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

Photo via Getty

Benioff the Dealmaker Resurfaces With Informatica Purchase

By Martin Peers · May 27, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Marc Benioff is in his happy place once again, buying companies. Salesforce’s deal to buy data management firm Informatica for $8 billion in cash is the first sizable acquisition Benioff has done since a bunch of activist investors in late 2022-early 2023 forced him to focus more on profits and less on deals. And it comes at a critical time for... Marc Benioff is in his happy place once again, buying companies. Salesforce’s deal to buy data...

Josh Kushner and Jony Ive. Images via Getty. Art by Clark Miller.

OpenAI’s $6.5 Billion Deal to Boost Returns for Ive’s Backers

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Miles Kruppa · May 27, 2025 3:46pm PDT

The OpenAI deal that values Jony Ive’s artificial intelligence startup at $6.5 billion stands to reward investors in the stealth company handsomely—at least on paper.After becoming one of OpenAI’s biggest outside shareholders, Thrive Capital last year invested about $30 million in the device startup, called Io Products, according to a person... The OpenAI deal that values Jony Ive’s artificial intelligence startup at $6.5 billion stands to...

Snap Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel. Photo via Getty.

Creator Economy

A Guide to Our Future of Influence Event

By Kaya Yurieff · May 27, 2025 2:00pm PDT

We are just one week away from our fifth annual creator economy event in Los Angeles!This year’s event, called The Future of Influence: What’s Next for Creators, Entertainment & AI, will bring together about 250 people, including creators, entrepreneurs, brands, tech executives and investors shaping the sector. (It’s not too late to buy a... We are just one week away from our fifth annual creator economy event in Los Angeles!This year’s...

Financing the AI Revolution Recap: Adopting AI in the Enterprise

By The Information Partnerships · May 27, 2025 10:32am PDT

Partner Content

Financing the AI Revolution Recap: Adopting AI in the Enterprise

By The Information Partnerships · May 27, 2025 10:32am PDT

LLMs are improving rapidly, with new capabilities and record-setting scores on reasoning and coding benchmarks seemingly announced each week. And yet there remains a significant adoption gap, with organizations of all sizes still in the early days of translating these improvements into measurable business impacts. During a panel discussion at... LLMs are improving rapidly, with new capabilities and record-setting scores on reasoning and...

Image via Getty

Where Autonomous Coding Tools Excel

By Jon Victor · May 27, 2025 10:02am PDT

New AI-powered programming tools like OpenAI’s Codex or Google’s Jules might not be able to code an entire app from scratch just yet. But when it comes to working with large amounts of previously written code, those products could soon be saving developers a ton of time.For example, Codex excels at finding bugs in a large code base and... New AI-powered programming tools like OpenAI’s Codex or Google’s Jules might not be able to code...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, Chief Product Officer Mike Krieger and Head of Communications Sasha de Marigny at Anthropic's first developer conference in San Francisco. Photo by Getty.

Anthropic’s Tattle-Tale Model Goes Viral But Will Customers Care?

By Stephanie Palazzolo · May 27, 2025 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Anthropic’s drop on Thursday of its latest generation of models—Claude Opus 4 and Claude Sonnet 4—landed lots of praise on social media, as early users highlighted how the models were able to stay on track for long-running coding tasks, like creating an entire CRM or complicated video games. (Our readers already knew some of this since we had ... Anthropic’s drop on Thursday of its latest generation of models—Claude Opus 4 and Claude Sonnet 4...

Art by Clark Miller; Musk and Cook images via Getty.

Apple’s Satellite Ambitions Threatened by Elon Musk, Internal Resistance

By Aaron Tilley and Wayne Ma · May 27, 2025 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Three years ago, Elon Musk approached Apple with an eleventh-hour offer. Musk had heard that Apple was about to announce a feature for the upcoming iPhone 14 in partnership with satellite firm Globalstar that would allow iPhones to send text messages to emergency services in areas without cellular reception. He wanted Apple to instead use... Three years ago, Elon Musk approached Apple with an eleventh-hour offer. Musk had heard that ...

Photo via Getty

Chime’s IPO Is Coming. Here’s How to Value the One-of-a-Kind Fintech

By Anita Ramaswamy · May 26, 2025 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Photo via Getty

Chime’s IPO Is Coming. Here’s How to Value the One-of-a-Kind Fintech

By Anita Ramaswamy · May 26, 2025 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Chime, a fintech that offers banking services to people with low and moderate incomes, says it aims to address the “fundamental misalignment between what’s good for banks and what’s good for consumers.” Now Chime is planning to go public, and the big question is what will be good for investors. The answer is complicated. Chime straddles the... Chime, a fintech that offers banking services to people with low and moderate incomes, says it...

Art by Clark Miller.

Deel Bolsters Governance as It Fights Spying Claims

By Michael Roddan · May 25, 2025 7:00am PDT

Global payroll startup Deel is bolstering its governance and ending some of its unusual practices as it fights accusations in a lawsuit that its CEO and board chair recruited and paid a corporate spy at its archrival, Rippling. Deel is moving its official corporate headquarters from its current location: a two-bedroom apartment in a San... Global payroll startup Deel is bolstering its governance and ending some of its unusual practices...

Art by Clark Miller

Smart Glasses, OpenAI and the Hollow Castles

By Abram Brown · May 24, 2025 7:00am PDT

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: How the ‘Technology Brothers’ seized Silicon Valley • The Arena: The WNBA and sports have an online abuse problem—and few good options• Policy: 5 ideas for fixing the FAA • Plus, our Recommendations: A journalist’s guilt trip; the secret of superkids; and a humorous,... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: How the ‘Technology Brothers’ seized...

Art by Clark Miller

How to Fix the FAA? 5 Ideas From Sebastian Thrun and Other Tech Leaders

By Theo Wayt, Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Evan Robinson-Johnson · May 24, 2025 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Judging by the ongoing disruptions at Newark Liberty International and other airports across the country, the Federal Aviation Administration faces enough issues to fill up a 747 jet. And the agency’s responsibilities are only going to grow in the coming years as startups push out of Earth’s atmosphere amid the intensifying commercial space... Judging by the ongoing disruptions at Newark Liberty International and other airports across the...

Art by Clark Miller.

The WNBA and Sports Have an Online Abuse Problem—and Few Good Solutions

By Sara Germano · May 24, 2025 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller.

The WNBA and Sports Have an Online Abuse Problem—and Few Good Solutions

By Sara Germano · May 24, 2025 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Last Saturday, the WNBA’s Indiana Fever hosted the Chicago Sky for their 2025 season opener, a highly anticipated matchup between archrival stars Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. It was a hard-fought game until the third quarter, when everything went off the rails. Clark, who is white, committed a flagrant foul on Reese, who is Black, leading to a... Last Saturday, the WNBA’s Indiana Fever hosted the Chicago Sky for their 2025 season opener, a...

Trump’s Tariff Threat Shouldn’t Panic Apple Investors

Trump’s Tariff Threat Shouldn’t Panic Apple Investors

By Martin Peers · May 23, 2025 3:15pm PDT

Woo-hoo—it’s Memorial Day weekend, which means summer is just around the corner. And in a typical year, we would expect to soon see tech reviewers telling consumers not to upgrade their iPhones now, because new models will be coming in September. Not surprisingly, the June quarter is typically Apple’s weakest for iPhone sales. But this year,... Woo-hoo—it’s Memorial Day weekend, which means summer is just around the corner. And in a typical...

Art by Clark Miller. Portraits courtesy of TBPN.

How the ‘Technology Brothers’ Seized Silicon Valley

By Abram Brown · May 23, 2025 9:02am PDT · 4 comments

In recent months, John Coogan and Jordi Hays, co-hosts of “TBPN,” a daily tech news talk show that has captured the attention of Silicon Valley’s investors and founders, have followed the same morning routine. The two men meet in downtown Los Angeles at the members-only Jonathan Club to work out, then sauna together while reading print... In recent months, John Coogan and Jordi Hays, co-hosts of “TBPN,” a daily tech news talk...

Pro Weekly: Tech Bulls Are Back

Pro Weekly: Tech Bulls Are Back

By Akash Pasricha · May 23, 2025 8:00am PDT

The Information’s readers are suddenly feeling much rosier about prospects for the tech sector. In our latest exclusive survey, 54% said they expect conditions for tech companies will improve over the next six months. That’s a stark reversal from last month, when 65% of respondents said they expected conditions to worsen. The Information’s readers are suddenly feeling much rosier about prospects for the tech...

Art by Mike Sullivan

How Netflix Is Winning Over YouTubers

By Kaya Yurieff and Sahil Patel · May 23, 2025 6:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

How Netflix Is Winning Over YouTubers

By Kaya Yurieff and Sahil Patel · May 23, 2025 6:00am PDT

Hollywood used to shrug off social media influencers. But in the last year, five big streaming services, including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hulu, between them have announced or released more than 25 new shows featuring creators, ranging from reality TV series to scripted comedies to licensing deals. And streaming services hope to strike... Hollywood used to shrug off social media influencers. But in the last year, five big streaming...

Sam Altman. Photo via Getty

The Flaw in Altman’s Thesis for AI Devices

By Martin Peers · May 22, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Is it animal, mineral or vegetable? OpenAI’s public declaration of its plan to roll out AI-specific hardware devices—as a result of its $6.5 billion purchase of Jony Ive’s startup, io—has sparked the predictable rush of people speculating on what the first such device will be. And we’re not just talking about journalists. Taiwan-based analyst... Is it animal, mineral or vegetable? OpenAI’s public declaration of its plan to roll out...

Elad Gil. Photo via Getty.

Elad Gil’s Latest AI Bet

By Miles Kruppa · May 22, 2025 3:31pm PDT · 1 comment

Elad Gil, the prolific investor known for placing early bets on Airbnb and Stripe, says he’s been backing ventures buying mature businesses and incorporating artificial intelligence into their work. Now we know the identity of one of them.Gil recently led a funding round in Enam Co., a one-year-old AI startup focusing on worker productivity,... Elad Gil, the prolific investor known for placing early bets on Airbnb and Stripe, says he’s been...

Alice Ma, co-founder and CEO of Mad Realities. Photo via Mad Realities.

Creator Economy

A Startup Aims to Create Online Shows for TV Studios

By Kaya Yurieff · May 22, 2025 2:45pm PDT

Hollywood has found a new source of inspiration on YouTube. In the latest deal to bring the internet onto living room screens, “Transformers” director Michael Bay is making the viral “Skibidi Toilet” meme into a movie. Hollywood studios are also trying to figure out how to gain fans on the internet, which can ultimately drive viewership of shows... Hollywood has found a new source of inspiration on YouTube. In the latest deal to bring the...

AI Agents Are Popular, but Accuracy Concerns Linger

By Akash Pasricha · May 22, 2025 10:30am PDT · 2 comments

AI Agents Are Popular, but Accuracy Concerns Linger

By Akash Pasricha · May 22, 2025 10:30am PDT · 2 comments

Artificial intelligence agents that can carry out tasks like coding, customer service or scheduling with little human oversight are generating a lot of hype. Tech users are generally eager to try them out—and say they’re mostly happy with the results. Three in four of our readers have used an AI agent, and most said they are at least... Artificial intelligence agents that can carry out tasks like coding, customer service or...