence. What Cloudflare didn’t highlight was that Google’s AI... Cloudflare, which powers many of the world’s most prominent websites, made waves last week by...

Art via Mike Sullivan

After Layoffs, Microsoft Tells Staff to ‘Invest in Your Own AI Skilling’

By Aaron Holmes · Jul 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Art via Mike Sullivan

After Layoffs, Microsoft Tells Staff to ‘Invest in Your Own AI Skilling’

By Aaron Holmes · Jul 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

After Microsoft announced last week it would cut 9,000 workers, its second major layoffs this year, it told its remaining salespeople to lean on artificial intelligence to be more productive. “We all need to use AI tools,” said Travis Walter, an executive overseeing Microsoft’s sales to small and medium enterprises in the Americas, during a... After Microsoft announced last week it would cut 9,000 workers, its second major layoffs this...

Apple's Jeff Williams. Photo via Getty

Apple’s COO Retirement Offers Clues About Cook Succession

By Nick Wingfield · Jul 8, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Exciting news on the home front: Today, we launched a powerful new AI chatbot, The Information Deep Research, trained on over a decade of our exclusive reporting on the most important tech companies and people, including our stories, org charts and proprietary data. You can use it to generate reports on the top talent at Nvidia and Meta... Exciting news on the home front: Today, we launched a powerful new AI chatbot, The Information...

Photo via Getty

AI Investors’ Dilution Dilemma; Dueling Open Letters for Maguire

By Sri Muppidi and Natasha Mascarenhas · Jul 8, 2025 4:32pm PDT

On Monday, I reported how much OpenAI was spending on stock-based compensation. It’s a lot: $4.4 billion last year, or more than five times its stock-based compensation the prior year, amounting to a whopping 119% of revenue. Stock-based compensation expenses typically don’t cut into cash flow until a company goes public, so startup... On Monday, I reported how much OpenAI was spending on stock-based compensation. It’s a lot: $4.4...

Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

What We Know—And Don’t Know—About the New TikTok App

By Kaya Yurieff and Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jul 8, 2025 2:00pm PDT

On Sunday, our team scooped that TikTok is planning a new version of its app for users in the U.S. ahead of a planned sale of the app to a group of investors. The news is generating a lot of buzz—and a lot of questions—among creators, everyday users of the app and TikTok employees and business partners who weren’t aware of the plans and are... On Sunday, our team scooped that TikTok is planning a new version of its app for users in the...

An Nvidia Blackwell chip. Photo via Getty

Chip-Backed Borrowing Boom Propels AI Computing Startups

By Miles Kruppa · Jul 8, 2025 11:41am PDT · 1 comment

An Nvidia Blackwell chip. Photo via Getty

Chip-Backed Borrowing Boom Propels AI Computing Startups

By Miles Kruppa · Jul 8, 2025 11:41am PDT · 1 comment

Several startups offering computing power for artificial intelligence are embracing the “borrow big to grow fast” strategy pioneered by CoreWeave, loading up on debt backed by their stocks of high-powered chips. For instance, London-based cloud startup Fluidstack has gotten approval from Macquarie and other lenders to borrow more than $10... Several startups offering computing power for artificial intelligence are embracing the “borrow...

Figma CEO Dylan Field

Figma Enters Corporate Data Wars; Cursor’s Apology

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jul 8, 2025 11:20am PDT

The data-access battle between software incumbents and younger AI startups that could pose a threat to them continues to expand.In the latest front, Figma, which makes tools for software designers and developers, recently began limiting outside firms’ access to Figma customer projects, according to the CEO of an enterprise search startup that... The data-access battle between software incumbents and younger AI startups that could pose a...

Yichao "Peak" Ji, co-founder and Chief Scientist at Manus AI. Screenshot via YouTube

OpenAI, Investors Eye Agent Startups Led by Chinese Founders

By Juro Osawa and Jing Yang · Jul 8, 2025 7:00am PDT

Chinese tech founders with strong pedigrees are starting to attract attention in Silicon Valley, including from OpenAI, for launching artificial intelligence agents targeting the U.S. market. They’re following in the footsteps of Manus, a browser-using agent developed by Chinese founders that briefly went viral earlier this year and got... Chinese tech founders with strong pedigrees are starting to attract attention in Silicon Valley,...

Photo via Getty.

For Startups Safeguarding AI Models, Revenue Remains Modest

By Valida Pau and Sri Muppidi · Jul 8, 2025 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Cybersecurity startups are busy touting their next big opportunity: safeguarding companies from the threats generated by artificial intelligence. That’s led to surging revenue for some of them. But previously unreported financial details for others—particularly young startups focused on safeguarding AI models—show corporate IT buyers... Cybersecurity startups are busy touting their next big opportunity: safeguarding companies from...

Photo via Getty

Questions About CoreWeave’s Shopping Spree

By Ken Brown · Jul 7, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Photo via Getty

Questions About CoreWeave’s Shopping Spree

By Ken Brown · Jul 7, 2025 5:00pm PDT

In just three months, CoreWeave has gone from an iffy IPO candidate to a financial monster gobbling up rivals. That’s what a 300% stock rally can do.CoreWeave’s $9 billion bid, announced Monday, for its rival in the artificial data center business, Core Scientific, has far more significance than just a flashy deal. It also shows the dominance of... In just three months, CoreWeave has gone from an iffy IPO candidate to a financial monster...