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

Will Cathcart, the head of Whats App, and Fidji Simo, the head of the Facebook app. Photos by Facebook

The Big Interview

Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp Leaders Shift Focus During Crisis

By Alex Heath · Apr 2, 2020 4:16pm PDT · 1 comment

Will Cathcart, who runs WhatsApp, is doing whatever he can to keep the Facebook messaging service from crashing under a crush of users. Fidji Simo, who runs Facebook’s main app, plans to give small businesses a way to fundraise through the site. And Vishal Shah, a top executive at Instagram, is making live broadcasting more appealing on... Will Cathcart, who runs WhatsApp, is doing whatever he can to keep the Facebook messaging service...

An Uber vehicle in New York City in 2018. Photo: Bloomberg

Virus Cuts Uber, Lyft Ride Business by More Than 50%

By Amir Efrati · Apr 2, 2020 11:58am PDT · 2 comments

The ride-hailing businesses of Uber and Lyft have shrunk by more than half in recent weeks compared with a year ago as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to people at the companies with knowledge of the figures. The overall contraction could worsen for both companies as the pandemic’s toll grows and more people stay... The ride-hailing businesses of Uber and Lyft have shrunk by more than half in recent weeks...

ByteDance CEO Zhang Yiming. Photo by Bloomberg

How a YouTube Star Helped Make TikTok a Global Hit

By Yunan Zhang · Apr 2, 2020 7:01am PDT

Back in the fall of 2018, before it became a global phenomenon, TikTok had a problem: its fanbase of lip-syncing middle schoolers had stopped growing. A big advertising campaign on Facebook, YouTube and Snap to lure older users—which briefly featured scantily clad women—backfired by attracting the wrong kind of people. The app became... Back in the fall of 2018, before it became a global phenomenon, TikTok had a problem: its fanbase...

The Information’s 411 — Apple’s Remote Control

By Tom Dotan · Apr 1, 2020 6:22pm PDT

The Information’s 411 — Apple’s Remote Control

By Tom Dotan · Apr 1, 2020 6:22pm PDT

Nick Bastone dives into the way Apple has tried to manage the work-from-home era, where employees have to keep secret products under wraps while working in a non-secretive location. They've also had to deal with the challenges of employees staying put in the U.S., unable to travel to China and oversee manufacturing, even as China's... Nick Bastone dives into the way Apple has tried to manage the work-from-home era, where employees...

Tim Armstrong. Photo by Bloomberg

Q&A

Former AOL CEO Armstrong Predicts Ad Slump Will Be Worse Than in 2008

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 1, 2020 12:55pm PDT · 3 comments

Former AOL CEO Tim Armstrong, a veteran digital ad executive, predicts the coronavirus will devastate ad spending more severely than either the 2008 financial crisis or the recession that followed Sept. 11.And that is despite the fact that people are spending far more time watching TV and streaming video thanks to the quarantines. “For the... Former AOL CEO Tim Armstrong, a veteran digital ad executive, predicts the coronavirus will...

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki. Photo by Bloomberg

YouTube Plans ‘Shorts’ to Rival TikTok

By Alex Heath and Jessica Toonkel · Apr 1, 2020 12:05pm PDT · 2 comments

YouTube is planning to release a rival to TikTok, the hugely popular video-sharing app, by the end of the year, according to two people familiar with the matter.YouTube is currently planning Shorts, its answer to TikTok, as a feature inside its existing mobile app. Shorts will include a feed of brief videos posted by users inside the... YouTube is planning to release a rival to TikTok, the hugely popular video-sharing app, by the...

Capsule founder Eric Kinariwala in the company's midtown Manhattan pharmacy. Photo: Capsule

Startups to Watch

Five Startups Seeing a Covid-19 Bounce

By The Information Staff · Apr 1, 2020 7:01am PDT · 4 comments

The coronavirus is decimating business at many venture capital–backed startups. But for a few firms, the pandemic has had the opposite effect, as consumers flock to products and services that make staying at home easier or help them cope with the crisis.These companies, five of which we profile below, include an online pharmacy that has... The coronavirus is decimating business at many venture capital–backed startups. But for a...

Jonah Peretti, founder and chief executive officer of BuzzFeed. Photo by Bloomberg

Amazon, Walmart Suspend Marketing Deals With Digital Media Firms

By Jessica Toonkel · Mar 31, 2020 3:08pm PDT · 3 comments

Jonah Peretti, founder and chief executive officer of BuzzFeed. Photo by Bloomberg

Amazon, Walmart Suspend Marketing Deals With Digital Media Firms

By Jessica Toonkel · Mar 31, 2020 3:08pm PDT · 3 comments

Publishers are bracing for a pullback in advertising amid the Covid-19 pandemic. And one big shoe has already dropped: Amazon and Walmart have temporarily suspended commerce marketing deals with digital media firms such as BuzzFeed, two people familiar with the situation said.Commerce marketing has become an increasingly important part of... Publishers are bracing for a pullback in advertising amid the Covid-19 pandemic. And one big shoe...

ZhenFund CEO Anna Fang. Photo by Bloomberg

China’s Venture Capitalists Start Making Deals, Amid Signs of Recovery

By Yunan Zhang · Mar 31, 2020 11:40am PDT

A global epidemic that’s forcing billions of people to work and study from home, or wear masks whenever they go out, might not seem like the ideal time to sell cosmetics. But in China, Perfect Diary, a four-year-old online makeup retailer selling items like brightly hued lip gloss and eyeliner, has been thriving. Perfect Diary’s... A global epidemic that’s forcing billions of people to work and study from home, or wear...

Airbnb Costs Under Microscope as Travel Shrinks

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 31, 2020 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

Airbnb shut down its marketing efforts last week, saving an estimated $800 million annually. But it likely will need to make more-substantial cost reductions across the board as the spread of coronavirus ravages its business. An analysis of Airbnb’s profit statements shows that the company spends much more on fixed costs—such as... Airbnb shut down its marketing efforts last week, saving an estimated $800 million annually. But...

Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, California. Photo by Bloomberg

How Apple Is Working From Home

By Nick Bastone and Wayne Ma · Mar 30, 2020 10:02am PDT · 5 comments

Normally, Apple’s hardware teams meet in person at the company’s Cupertino, California, headquarters to review upcoming products, often bringing key components of their devices to show colleagues. But now that they are sidelined at home due to Covid-19, members of those teams are improvising new tactics for getting their work... Normally, Apple’s hardware teams meet in person at the company’s Cupertino,...

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg

Facebook Strikes Deal for AR Displays, Squeezing Out Apple

By Alex Heath and Amir Efrati · Mar 30, 2020 7:02am PDT · 4 comments

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Photo by Bloomberg

Facebook Strikes Deal for AR Displays, Squeezing Out Apple

By Alex Heath and Amir Efrati · Mar 30, 2020 7:02am PDT · 4 comments

Facebook has struck a deal to buy all of the augmented reality displays made by British firm Plessey, as the social network looks to build AR glasses capable of overlaying virtual objects onto the real world. The deal could give Facebook an edge over Apple, which recently looked at buying Plessey, one of the few makers of AR displays, according... Facebook has struck a deal to buy all of the augmented reality displays made by British firm...

One of the houses in a Northern California town that Jane Dinh plans to use for her escape community.

Pandemic Spawns Escape Communities Promising Self-Isolation—in a Group

By Zoë Bernard · Mar 29, 2020 4:47pm PDT · 8 comments

After the coronavirus forced Jay Jideliov to send all the employees of his company, Callision, home to work, he began pondering how he would cope with a period of indefinite isolation in his Los Angeles home.Jideliov’s answer was to create what he describes as a “virus-free retreat” called Harbor, which will house around 33... After the coronavirus forced Jay Jideliov to send all the employees of his company, Callision,...

Instacart CEO Apoorva Mehta with The Information's Jessica Lessin last year. Photo by Angie Silvy

A ‘Crucible’ Moment: Inside Instacart CEO’s COVID-19 Playbook

By Jessica E. Lessin · Mar 28, 2020 7:45am PDT · 1 comment

As Instacart founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta sat down to write an email to his management team on February 24, it wasn’t about his previous rallying cry for the year: getting closer to profitability ahead of an eventual IPO. Something bigger was looming. The grocery delivery company’s investors and board members, including Jeff... As Instacart founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta sat down to write an email to his management team on...

The Information’s 411 — Are You There, Pod? It’s Me, Spotify

By Tom Dotan · Mar 27, 2020 4:29pm PDT · 1 comment

Jessica Toonkel talks about why Spotify decided to go on a spending spree to get into the podcasting business. In the past year the company has made a number of expensive acquisitions, buying podcasting production companies and tech platforms in an effort to build its ad revenue. We discuss how this can pay off for the company, and how long it... Jessica Toonkel talks about why Spotify decided to go on a spending spree to get into the...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb to Halt All Marketing, Most Hiring as Losses Mount

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 27, 2020 2:27pm PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb to Halt All Marketing, Most Hiring as Losses Mount

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 27, 2020 2:27pm PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb plans to halt all of its marketing, pause most hiring, and likely withhold employee bonuses as it tries to conserve cash amid a slide in bookings, CEO Brian Chesky told employees in a video conference call Thursday, a person familiar with the matter said.The steps are the first indication of how the company is planning to reduce costs to... Airbnb plans to halt all of its marketing, pause most hiring, and likely withhold employee...

Zoom Video CEO Eric Yuan. Photo by Bloomberg

Why Zoom Video’s Sky-High Stock Will Fall to Earth When Pandemic Ends

By Kevin Dugan and Martin Peers · Mar 27, 2020 1:54pm PDT · 6 comments

No matter how the pandemic ends, one thing is certain: Zoom Video has become a household name as people flock to it to connect with work colleagues, family and friends. That has helped send Zoom stock into the stratosphere—it is up 46% in the past five weeks even as the overall market has fallen 25%. But like the pandemic itself, this... No matter how the pandemic ends, one thing is certain: Zoom Video has become a household name as...

Amazon's Seattle headquarters. Photo by Bloomberg

How Amazon Is Running Remotely: Basement Hardware Labs, Virtual Recruiting

By Priya Anand · Mar 27, 2020 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

For several weeks, tens of thousands of employees at Amazon’s corporate offices in Seattle and elsewhere have been hunkering down in their homes to curb the spread of the coronavirus, trying to get on with business however they can. That is resulting in some stern reminders from the company about corporate policies. For example,... For several weeks, tens of thousands of employees at Amazon’s corporate offices in Seattle...

Art by Ben Didier

Coronavirus Spurs Demand for Touchless Technology

By Christopher Stern, Shai Oster and Ashley Gold · Mar 26, 2020 11:55am PDT · 4 comments

Until recently, many people didn’t think twice about signing their name on a store payment screen at checkout, or touching a door handle on the way out of the office. But now, communal surfaces are feared as potential sources of contagion, leading U.S. consumers to rethink a host of behaviors ranging from the way they pay for goods to the... Until recently, many people didn’t think twice about signing their name on a store payment...

A shopper in Beijing in February. Photo by AP

Why Alibaba Holds the Key to a Global Recovery

By Juro Osawa · Mar 26, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

A shopper in Beijing in February. Photo by AP

Why Alibaba Holds the Key to a Global Recovery

By Juro Osawa · Mar 26, 2020 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

To understand the unprecedented challenges facing China’s coronavirus-stricken economy, take a look at the struggles of a merchant on Alibaba’s online marketplace. Li Jiabin, a former mechanic in northeastern China’s rust belt city of Anshan, sells jade jewelry on Alibaba’s Taobao, China’s biggest... To understand the unprecedented challenges facing China’s coronavirus-stricken economy,...