The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica Lessin and the team at The Information

Five times/week

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.

By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy

Recent Editions

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg last week at the Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley, Idaho. Photo: Bloomberg

In Reversal, Facebook Mulls Switch to Google Apps

By Kevin McLaughlin and Sarah Kuranda · Jul 17, 2018 7:00am PDT · 4 comments

Facebook, which stopped using Google email and productivity applications inside the company a few years ago, is now mulling a switch back to the Google services for its employees, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions. Such a move would be an embarrassing setback for Microsoft, whose applications Facebook currently uses.If it... Facebook, which stopped using Google email and productivity applications inside the company a few...

Former Qualcomm executive chairman and CEO Paul Jacobs. Photo: Bloomberg

Behind Qualcomm’s Retreat From Data Center Business

By Aaron Tilley · Jul 16, 2018 10:02am PDT · 3 comments

Three years ago, Qualcomm mounted an attack on Intel in the market for server chips used in the highly profitable data center business. By June the effort was a shambles. As the company laid off hundreds of workers in the data center unit in North Carolina, a collection of tech giants—including Microsoft, Intel, Samsung and... Three years ago, Qualcomm mounted an attack on Intel in the market for server chips used in the...

An app tied to the World Cup launched after the tournament started because of a lengthy review by Facebook. Photo: AP

Facebook Scrutiny Slows Approval of Messenger Apps

By Sarah Kuranda · Jul 16, 2018 7:00am PDT

Leading up to the World Cup, GameOn Technology built a Facebook Messenger app for getting scores and game highlights. But as the World Cup kicked off last month, the app was still on the sidelines, awaiting Facebook’s approval.GameOn isn’t alone. The Information spoke to nearly a dozen developers frustrated by significant recent... Leading up to the World Cup, GameOn Technology built a Facebook Messenger app for getting scores...

Why Sun Valley Lost Interest in Silicon Valley

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 14, 2018 8:26am PDT

Why Sun Valley Lost Interest in Silicon Valley

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 14, 2018 8:26am PDT

There was a time when Silicon Valley was the next big thing at Sun Valley. By that I mean that this annual conference—in its 36 years as a summer camp for old-school media moguls—was all about the “disruptors” from the Valley. Travis Kalanick was mobbed by attendees. Mark Zuckerberg was the person everyone wanted to meet.... There was a time when Silicon Valley was the next big thing at Sun Valley. By that I mean that...

The Information’s 411 — The Best Never Vest

By Tom Dotan · Jul 13, 2018 2:30pm PDT · 1 comment

Jessica checks in from Sun Valley to give an inside look at what media and tech moguls are talking about. Amir explains why self-driving truck technology is back in fashion. Alfred talks about why companies' delaying their IPOs could come back to haunt employees' equity. Jessica checks in from Sun Valley to give an inside look at what media and tech moguls are...

Amazon Web Services CEO Andy Jassy at a company event last year. Photo: Bloomberg

Amazon Web Services Targets Cisco in Networking

By Wayne Ma and Kevin McLaughlin · Jul 13, 2018 10:03am PDT · 9 comments

Amazon Web Services already dominates the market for cloud services. Now, it is eyeing a part of the cloud business it doesn’t already control: the $14 billion global market for data center switches.AWS is considering selling its own networking switches for business customers—hardware devices that move traffic around networks,... Amazon Web Services already dominates the market for cloud services. Now, it is eyeing a part of...

Airbnb is one of numerous private companies facing expiring employee stock option grants. Photo: Bloomberg

Delayed IPOs Undercut Startup Employee Options

By Alfred Lee · Jul 13, 2018 7:02am PDT · 5 comments

When Airbnb assured employees last month that it aimed to go public before their stock grants expired, the company became the latest example of a private tech firm grappling with a once unheard-of problem. Tech companies are staying private longer than ever, but most employee stock grants aren’t designed to last quite so long. Stock... When Airbnb assured employees last month that it aimed to go public before their stock grants...

Photo: AP

China’s Huawei Plots AI Push With ‘Project Da Vinci’

By Juro Osawa and Aaron Tilley · Jul 12, 2018 10:16am PDT · 3 comments

Photo: AP

China’s Huawei Plots AI Push With ‘Project Da Vinci’

By Juro Osawa and Aaron Tilley · Jul 12, 2018 10:16am PDT · 3 comments

Once a month, a top Huawei executive huddles with colleagues to talk about how to bring artificial intelligence into everything the Chinese tech giant makes, from telecom base stations and cloud data centers to devices like smartphones and surveillance cameras. The broad effort is code-named Project Da Vinci—referred to as Project D by... Once a month, a top Huawei executive huddles with colleagues to talk about how to bring...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan

Facebook Watch Is Struggling to Win Fans

By Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Jul 12, 2018 7:01am PDT · 5 comments

Facebook Watch, the company’s bid to dethrone YouTube, has had a shaky first year.In the months after Watch’s launch last August, the number of people who visited the social network’s new section every day to watch shows produced by ABC, A&E Networks, Discovery and other smaller media companies disappointed some show... Facebook Watch, the company’s bid to dethrone YouTube, has had a shaky first year.In the...

An Imax theater in Bengaluru, India. Photo: VR Bengaluru

Imax’s Best Feature: Global Expansion

By Matt Pressberg · Jul 11, 2018 10:01am PDT

Movie theater stocks like AMC and Cinemark slumped last spring and haven’t recovered, thanks to a historically bad summer movie season, the rise of streaming services and even dying shopping malls, which have reduced foot traffic. Among those hit by the sell-off was Imax, the company responsible for giant screen movies.But Imax isn’t... Movie theater stocks like AMC and Cinemark slumped last spring and haven’t recovered,...

Photo: Henge Docks

An Apple Accessories Maker Scrambles to Keep Up

By Wayne Ma · Jul 11, 2018 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

By getting into the electronics accessories market, Matthew Vroom picked one of the most unforgiving businesses in tech, where startup failures abound. Mr. Vroom made life even harder for his company, Henge Docks, by specializing in high-quality docking stations for notebooks made by Apple, whose secrecy about new product designs has forced... By getting into the electronics accessories market, Matthew Vroom picked one of the most...

How Investors Line Up Behind Scooters, Bikes

By Cory Weinberg and Mike Sullivan · Jul 10, 2018 11:38am PDT

How Investors Line Up Behind Scooters, Bikes

By Cory Weinberg and Mike Sullivan · Jul 10, 2018 11:38am PDT

Large investors are putting their weight behind bike and scooter startups, setting up what likely will be a years-long, multibillion-dollar fight over the future of urban transportation. (See chart.)Funding is pouring into scooters and bikes far faster than in the early days of ride hailing. Two leading U.S. scooter startups, Lime and Bird, have... Large investors are putting their weight behind bike and scooter startups, setting up what likely...

After Self-Driving Cars Get Billions, Trucks Get Second Look

By Amir Efrati · Jul 10, 2018 7:01am PDT

The self-driving truck market is getting more congested. Three new startups—including one whose existence hasn’t been disclosed before—are developing autonomous truck-related software. All three were founded by entrepreneurs with ties to Uber, which has seen turmoil in its autonomous vehicle unit.The companies are seeking to... The self-driving truck market is getting more congested. Three new startups—including one...

DeepMap co-founders Mark Wheeler, left, and James Wu. Photo: Bloomberg

Silicon Valley Mapping Startup Tries to Navigate Its Way Into China

By Yunan Zhang · Jul 9, 2018 10:01am PDT

DeepMap, founded by former Google mapping whizzes and backed by big-name Silicon Valley investors, is in talks to strengthen its ties to China with up to $60 million in fresh cash from Alibaba, Didi Chuxing and automaker BAIC Group, according to two people with direct knowledge of the fundraising.The Palo Alto, Calif., company, which makes... DeepMap, founded by former Google mapping whizzes and backed by big-name Silicon Valley...

Barry Silbert, founder and CEO, Digital Currency Group

The Big Interview

One Investor’s Outsize Role in the Crypto Market

By Alfred Lee · Jul 9, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

In 2013, Barry Silbert asked the board of directors at SecondMarket, a startup he founded that connected buyers and sellers of private company stock, to let him spend $3 million of the company’s cash on buying bitcoin. It had almost nothing to do with the company’s business, and not all of the board was enthusiastic. “I thought... In 2013, Barry Silbert asked the board of directors at SecondMarket, a startup he founded that...

The End of Growth

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 7, 2018 8:23am PDT · 5 comments

The End of Growth

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jul 7, 2018 8:23am PDT · 5 comments

Priya’s article this week about retailers flocking to Instagram instead of Amazon got me thinking about growth and where startups are finding it. (I suppose running a business also has something to do with my interest in this topic.)There have been several major shifts that are making it much harder—and more expensive—for... Priya’s article this week about retailers flocking to Instagram instead of Amazon got me...

The Information’s 411 — Amazon Falls Out of Fashion

By Priya Anand · Jul 6, 2018 3:13pm PDT

Sarah Kuranda talks about how you may soon be talking to Google's Duplex when you dial a call center. Then Priya explains why new retail brands are choosing Instagram over Amazon and how Instagram could become a bigger player in ecommerce. Sarah Kuranda talks about how you may soon be talking to Google's Duplex when you dial a...

Mike Sullivan

Once Worth $800 Million, Cloud Startup Crumbles

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jul 6, 2018 10:28am PDT

Flash storage provider Tintri was riding high heading into its initial public offering last spring. Tintri, already a favorite of Hollywood studio Dreamworks, had just landed the biggest customer deal in its history, with Bank of New York Mellon worth “tens of millions” of dollars, according to a former Tintri employee.... Flash storage provider Tintri was riding high heading into its initial public offering last...

Xiaopeng founder He Xiaopeng spoke at a conference in Beijing in April.

China’s Hot Electric Car Market Gets Jolt of Alibaba Money

By Juro Osawa · Jul 6, 2018 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

While Tesla struggles to meet investors’ expectations, its young Chinese counterparts are raising money at soaring valuations on hopes that China’s electric vehicle market will zoom ahead in the coming years. Xiaopeng Motors, backed by e-commerce giant Alibaba, is in talks to raise $600 million to $700 million from Alibaba and other... While Tesla struggles to meet investors’ expectations, its young Chinese counterparts are...

Cast members from Netflix's "Stranger Things" at an awards show last month. Photo: AP

Inside Netflix’s TV Marketing Machine

By Beejoli Shah · Jul 5, 2018 10:12am PDT · 7 comments

Cast members from Netflix's "Stranger Things" at an awards show last month. Photo: AP

Inside Netflix’s TV Marketing Machine

By Beejoli Shah · Jul 5, 2018 10:12am PDT · 7 comments

When Netflix debuted “Stranger Things” in 2016, it was so optimistic about the 1980s-era spooky thriller that it poured $50 million into promoting the show, much of it on Facebook. Yet when it came to the reboot last year of classic sitcom “One Day at a Time,” the marketing team didn’t even create a Facebook page... When Netflix debuted “Stranger Things” in 2016, it was so optimistic about the...