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

The Information’s 411 — Unfriending Facebook

By Priya Anand · Sep 28, 2018 3:42pm PDT

Jessica Toonkel talks about her profile of BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Sarah analyzes Facebook's problems. Jessica Toonkel talks about her profile of BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Sarah analyzes...

Conservative Views Sometimes Stifled in Tech, Readers Say

By Wendy Pollack and Mike Sullivan · Sep 28, 2018 10:51am PDT · 9 comments

At a time of intense political polarization, it can be difficult to hold unpopular opinions in Silicon Valley, a majority of readers said in response to The Information’s latest survey. But only a minority of survey respondents said they felt pressure to conform to particular points of view at their own workplaces.Seventy percent of survey... At a time of intense political polarization, it can be difficult to hold unpopular opinions in...

The People to Watch as Scooters, Bikes Heat Up

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 28, 2018 7:01am PDT

In 2010, Nick Foley was working in a New York bike shop when he met Ryan Rzepecki, a transportation planner who had recently been driving horse-drawn carriages in Central Park and was looking for help building bikes for his startup, which later became Jump Bikes.Mr. Foley—now the head of product at Jump, which was acquired by Uber earlier... In 2010, Nick Foley was working in a New York bike shop when he met Ryan Rzepecki, a...

Elon Musk. Photo by Bloomberg

What SEC’s Musk Lawsuit Means for Tesla

By Amir Efrati · Sep 27, 2018 6:27pm PDT · 6 comments

Elon Musk. Photo by Bloomberg

What SEC’s Musk Lawsuit Means for Tesla

By Amir Efrati · Sep 27, 2018 6:27pm PDT · 6 comments

The Securities and Exchange Commission wants to make an example of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and show that when a CEO speaks about a big deal, he ought to mean what he says. But the SEC’s real aim may be to send a message to Tesla’s board that it should exert better control over Mr. Musk—or at least impose adult supervision in... The Securities and Exchange Commission wants to make an example of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and show...

Source: Company filings

Amazon a Money-Loser in Retail? Not in the U.S.

By Priya Anand · Sep 27, 2018 7:00am PDT

In its early days, Amazon developed a reputation for shunning profits as it built market share in its retail business. More recently, Amazon critics have painted an image of the retailer as willing to indefinitely bleed red ink to drive rivals out of business. That perception should be retired, judging by the growing profits of its... In its early days, Amazon developed a reputation for shunning profits as it built market share in...

Byedance founder Zhang Yiming. Photo by Bloomberg

SoftBank in Talks to Invest in Bytedance

By Yunan Zhang · Sep 27, 2018 3:53am PDT · 3 comments

SoftBank and Primavera Capital are in talks to invest in Bytedance, the six-year-old startup behind news app Toutiao and other popular Chinese entertainment apps, which is raising money ahead of a possible initial public offering next year.The new round of financing could value Bytedance at as much as $75 billion, according to people familiar... SoftBank and Primavera Capital are in talks to invest in Bytedance, the six-year-old startup...

Mike Sullivan

Crypto Newsletter

Trouble for Riot; Bitmain IPO

By Jon Victor · Sep 26, 2018 12:43pm PDT

This newsletter may have to pivot to marijuana soon, if recent reports about weed stocks being the new crypto are to be believed. I, for one, think decentralized money will end up capturing more value than the marijuana industry, but at least pot won’t be questioned for its underlying utility.Other than marijuana stocks, this week’s... This newsletter may have to pivot to marijuana soon, if recent reports about weed stocks being...

Lyft co-founder and president John Zimmer earlier this year. Photo by Bloomberg

Lyft Shows Financial Improvement Ahead of IPO Filing

By Amir Efrati · Sep 26, 2018 10:26am PDT

Lyft co-founder and president John Zimmer earlier this year. Photo by Bloomberg

Lyft Shows Financial Improvement Ahead of IPO Filing

By Amir Efrati · Sep 26, 2018 10:26am PDT

Lyft appears to be getting better at controlling its costs.The ride-hailing firm more than doubled revenue to $909 million in the first half of 2018 compared with a year earlier, according to a person with knowledge of the figures. But tighter control of expenses such as promotions for riders and technical infrastructure and networking meant the... Lyft appears to be getting better at controlling its costs.The ride-hailing firm more than...

Laugh Out Loud, the comedy network launched by Kevin Hart, above, and Lionsgate, has fared better than some other subscription streaming services. Photo: AP

Inside the Hit-or-Miss World of Video Streaming

By Jessica Toonkel · Sep 26, 2018 7:01am PDT · 4 comments

Between late 2015 and the summer of 2017, movie studio Lionsgate launched four niche subscription streaming services, one each targeting film buffs, comic fanatics, Spanish language movie fans and fans of comedian Kevin Hart. Today, the subscription service Comic-Con HQ has closed, and Lionsgate is weighing whether to close the film buff... Between late 2015 and the summer of 2017, movie studio Lionsgate launched four niche subscription...

Adam Mosseri. Photo by Karen Obrist

Facebook Likely to Name Mosseri to Lead Instagram

By Sarah Kuranda · Sep 25, 2018 10:14am PDT · 3 comments

Facebook most likely will name Adam Mosseri as the new leader of Instagram, following the announcement on Monday night that the photo-sharing service’s two founders are leaving the company, according to people familiar with the matter. The departure of the two founders, Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom and CTO Mike Krieger, was the culmination... Facebook most likely will name Adam Mosseri as the new leader of Instagram, following the...

IBM's David Kenny talking with Box CEO Aaron Levie at a Box conference in August. Photo by Bloomberg

IBM Shakes Up Its Public Cloud Leadership

By Kevin McLaughlin · Sep 25, 2018 7:00am PDT

One of IBM’s top cloud executives quietly departed the company a few weeks ago, amid a broader shakeup of the tech giant’s cloud management team. The changes follow IBM losing market share in the public cloud, where it had hoped to expand.IBM was overtaken by Alibaba in the first quarter for the fourth spot in the global market,... One of IBM’s top cloud executives quietly departed the company a few weeks ago, amid a...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb’s Engineering Chief to Depart

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 24, 2018 11:24am PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb’s Engineering Chief to Depart

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 24, 2018 11:24am PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb has another top job to fill: engineering leader. Mike Curtis, the company’s vice president of engineering for more than five years, will step down this year, he told the company earlier this month. The company will search for a chief technology officer as his replacement, an Airbnb spokesman said.His departure adds to the number of... Airbnb has another top job to fill: engineering leader. Mike Curtis, the company’s vice...

Jonah Peretti. Photo by Erin Beach

The Evolution of BuzzFeed’s Jonah Peretti

By Jessica Toonkel · Sep 24, 2018 7:00am PDT · 3 comments

More than most other entrepreneurs, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti has been the trendsetter of the past decade in digital media. Now, he is learning what it takes to build a sustainable media business. Interviews with more than two dozen people involved in BuzzFeed provide an inside look at how the company founder preferred to study how people... More than most other entrepreneurs, BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti has been the trendsetter of the...

Where Venture Capital Is Broken

By Jessica E. Lessin · Sep 23, 2018 7:57pm PDT · 2 comments

In his interview with Reed Albergotti, Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya didn’t mince his words when describing why he is transforming Social Capital into a tech holding company (aka he wants to “flush” out bad investors). He was also quite blunt in his analysis of what is wrong with venture capital.The summary of his... In his interview with Reed Albergotti, Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya didn’t...

The Information’s 411 — Anti-Social, Pro-Capital

By Priya Anand · Sep 21, 2018 4:35pm PDT

Reed talks about his interview with Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya. Amir describes the new power dynamics at Uber. Reed talks about his interview with Social Capital founder Chamath Palihapitiya. Amir...

Photos by company website, Bloomberg.

Uber’s New Look

By Amir Efrati · Sep 21, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Photos by company website, Bloomberg.

Uber’s New Look

By Amir Efrati · Sep 21, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

As Uber readies for an expected IPO next year, the executive ranks under CEO Dara Khosrowshahi are finally stabilizing after 18 months of tumult. Over the past year and a half, 14 executives who had reported to Mr. Khosrowshahi or his predecessor Travis Kalanick have departed. That has created an almost entirely new team of senior executives,... As Uber readies for an expected IPO next year, the executive ranks under CEO Dara Khosrowshahi...

Attendees at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona earlier this year. Photo by Bloomberg

HPE, Cisco, Dell Brace for Tariffs, but Customer Impact Uncertain

By Nick Wingfield and Aaron Tilley · Sep 20, 2018 1:42pm PDT · 1 comment

On Monday, Cisco Systems, the world’s largest maker of networking equipment, is expected to begin raising prices on major products like routers and switches, according to a person with knowledge of its plans, as a wave of new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on goods imported to the U.S. from China go into effect. The latest... On Monday, Cisco Systems, the world’s largest maker of networking equipment, is expected to...

Chamath Palihapitiya. Photo by Bloomberg

Social Capital Founder Gives His Account of Turmoil at Firm

By Reed Albergotti · Sep 20, 2018 7:31am PDT · 6 comments

For the past year, venture firm Social Capital has been decimated by high-level departures and investor complaints about the firm’s founder, Chamath Palihapitiya, and his unpredictable and unilateral decision making.Now, in an exclusive interview in which Mr. Palihapitiya questioned the very nature of startup funding, he made clear he... For the past year, venture firm Social Capital has been decimated by high-level departures and...

Mike Sullivan

Crypto Newsletter

Alex Jones, the Blockchain and Free Speech

By Jon Victor · Sep 19, 2018 12:05pm PDT · 3 comments

Two of the biggest tech stories this year have been the use of social media platforms to spread political misinformation, and the rise of blockchain technology. Now, the two themes are colliding, as new forms of blockchain-based social media threaten to disrupt the foundation on which many existing platforms were built. What role will... Two of the biggest tech stories this year have been the use of social media platforms to spread...

A man prepared to ride a Bird scooter in Providence, R.I., in July. Photo: AP

After Fast Rollout, Scooters Hit Supply Bumps

By Cory Weinberg and Amir Efrati · Sep 19, 2018 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

A man prepared to ride a Bird scooter in Providence, R.I., in July. Photo: AP

After Fast Rollout, Scooters Hit Supply Bumps

By Cory Weinberg and Amir Efrati · Sep 19, 2018 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

The high-profile electric scooter wars have been waged on the ground in cities worldwide, as nearly a dozen companies including Bird, Lime, Lyft and Uber vie for two-wheel supremacy. Out of public view, the battles also are being fought by air and sea, as scooter operators scramble to purchase the vehicles from Asia to meet surging demand.Some... The high-profile electric scooter wars have been waged on the ground in cities worldwide, as...