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

Alexandr Wang, Scale AI Co-Founder and CEO. Photo by Bloomberg

AI Startup Scale Offered Funding at $3 Billion Valuation

By Kate Clark and Zoë Bernard · Nov 7, 2020 6:01am PST

Scale AI, a startup that helps companies such as Lyft, Toyota and DoorDash train artificial intelligence systems to recognize objects and analyze written documents, could soar past a $3 billion valuation with a new financing, according to two people familiar with the matter. The San Francisco–based company has received an offer of... Scale AI, a startup that helps companies such as Lyft, Toyota and DoorDash train artificial...

Election count demonstrators marching in Washington on Friday. Photo by Bloomberg.

Election Uncertainty Starts to Lift: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 6, 2020 5:31pm PST

As the results of Tuesday’s election come into focus, some of the uncertainty hovering over the world has begun to lift. That is good for business, which can begin to prepare for life under what appears likely to be a Biden administration. We’ll have more to say on that in the next few days, when the outcome is more certain than it... As the results of Tuesday’s election come into focus, some of the uncertainty hovering over...

The Information’s 411 — Before the Dust Settles

By Cory Weinberg · Nov 6, 2020 1:57pm PST · 1 comment

How can we start to make sense of the implications of this election for tech? Cory talks to three tech-savvy politcal veterans for early takeaways. Guests: Jim Messina, CEO of the Messina Group and former campaign manager to Barack Obama in 2012 Bruce Mehlman, founder of Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas, a lobbying firm that works with... How can we start to make sense of the implications of this election for tech? Cory talks to three...

Pedro Pascal and Gina Carano, two of the stars of Disney Plus' "The Mandalorian," attend the show's premiere in Los Angeles last November. Photo by AP.

Disney Streaming Faces Moment of Truth as Verizon Promotion Expires

By Jessica Toonkel · Nov 6, 2020 6:00am PST · 1 comment

Pedro Pascal and Gina Carano, two of the stars of Disney Plus' "The Mandalorian," attend the show's premiere in Los Angeles last November. Photo by AP.

Disney Streaming Faces Moment of Truth as Verizon Promotion Expires

By Jessica Toonkel · Nov 6, 2020 6:00am PST · 1 comment

The Walt Disney Co. faces a moment of truth next week, the first anniversary of its launch of Disney+. It’s also when Verizon customers who signed up for the service through a one-year free promotion have to start paying or cancel. And that is prompting worries among Disney executives that a large number of subscribers will cancel,... The Walt Disney Co. faces a moment of truth next week, the first anniversary of its launch of...

Discovery CEO David Zaslav. Photo by Bloomberg

The Great Ad Shift From TV to Digital: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 5, 2020 5:32pm PST · 1 comment

As much as the pandemic has given a boost to video streaming services, it appears to have sped up the decline of traditional TV. That’s become clear from third-quarter earnings showing shifts in the ad market, including reports out today from Roku and Discovery Communications. Discovery, which owns cable channels such as Discovery Channel,... As much as the pandemic has given a boost to video streaming services, it appears to have sped up...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, (l) and COO Sheryl Sandberg, (r). Photos by Bloomberg. Illustration by Mike Sullivan (edited)

The Facebook Lawyer Trying to Prevent Election Chaos

By Alex Heath · Nov 5, 2020 12:09pm PST

After vowing for four years that it would move quickly to curb misinformation around a heated U.S. general election, Facebook faced a critical moment late in the evening Tuesday. Knowing that ballot counting would drag on into the week, and with President Donald Trump already spreading doubt about the results to his tens of millions of... After vowing for four years that it would move quickly to curb misinformation around a heated...

In typically tourist-filled Prague, Czech Republic, a man crosses a nearly empty Old Town Square. Photo: AP

Slump in City Travel Raises Risk Airbnb Hosts Will Look Elsewhere

By Cory Weinberg · Nov 5, 2020 6:01am PST

Airbnb’s business in big cities shrank in late summer compared with a year earlier, previously unreported figures show, as the coronavirus pandemic kept the brakes on urban travel. The steep decline has raised concern inside Airbnb that some hosts might abandon the platform permanently, which would reduce the number of listings and make it... Airbnb’s business in big cities shrank in late summer compared with a year earlier,...

Uber's San Francisco headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg

Uber and Lyft’s Prop 22 Stock Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 4, 2020 5:45pm PST

Uber's San Francisco headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg

Uber and Lyft’s Prop 22 Stock Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 4, 2020 5:45pm PST

Shareholders in Uber and Lyft had one of their best days since the pandemic began, as the stocks of both ride-hailing companies soared 15% and 11%, respectively, in the wake of Tuesday’s approval of Proposition 22 in California. The vote overrides a state law requiring their drivers to be classified as employees rather than independent... Shareholders in Uber and Lyft had one of their best days since the pandemic began, as the stocks...

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Tuesday night in Delaware. Photo by Bloomberg

Split Government Could Doom Antitrust Reform, but Tech to Remain in Crosshairs

By Christopher Stern · Nov 4, 2020 5:29pm PST

For tech industry leaders, the increasingly likely prospect of a divided government could provide a collective sense of relief. Democratic control of the presidency and House, but not the Senate, dims the threat of sweeping changes to antitrust laws, which could have forced them to alter some of their business practices. But Google, Facebook and... For tech industry leaders, the increasingly likely prospect of a divided government could provide...

Signs for the Alipay service at a train station in China. Photo by Bloomberg

With IPO on Hold, Ant Faces Prospect of Restructuring and Valuation Cut

By Juro Osawa and Yunan Zhang · Nov 4, 2020 11:13am PST

Jack Ma’s Ant Group may be forced to restructure its business, possibly by spinning off its giant consumer loan business, as a result of new draft rules on microlending introduced this week by Chinese finance industry regulators, say Ant employees and shareholders. Those rules helped trigger the shocking last-minute suspension of... Jack Ma’s Ant Group may be forced to restructure its business, possibly by spinning off its...

Drew Houston (left), CEO of Dropbox, and Josh Silverman, CEO of Etsy. Photos by Bloomberg

The Next Congress Will Likely Take on Big Tech. Smaller Internet Companies Want a Voice

By Christopher Stern and Nick Bastone · Nov 4, 2020 6:01am PST · 2 comments

A group of more than a dozen medium-size tech companies, including Dropbox, Reddit and Etsy, are in talks to form their own lobbying coalition in Washington, D.C., to ensure that they don’t get swept up in new laws and regulations aimed at restricting the power of big technology companies. Regardless of who wins the presidential election,... A group of more than a dozen medium-size tech companies, including Dropbox, Reddit and Etsy, are...

Jack Ma, co founder of Alibaba and the controlling shareholder of Ant. Photo by Bloomberg

Ant’s IPO Suspension, Wall Street’s Election Day Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 3, 2020 5:31pm PST

Jack Ma, co founder of Alibaba and the controlling shareholder of Ant. Photo by Bloomberg

Ant’s IPO Suspension, Wall Street’s Election Day Rally: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 3, 2020 5:31pm PST

The suspension of Ant Group’s planned IPO scheduled for Thursday is a reminder of how much China’s government dictates the life of Chinese companies. The much-anticipated offering was put off after the government warned Ant's controlling shareholder Jack Ma that the payments behemoth would face new rules that would restrict its... The suspension of Ant Group’s planned IPO scheduled for Thursday is a reminder of how much...

Lyft's San Francisco driver hub. Photo by Bloomberg.

Two Senior Lyft Execs Depart on Eve of California Ballot Showdown

By Amir Efrati and Nick Bastone · Nov 3, 2020 12:29pm PST

Two senior executives at Lyft, in charge of strategic initiatives and design, are leaving the ride-hailing firm, The Information has learned. News of their departures, which follow the exits of three other senior executives in the past few months, came on the eve of the vote on Proposition 22, arguably the most important moment in the... Two senior executives at Lyft, in charge of strategic initiatives and design, are leaving the...

Why Rally in Snap and Pinterest Stocks May Last

By Tom Dotan · Nov 3, 2020 10:20am PST

Snap and Pinterest posted stellar revenue growth for the third quarter, sending their stocks to record highs and putting their valuations well above those of social media peers Facebook and Twitter. Whether they can maintain those valuations, however, depends on whether their recent advertising gains are sustained. Media buyers and advertisers... Snap and Pinterest posted stellar revenue growth for the third quarter, sending their stocks to...

Mike Sullivan

Biden Taxes Bad for Startups? It Depends on Whom You Ask

By Zoë Bernard · Nov 3, 2020 6:01am PST

For Diane Bryant, founder of Los Angeles-based medical robotics startup NovaSignal, the single most important election issue is how the next president will handle the coronavirus pandemic. Like many startups, NovaSignal saw its revenue take a significant hit after the pandemic swept through the country. Bryant, a former Intel and Google... For Diane Bryant, founder of Los Angeles-based medical robotics startup NovaSignal, the single...

Fast CEO Domm Holland. Photo courtesy of Fast

Fast, a Startup Backed by Stripe, Discusses Billion-Dollar Valuation

By Kate Clark · Nov 2, 2020 7:07pm PST · 2 comments

Fast CEO Domm Holland. Photo courtesy of Fast

Fast, a Startup Backed by Stripe, Discusses Billion-Dollar Valuation

By Kate Clark · Nov 2, 2020 7:07pm PST · 2 comments

Fast, a two-year-old startup whose technology enables quick checkouts online, is in discussions with investors about a new round of financing between $50 million and $200 million. The deal could value the startup at as much as $1 billion, according to two people familiar with the talks. The discussions, which are in the early stages and could... Fast, a two-year-old startup whose technology enables quick checkouts online, is in discussions...

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey at last week's Senate hearing. Photo by Bloomberg

Dorsey Keeps Twitter CEO Job: The Information’s Tech Briefing

By Martin Peers · Nov 2, 2020 5:31pm PST

Maybe it was the beard. An independent committee of Twitter’s board, including a representative of activist investor Elliott Management, has decided CEO Jack Dorsey should keep his job. That’s a big deal. When Elliott bought a stake in Twitter early this year, speculation swirled that the investor would push to oust Dorsey, whose... Maybe it was the beard. An independent committee of Twitter’s board, including a...

Karan Mehandru. Photo credit: Outreach

Trinity Ventures Loses Top Dealmaker After Pausing Fundraising During Pandemic

By Kate Clark · Nov 2, 2020 9:23am PST

Trinity Ventures, an early-stage VC firm founded in 1986 that took pre–initial public offering stakes in Starbucks and Zulily, is losing a top general partner. The departure is the latest blow to a firm that has already had to halt fundraising efforts on its next fund due to the coronavirus outbreak. Karan Mehandru, 42, who first joined... Trinity Ventures, an early-stage VC firm founded in 1986 that took pre–initial public...

Farfetch CEO Jose Neves. Photo by Bloomberg

Alibaba in Talks to Invest in Online Fashion Retailer Farfetch

By Juro Osawa · Nov 2, 2020 7:38am PST

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is in advanced discussions to invest nearly $300 million in London-based online luxury fashion retailer Farfetch, people familiar with the matter said, as China emerges as the most important battleground for luxury brands. Alibaba, whose shopping apps have 874 million monthly active users in China, and Farfetch,... Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba is in advanced discussions to invest nearly $300 million in...

Art by Shutterstock/Mike Sullivan

Amazon Plans for Rural Deliveries Amid Postal Service Problems

By Paris Martineau · Nov 2, 2020 6:02am PST · 1 comment

Art by Shutterstock/Mike Sullivan

Amazon Plans for Rural Deliveries Amid Postal Service Problems

By Paris Martineau · Nov 2, 2020 6:02am PST · 1 comment

Amazon has explored expanding its already giant distribution network to rural areas, one of the few parts of the U.S. where it doesn’t now handle its own deliveries, under a new initiative called Wagon Wheel. The move would take business away from the U.S. Postal Service, which now handles most of Amazon’s deliveries to remote... Amazon has explored expanding its already giant distribution network to rural areas, one of the...