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

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo by Bloomberg

Microsoft’s TikTok Risk: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 20, 2020 5:31pm PDT

One of the unexplored questions about Microsoft’s interest in TikTok is why it wants to do a deal that would plunge the company into one of the most controversial political debates of the past few years: how to deal with hate speech and other contentious content. This is a briar patch Microsoft has mercifully avoided up until... One of the unexplored questions about Microsoft’s interest in TikTok is why it wants to do...

ByteDance founder Zhang Yiming. Photo by Bloomberg

Tencent, Xiaomi Invested in TikTok’s Parent, ByteDance

By Yunan Zhang and Juro Osawa · Aug 20, 2020 10:00am PDT

The list of current and former investors in TikTok’s owner ByteDance include some of the biggest names in finance, including Sequoia Capital and General Atlantic—along with some of the biggest Chinese tech firms. The Information has learned that Chinese internet giant Tencent, one of ByteDance’s biggest competitors, bought... The list of current and former investors in TikTok’s owner ByteDance include some of the...

Photos by Microsoft; Bloomberg

Microsoft v. Oracle: How Their Washington Influence Stacks Up

By Christopher Stern · Aug 20, 2020 7:02am PDT

While plenty of companies might want to buy TikTok and gain access to the app’s scores of millions of users in the U.S. alone, there are few with deep enough pockets, not to mention the engineering resources, to pull off a successful acquisition. Another variable that will be crucial to closing a deal: having enough clout and experience in... While plenty of companies might want to buy TikTok and gain access to the app’s scores of...

Apple CEO Tim Cook

Apple’s $2 Trillion Day: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 19, 2020 5:32pm PDT · 1 comment

Apple CEO Tim Cook

Apple’s $2 Trillion Day: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 19, 2020 5:32pm PDT · 1 comment

For a few hours today, Apple’s market capitalization was above $2 trillion, symbolizing just how powerful the iPhone maker has become. (The stock ended up losing ground, shrinking the market cap a tad below $2 trillion by the close). By comparison, Amazon and Microsoft are both worth around $1.6 trillion. Apple’s valuation,... For a few hours today, Apple’s market capitalization was above $2 trillion, symbolizing...

Prabhakar Raghavan. Photo by Bloomberg

The Quiet Rise of Google’s New Head of Search

By Nick Bastone · Aug 19, 2020 11:51am PDT · 5 comments

When Google CEO Sundar Pichai reshuffled his most senior executives earlier this summer, he gave one of the biggest jobs to Prabhakar Raghavan, a former Yahoo research director who had earned acclaim within Google for technology predicting what Gmail users planned to type. Raghavan now heads search and ad products, business lines that together... When Google CEO Sundar Pichai reshuffled his most senior executives earlier this summer, he gave...

Nashville skyline. Illustration by Mike Sullivan

How One Rental Startup Gamed Airbnb

By Paris Martineau · Aug 19, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Three years ago, an unusual real estate shopping spree among colleagues kicked off in Nashville, Tenn. Jay Roberts, the CEO and co-founder of a startup called Domio, purchased a newly constructed condo in the city’s North Nashville neighborhood with his then-girlfriend. A few days later, 24-year-old Adrian Lam, chief strategy officer and... Three years ago, an unusual real estate shopping spree among colleagues kicked off in Nashville,...

Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. Photo by Bloomberg

An Oracle-TikTok Deal Might Not Be Crazy: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 18, 2020 5:01pm PDT · 1 comment

Oracle’s reported interest in bidding for TikTok might not be as crazy as it sounds. There is a case to be made that the deal could be as much of a fit for Oracle as it would for Microsoft. While Oracle is best-known for its database software and business applications, it also sells a range of products that help marketers organize... Oracle’s reported interest in bidding for TikTok might not be as crazy as it sounds. There...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Apple’s China Loopholes Are Starting to Close

By Wayne Ma · Aug 18, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Art by Mike Sullivan

Apple’s China Loopholes Are Starting to Close

By Wayne Ma · Aug 18, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

In 2017, Apple rolled out a flurry of projects executives hoped would endear it to Chinese officials. It announced three new research and development centers in China and ceded control of Chinese user data to a local partner. Soon after, Apple’s newly appointed head of Greater China, Isabel Ge Mahe, had meetings with Chinese... In 2017, Apple rolled out a flurry of projects executives hoped would endear it to Chinese...

A still image from an Epic Games video spoofing Apple's '1984' commercial

Epic Games Seeks to Form Coalition of Apple Critics

By Nick Wingfield and Alex Heath · Aug 17, 2020 5:53pm PDT

Epic Games, the videogame maker that started a daring legal brawl with Apple last week, is hoping to organize wider opposition to the tech giant. It could face an uphill battle in recruiting others to publicly join its cause. In recent weeks, Epic—which makes the hit game Fortnite—has reached out to other tech executives about... Epic Games, the videogame maker that started a daring legal brawl with Apple last week, is hoping...

Robinhood co-CEO Vlad Tenev. Photo by Bloomberg

Robinhood’s Big Funding Streak: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 17, 2020 5:31pm PDT

Online trading startup Robinhood said Monday it had raised $200 million, a month after raising $320 million, which in turn was two months after it raised $280 million. With the latest funding round, Robinhood’s valuation has risen to $11.2 billion from $8.6 billion last month.If nothing else, the company’s astonishing ability to... Online trading startup Robinhood said Monday it had raised $200 million, a month after raising...

TikTok's global business solutions vice president Blake Chandlee. Photo by Bloomberg

TikTok’s Uncertain Future Gives Advertisers Pause

By Anissa Gardizy · Aug 17, 2020 7:01am PDT

Until recently, restaurant chain The Halal Guys was considering advertising on TikTok, recognizing its popularity with younger members of its audience. But in the wake of the political turmoil over TikTok’s ownership, the company rethought those plans.“Given the recent turn of events, I’d prefer to take a ‘wait and... Until recently, restaurant chain The Halal Guys was considering advertising on TikTok,...

Lipstick in a mall in China. Photo by Imaginechina via AP Images.

Chinese Cosmetics Startup Perfect Diary Aims to Double Valuation to $4 Billion

By Yunan Zhang · Aug 17, 2020 5:01am PDT

Lipstick in a mall in China. Photo by Imaginechina via AP Images.

Chinese Cosmetics Startup Perfect Diary Aims to Double Valuation to $4 Billion

By Yunan Zhang · Aug 17, 2020 5:01am PDT

Riding a wave of rebounding internet shopping and rising nationalism among young Chinese consumers, Perfect Diary, the four-year-old Chinese online makeup brand, is in talks to raise between $100 million and $200 million. If successful, the investment would double the startup’s valuation to $4 billion from $2 billion when it last... Riding a wave of rebounding internet shopping and rising nationalism among young Chinese...

Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann. Photo by Bloomberg

Our (Mostly Male) Tech CEOs Face a Time of Reckoning

By Jessica E. Lessin · Aug 15, 2020 7:45am PDT · 7 comments

Earlier this week, while scanning Twitter in between meetings, I saw an article about a new gender discrimination suit filed against Pinterest. I made a mental note to read it later. The female in me is always disturbed by and wants to know more about these suits. But the editor in me too often gets distracted by other topics dominating the... Earlier this week, while scanning Twitter in between meetings, I saw an article about a new...

An Uber driver. Photo by Bloomberg

Uber and Lyft Face Pivotal Week: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 14, 2020 5:17pm PDT · 2 comments

The coming week is pivotal for Uber and Lyft. That’s when they are likely to hear the results of their request to postpone a judge’s ruling that they immediately reclassify their drivers in California as employees, rather than independent contractors, until an appeals court can hear the case.If the appeals court says the ruling must... The coming week is pivotal for Uber and Lyft. That’s when they are likely to hear the...

The Information’s 411 — Benioff at Sea

By Tom Dotan · Aug 14, 2020 12:51pm PDT

Kevin discusses Marc Benioff, the Salesforce CEO and philanthropist. His profile earlier this week described how Benioff is managing during the pandemic, especially now that Salesforce's marquee event, Dreamforce, appears to be off this year. Also, Tom chats with Alex about Apple's changes to ad tracking and the effect it will have on... Kevin discusses Marc Benioff, the Salesforce CEO and philanthropist. His profile earlier this...

Asana co founders Dustin Moskovitz and Justin Rosenstein. Photo by AP

Asana, Weeks Away From a Listing, Projects Annual Revenue Growth of 66%

By Ross Matican and Cory Weinberg · Aug 14, 2020 10:43am PDT

Asana co founders Dustin Moskovitz and Justin Rosenstein. Photo by AP

Asana, Weeks Away From a Listing, Projects Annual Revenue Growth of 66%

By Ross Matican and Cory Weinberg · Aug 14, 2020 10:43am PDT

Workplace software firm Asana, which is planning to go public next month, is projecting a 66% increase in revenue this year, partly due to the impact Covid-19 has had on remote work, according to previously unreported financial projections the company has given its investors. As of July, Asana was projecting it would boost revenue to $236... Workplace software firm Asana, which is planning to go public next month, is projecting a 66%...

Illustration by Shutterstock

Remote 2.0: Companies Hunker Down at Home

By Nick Bastone · Aug 14, 2020 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Not long after tech companies shifted staff home in March, executives started to draw up plans for a staggered return, when employees would start coming back to half-empty offices and Plexiglas workstations.The surge of coronavirus cases over the summer halted those plans. Facebook, Google and Uber have extended their mostly remote policies... Not long after tech companies shifted staff home in March, executives started to draw up plans...

A screen shot of Epic's video spoofing Apple's 1984 ad about Big Brother

Apple’s App Battle Royale: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Aug 13, 2020 5:46pm PDT

It is fitting that the next mobile app store battle royale is happening over a piece of software that is part of a genre called battle royale games. On Thursday, the company behind the hit game Fortnite, Epic Games, announced it was permanently discounting—by as much as 20%—its prices on virtual currency in the game. To do so on... It is fitting that the next mobile app store battle royale is happening over a piece of software...

Police investigated a shooting in Orinda, Calif., during a party at a rental home last October. Photo: AP

Airbnb Wrestles With House Party Problem Ahead of IPO

By Cory Weinberg · Aug 13, 2020 10:59am PDT · 6 comments

Chris Fling heard gunshots at around 1 a.m. two weekends ago across the street from his Tulsa, Okla., home. He had been watching dozens of young people gather earlier that evening at the house, which had been rented on Airbnb for the night. One teenager at the party had been shot in the arm, the Tulsa police said. The next day, Fling found... Chris Fling heard gunshots at around 1 a.m. two weekends ago across the street from his Tulsa,...

Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit and Initialized Capital, in August 2019. Photo: AP

Reddit Co-Founder Alexis Ohanian Plots New Early-Stage VC Fund

By Kate Clark · Aug 13, 2020 7:02am PDT

Alexis Ohanian, co-founder of Reddit and Initialized Capital, in August 2019. Photo: AP

Reddit Co-Founder Alexis Ohanian Plots New Early-Stage VC Fund

By Kate Clark · Aug 13, 2020 7:02am PDT

Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has begun meeting with investors to raise money for a new venture firm following his departure from Initialized Capital, the early-stage investing fund he co-founded, according to two people familiar with the matter. Ohanian in June said he was leaving Initialized, which backed high-valued startups such as... Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian has begun meeting with investors to raise money for a new...