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

Houses under construction in Florida. Photo by Bloomberg

Amazon Considers Offering Home Insurance

By Priya Anand · Jun 6, 2018 7:00am PDT

Amazon.com has contemplated offering home insurance as an offshoot of its development work on robots and other connected devices for the home, according to a person familiar with the discussions. The idea is that robots and other smart devices can be used to monitor for threats such as fires and burglaries, making it possible to offer cheaper... Amazon.com has contemplated offering home insurance as an offshoot of its development work on...

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, appearing in one of the company's new ads.

Uber to Spend Up to $500 Million on Ad Campaign

By Priya Anand · Jun 5, 2018 3:18pm PDT · 4 comments

Uber plans to spend up to $500 million on a global marketing effort this year, according to a person familiar with the matter. It marks Uber’s first large-scale brand campaign and is part of an effort to repair the company’s image after last year’s scandals.The branding campaign, which kicked off in the U.S. last month with... Uber plans to spend up to $500 million on a global marketing effort this year, according to a...

A Meituan food delivery courier in Beijing. Photo: AP

Meituan Aims for September IPO in Hong Kong

By Yunan Zhang · Jun 5, 2018 8:32am PDT

China’s Meituan, the world’s fourth most valuable startup last valued at $30 billion, is now drafting its application to go public in Hong Kong as early as this September, according to people briefed on the matter. Last week, the founder of the online services app, Chief Executive Wang Xing, flew to Hong Kong and met with bankers to... China’s Meituan, the world’s fourth most valuable startup last valued at $30 billion,...

Baidu's Raven H smart speaker on display at the Baidu World Technology Conference in Beijing in November 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Inside Baidu’s Failed Bid to Build Its Own Alexa

By Yunan Zhang · Jun 5, 2018 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

Baidu's Raven H smart speaker on display at the Baidu World Technology Conference in Beijing in November 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Inside Baidu’s Failed Bid to Build Its Own Alexa

By Yunan Zhang · Jun 5, 2018 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

When Chinese tech giant Baidu bought hardware startup Raven Tech early last year for about $90 million, executives hoped the maker of smart speakers would be a lynchpin of Baidu’s artificial intelligence strategy. Raven’s central role seemed to be cemented when its speaker received prominent billing at Baidu’s annual tech... When Chinese tech giant Baidu bought hardware startup Raven Tech early last year for about $90...

Photo by Julie Mikos

Jobs@TheInformation

Senior Event Coordinator – The Information

By The Information Staff · Jun 4, 2018 1:14pm PDT

The Information is a fast-growing media startup based in the heart of downtown San Francisco. Politico called us "a well respected, scoopy journalism outfit and a must-read for many global business elites." Fortune, Vanity Fair and Digiday have also recently featured our business as an innovator in media. We’re a must-read for... The Information is a fast-growing media startup based in the heart of downtown San Francisco....

Facebook's former messaging chief Dave Marcus at F8 last month. Photo by Bloomberg.

For Developers, Facebook’s Messenger Shows Signs of Life

By Sarah Kuranda · Jun 4, 2018 10:01am PDT · 3 comments

Facebook’s early efforts to turn Messenger into a service that people can use for shopping or getting news or weather sputtered quickly. But two years on, the Messenger effort is showing signs of life.Several developers say they have been selling more bots and applications through Messenger in recent months. Trip-booking service... Facebook’s early efforts to turn Messenger into a service that people can use for shopping...

The Information Accelerator's Media Bootcamp in New York earlier this year. Photo by Karen Obrist.

Announcing The Information’s SF Media Business Bootcamp

By The Information Staff · Jun 4, 2018 9:05am PDT

The Information Accelerator is offering a one-day media business bootcamp for entrepreneurs and professionals who want to diversify their business models and get profitable.Date: Thursday, November 8, 2018Location: The Information, 100 Pine Street, San Francisco, CASpeakers: Jessica Lessin, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The... The Information Accelerator is offering a one-day media business bootcamp for entrepreneurs and...

Year Two: The Information Accelerator

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 4, 2018 9:03am PDT

Year Two: The Information Accelerator

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 4, 2018 9:03am PDT

A whole generation of news publications are dying. The conventional wisdom is that the internet wiped away print advertising and also commoditized information irrevocably.Yes, the Internet killed print ads, but I firmly believe we got the tech effect backwards. As the furor over fake news illustrates, tech—with all its commoditizing and... A whole generation of news publications are dying. The conventional wisdom is that the internet...

Snap stock details on display at the New York Stock Exchange last year. Photo by Bloomberg

Why Snap Should Tap Apple or Tencent for Cash

By Tom Dotan · Jun 4, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Snap built a business on messages that disappear. But to keep the business going it needs to make sure its cash doesn’t. The company burned through $1.1 billion in the last five quarters, just on running its business (it spent more cash on acquisitions). At that rate, and with just $1.8 billion left, Snap will likely need to raise more... Snap built a business on messages that disappear. But to keep the business going it needs to make...

The Information’s 411 — Org Is the New Black

By Tom Dotan · Jun 1, 2018 1:22pm PDT

Priya grills Tom on the Netflix's org chart, how Netflix is managed and how it decentralizes decision-making across the company. Priya grills Tom on the Netflix's org chart, how Netflix is managed and how it decentralizes...

Citibike bicycles, which are operated by Motivate. Photo by Bloomberg.

Lyft Nears Acquisition of Motivate, U.S. Bike-Share Leader

By Amir Efrati and Cory Weinberg · Jun 1, 2018 8:48am PDT · 4 comments

Lyft has agreed to buy Motivate, which runs some of the biggest U.S. bike-share programs, according to two people briefed about the deal. The acquisition, which is likely to be worth $250 million or more, will quickly insert Lyft into the small but fast-growing U.S. bike-sharing market.The two companies have agreed on the terms of the deal,... Lyft has agreed to buy Motivate, which runs some of the biggest U.S. bike-share programs,...

Art: Scotty Reifsynder

‘Pay to Pitch’ Makes a Comeback

By Alfred Lee · Jun 1, 2018 7:02am PDT · 4 comments

Art: Scotty Reifsynder

‘Pay to Pitch’ Makes a Comeback

By Alfred Lee · Jun 1, 2018 7:02am PDT · 4 comments

Keiretsu Forum doesn’t have the name recognition of Y Combinator or Andreessen Horowitz. But by some measures, the lesser-known organization has become the world’s most active startup investing group. Keiretsu said it invested in 207 startups last year, which is more than any angel investor group or venture capital firm, according to... Keiretsu Forum doesn’t have the name recognition of Y Combinator or Andreessen Horowitz....

Photo: AP

U.S. Chipmakers See Opening as Trade Friction Grows

By Aaron Tilley and Matt Drange · May 31, 2018 7:02am PDT

Earlier this month, Thomas Caulfield, the new CEO of chip manufacturer GlobalFoundries, went to Washington, D.C., to make his pitch that the U.S. federal government needs to do more to support domestic chip manufacturing.GlobalFoundries already has received funding and incentives of hundreds of millions of dollars from New York state for the... Earlier this month, Thomas Caulfield, the new CEO of chip manufacturer GlobalFoundries, went to...

DeRay McKesson. Photo by AP

BuzzFeed News Plans Interview Program for Facebook Watch

By Beejoli Shah · May 30, 2018 6:08pm PDT

BuzzFeed News plans to launch a new video interview show in the next two months, to stream on Facebook Watch. The weekly show is being described as a millennial-focused “Charlie Rose”–style program, with 20-minute episodes featuring an interview a week with a premiere celebrity, politician or other newsmaker.Plans for the... BuzzFeed News plans to launch a new video interview show in the next two months, to stream on...

Photos by Bloomberg, AP, Netflix. Source: The Information

How Netflix’s Management Structure Is Rewriting the Hollywood Script

By Tom Dotan · May 30, 2018 7:00am PDT

Of all the factors that explain Netflix’s success in upending the media industry, the least understood may be just how little it operates like a traditional media company.At most studios and TV networks, decisions about whether to make a show or a movie can be made only by a handful of people atop the company, namely the president, a... Of all the factors that explain Netflix’s success in upending the media industry, the least...

Photo by Erin Beach

Announcing the Autonomous Vehicle Summit Breakouts

By The Information Staff · May 29, 2018 1:29pm PDT

Photo by Erin Beach

Subscriber Summit

Announcing the Autonomous Vehicle Summit Breakouts

By The Information Staff · May 29, 2018 1:29pm PDT

We're so excited to see everyone on June 14 in San Francisco at our Autonomous Vehicles Summit, focused on the latest developments in the field. An important part of each Summit is the breakout session: your opportunity to hear from the innovators in the industry and to ask them all your burning questions. If you're registered for... We're so excited to see everyone on June 14 in San Francisco at our Autonomous Vehicles...

From left to right: Yvette Martinez Rea, Jack Etienne, Justin Dellario, Rick Fox, Stratton Sclavos, Bobby Kotick, Ann Hand. Photos by Bloomberg, AP

The People With Power in Esports

By Matt Pressberg · May 29, 2018 11:01am PDT · 3 comments

Esports is having a big league moment. Professional video gaming is drawing investment dollars from some of the biggest names in traditional sports, like the National Basketball Association and baseball’s New York Yankees. Game developers are also increasingly focusing on the sports side of their business. Activision Blizzard, for example,... Esports is having a big league moment. Professional video gaming is drawing investment dollars...

Taxis at a taxi stand outside a train station in Tokyo. Photo: Bloomberg

Under Pressure, Uber Tries New Approach in Japan

By Juro Osawa · May 29, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Last week, 20 Uber executives from around the world flew to Tokyo for a two-day, secret meeting on one of the company’s top priorities: How to work with taxis to crack Japan’s transportation market. Uber is hoping to make a major push in Japan, a country where it desperately wants to succeed after ceding China to Didi Chuxing and... Last week, 20 Uber executives from around the world flew to Tokyo for a two-day, secret meeting...

Art by Sam Lessin

Modest Proposals

Instagram Is the Real Virtual Reality, Not Oculus

By Sam Lessin · May 28, 2018 7:02am PDT · 6 comments

An odd thing occurred to me while watching Facebook’s F8 developer conference earlier this month. Amid announcements about new form factors for Oculus and a slew of updates on camera effects and lenses, I realized Facebook’s play for virtual reality is Instagram, not Oculus.Instagram over time has developed three of the major... An odd thing occurred to me while watching Facebook’s F8 developer conference earlier this...

The Information’s 411 — Oracles and Bad Omens

By Tom Dotan · May 25, 2018 5:40pm PDT

The Information’s 411 — Oracles and Bad Omens

By Tom Dotan · May 25, 2018 5:40pm PDT

Kevin talks about how Oracle uses the specter of software audits to sell its cloud services to customers. Martin explains why Comcast's all-cash bid to buy Fox doesn't make sense. Kevin talks about how Oracle uses the specter of software audits to sell its cloud services to...