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

Sunday Insights

Alphabet, SpaceX Spur Record U.S. Equity Sales

By Valida Pau · Jul 19, 2026 8:00am PDT

U.S. stock sales are on track for a record this year, as massive offerings from SpaceX, Alphabet and others push totals past a 2021 high. More sales are coming. Anthropic is headed for an initial public offering as soon as September. And bankers are pitching other public tech companies on issuing more stock. These include Intel, after the... U.S. stock sales are on track for a record this year, as massive offerings from SpaceX, Alphabet...

Oracle co-CEO Clay Magouryk, center, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman last fall.

AI Infrastructure

Exclusive: Oracle Data Centers Face Multibillion-Dollar Cost Surprises

By Ann Davis Vaughan · Jul 18, 2026 10:04am PDT

Building an AI supercampus increasingly means paying more than you bargained for. Oracle’s attempt to salvage a proposed $165 billion project on the rocks in New Mexico is a recent example. The cloud provider earlier this year was planning to spend billions of dollars to build its own natural-gas plants to power Project Jupiter, a... Building an AI supercampus increasingly means paying more than you bargained for. Oracle’s...

Art: Clark Miller

Why Andreessen Horowitz’s New Investor Left Apple

By Abram Brown · Jul 18, 2026 8:02am PDT

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Trump’s AI agenda collides with reality• Tech Culture: Welcome to the great private jet drought• Plus, Recommendations—our weekly pop culture picks: “Gastronomics,” “Catch the Devil” and “The Invite”At the dawn of the AI boom, the technology sparked a real melee between newcomer startups... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Trump’s AI agenda collides with reality•...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

Trump’s AI Agenda Collides With Reality

By Leo Schwartz · Jul 18, 2026 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

Trump’s AI Agenda Collides With Reality

By Leo Schwartz · Jul 18, 2026 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

In January 2025, just three days after entering office for his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that revoked many of the Biden administration’s efforts on AI. The order was part of Trump’s promise to take a light-touch approach to AI regulation, rolling back what he would later describe as his predecessor’s attempt... In January 2025, just three days after entering office for his second term, President Donald...

OpenEvidence Co-Founder Daniel Nadler. Photo by Getty.

‘ChatGPT for Doctors’ Mulls New Financing at $20 Billion Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Valida Pau · Jul 17, 2026 3:27pm PDT · 1 comment

OpenEvidence, the fast-growing startup that helps doctors find medical information through an AI chatbot, has considered raising $200 million after receiving offers from investors at a valuation of around $20 billion, according to a person involved in the discussions. The company is unlikely to proceed, in part because a round would dilute... OpenEvidence, the fast-growing startup that helps doctors find medical information through an AI...

Alex Atallah, CEO of OpenRouter. Screenshot via YouTube

Startup OpenRouter Fields Multibillion-Dollar Takeover Interest

By Stephanie Palazzolo, Kevin McLaughlin and Valida Pau · Jul 17, 2026 12:28pm PDT

OpenRouter, which helps app developers access hundreds of AI models, has discussed a potential sale to a bigger tech company that could value the startup at billions of dollars, a steep premium to its $1.3 billion valuation, people familiar with the matter said. The discussions reflect a swell of interest this year in technology that makes it... OpenRouter, which helps app developers access hundreds of AI models, has discussed a potential...

Art: Clark Miller

Private Jets Are Scarce. Blame the Gusher of AI Wealth

By Eli Rosenberg · Jul 17, 2026 6:18am PDT

After Bill Papariella, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.–based entrepreneur, sold his private jet charter business for nearly $1 billion in 2022, he took it easy for a couple years. But as the number of ultrawealthy continued to climb in the U.S., another business idea struck him: a company that offered fractional jet ownership, like NetJets, but... After Bill Papariella, a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.–based entrepreneur, sold his private jet...

CEO of Valar Atomics, Isaiah Taylor. Photo by Getty Images.

Nuclear Startup Valar Atomics in Talks for $6 Billion Valuation After Power Milestone

By Julia Hornstein and Jemima McEvoy · Jul 16, 2026 5:18pm PDT · 1 comment

CEO of Valar Atomics, Isaiah Taylor. Photo by Getty Images.

Nuclear Startup Valar Atomics in Talks for $6 Billion Valuation After Power Milestone

By Julia Hornstein and Jemima McEvoy · Jul 16, 2026 5:18pm PDT · 1 comment

Valar Atomics, a three-year-old startup that makes small nuclear reactors intended to power data centers and other industrial facilities, is in talks to raise $1 billion at around a $5 billion valuation before the investment, according to a person with knowledge of the deal. Sequoia Capital, which hasn’t previously disclosed an... Valar Atomics, a three-year-old startup that makes small nuclear reactors intended to power data...

Uber CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi. Jemal Countess/Getty Images.

Uber Does a Big Deal and Netflix’s Growth Slows

By Martin Peers · Jul 16, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Busy day. Uber unveiled its biggest-ever acquisition, the roughly $14 billion purchase of Delivery Hero, a German-based food-delivery giant with operations around the world. Netflix reported slower growth for the second quarter, as it had telegraphed, sending the stock down 8% to a two-year low. And SpaceX stock closed below its $135 a share IPO... Busy day. Uber unveiled its biggest-ever acquisition, the roughly $14 billion purchase of...

Art by Mike Sullivan

M&A Buzz Centers on Data Software Startups

By Alix Coutures · Jul 16, 2026 4:31pm PDT

We just published our list of more than 160 enterprise software startups that could be acquired this year. To compile it, we screened hundreds of privately held companies and singled out those worth more than $1 billion that haven't raised a publicly announced financing since June 2024. To understand the M&A forces across enterprise... We just published our list of more than 160 enterprise software startups that could be acquired...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Nobody is Immune From the Nvidia GPU Crunch

By Catherine Perloff · Jul 16, 2026 1:28pm PDT

Earlier this week, I wrote about startups moving some of their workloads from Amazon Web Services and other traditional cloud providers to young challengers such as Nebius. That’s in part because startups are having trouble getting the Nvidia chips they need on AWS, sometimes because those chips are only available in too expensive packages.... Earlier this week, I wrote about startups moving some of their workloads from Amazon Web Services...

Runta CEO Guanlan Dai. Photo courtesy of Runta.

Andreessen Horowitz Backs Startup Aiming to ‘Parent’ AI Agents

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 16, 2026 7:01am PDT

Runta CEO Guanlan Dai. Photo courtesy of Runta.

Andreessen Horowitz Backs Startup Aiming to ‘Parent’ AI Agents

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Jul 16, 2026 7:01am PDT

As a father to two young kids, Guanlan Dai sees a lot of similarities between AI agents and precocious children. Just as parents might childproof their house and avoid giving their kids access to credit cards, so too must developers limit the important files AI agents can access and how much the agents can spend in one go, he said.Now, Dai, a... As a father to two young kids, Guanlan Dai sees a lot of similarities between AI agents and...

Partner Content

How to Use Google Gemini to Develop Customer Relationships

By The Information Partnerships · Jul 16, 2026 6:15am PDT

It feels like there’s almost never enough time to get everything done in the run-up to a big event. If your company’s annual conference is coming up, that means you have a golden opportunity to connect with some of your most important prospects face-to-face. But it likely also means that you need to finish up a booth design, rehearse a keynote... It feels like there’s almost never enough time to get everything done in the run-up to a big...

160 Enterprise Software Startups That Could Be for Sale This Year

By Alix Coutures · Jul 16, 2026 6:02am PDT

Many enterprise software startups that raised money at steep valuations between 2020 and 2022 face diminishing options. Venture capitalists who previously sank funds into these startups have shifted much of their money toward AI. Stocks in public enterprise software companies have fallen sharply. When the startups’ backers push for cash returns,... Many enterprise software startups that raised money at steep valuations between 2020 and 2022...

Stripe co-founder Patrick Collison. Niall Carson/Getty Images.

Stripe’s PayPal Bid Puts Payments Firm in Play—Could Musk Jump In?

By Martin Peers · Jul 15, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Are the Collison brothers looking to spice up their life? According to Reuters and other news outlets, the Collisons’ payments firm, Stripe, has teamed up with private equity firm Advent to make a $53 billion acquisition offer for PayPal. While the aging payments firm has lost the plot in recent years, this is not exactly a generous offer. ... Are the Collison brothers looking to spice up their life? According to Reuters and other news...

Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic. Photo by Getty Images.

Anthropic in Talks to Add Billions to Bank Credit Line Ahead of IPO

By Valida Pau · Jul 15, 2026 4:06pm PDT · 2 comments

Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic. Photo by Getty Images.

Anthropic in Talks to Add Billions to Bank Credit Line Ahead of IPO

By Valida Pau · Jul 15, 2026 4:06pm PDT · 2 comments

Anthropic is in talks with banks to arrange credit lines worth a few billions of dollars in a move that would increase its access to cash ahead of a planned initial public offering this year, according to people familiar with the matter. The new loans would build on the $2.5 billion, five-year revolving credit facility Anthropic received... Anthropic is in talks with banks to arrange credit lines worth a few billions of dollars in a...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Microsoft’s New Security Chief Replaces Top Execs to Force an AI Overhaul

By Aaron Holmes and Kevin McLaughlin · Jul 15, 2026 11:34am PDT · 2 comments

Microsoft, the largest cybersecurity software seller in the world, is overhauling that business to cash in on corporate anxieties about AI-powered hacks. Hayete Gallot, who took over Microsoft’s security business in February, has directed more teams to develop AI security products such as those that find bugs in IT systems. At the same time, she... Microsoft, the largest cybersecurity software seller in the world, is overhauling that business...

Art via Getty Images

The Four Keys to Surviving the SaaSpocalypse

By Rocket Drew · Jul 15, 2026 9:45am PDT

To survive a zombie apocalypse, you’d probably want to team up with people who are skilled at medicine, engineering, farming—and your prepper uncle who stockpiles beans. To survive a SaaSpocalpyse, who should you team up with?Suppose for a second that the most extreme version of software disruption comes to pass: a couple years from now, AI... To survive a zombie apocalypse, you’d probably want to team up with people who are skilled at...

Christophe Fouquet, CEO of ASML, left, and Roger Dassen, CFO of ASML. Photo by Lina Selg/ Getty Images

ASML Plans Price Increases for Chipmaking Equipment, Despite TSMC Resistance

By Qianer Liu · Jul 15, 2026 8:34am PDT

Chip toolmaker ASML, which makes equipment that plays a central role in chip production around the world, plans to raise prices, according to four people with knowledge of the discussions. That’s likely to bring ASML into conflict with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world’s biggest chipmaker and ASML’s largest customer, which ... Chip toolmaker ASML, which makes equipment that plays a central role in chip production around...

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Coinbase, JPMorgan Partnership Delays Drag On

By Michael Roddan and Yueqi Yang · Jul 15, 2026 8:01am PDT

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

The Information Finance

Coinbase, JPMorgan Partnership Delays Drag On

By Michael Roddan and Yueqi Yang · Jul 15, 2026 8:01am PDT

Last summer, JPMorgan Chase and Coinbase announced a major partnership to tie crypto into the bank’s banking and credit card offerings. The move marked a key endorsement of the top U.S. crypto firm from the biggest bank in the country. Nearly a year later, none of those features has gone live and the companies haven’t publicly... Last summer, JPMorgan Chase and Coinbase announced a major partnership to tie crypto into the...