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 — Hopping from Bubble to Bubble

By Tom Dotan · May 5, 2017 4:25pm PDT

Jessica returns to the podcast to talk about the (non) relationship between Silicon Valley and DC. And Kevin talks about Google's moves in Southeast Asia and Tom's story about the future of sports media. Jessica returns to the podcast to talk about the (non) relationship between Silicon Valley and...

The U.S. Capitol. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Valley’s ‘Wait and See’ Approach to D.C.

By Jessica E. Lessin · May 5, 2017 9:41am PDT · 2 comments

Last week, I traveled to the belly of—if not the beast, certainly the news cycle—with a trip to Washington, D.C. And one theme jumped out at me loud and clear: Under the new administration, Silicon Valley is keeping its distance from Washington.Lobbyists once courted by startups in regulatory hotbeds like fintech say they’re... Last week, I traveled to the belly of—if not the beast, certainly the news cycle—with...

Slack VP of Product April Underwood, who oversees Slack’s investment fund. Photo by Karen Obrist.

The Hazards of Raising Money from a Startup

By Eugene Kim · May 4, 2017 7:01am PDT · 5 comments

When Slack launched an $80 million fund to invest in startups for its messaging service in late 2015, Awesome.ai was one of three firms that were the first to get funding. It was also the first to shut down.The startup, which made a chatbot that lets teams share work updates through Slack, ran out of cash after eight months and couldn’t... When Slack launched an $80 million fund to invest in startups for its messaging service in late...

Google's Mountain View headquarters. Photo by AP.

Labor Board to Hear Employee Complaint Against Google

By Reed Albergotti · May 3, 2017 12:01pm PDT · 1 comment

Google's Mountain View headquarters. Photo by AP.

Labor Board to Hear Employee Complaint Against Google

By Reed Albergotti · May 3, 2017 12:01pm PDT · 1 comment

A Google employee who complained to the National Labor Relations Board about the company’s confidentiality policies last year has won the first round of a case with broad implications for the tech industry.A regional director of the NLRB last Friday filed a complaint against Google, alleging the company’s rules against employees... A Google employee who complained to the National Labor Relations Board about the company’s...

Alphabet CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Alphabet Shutting Asian Service That Sped YouTube

By Kevin McLaughlin · May 3, 2017 9:08am PDT · 1 comment

Alphabet is shuttering Accelerator, a year old-service designed to speed streaming performance of popular YouTube videos in Asian countries with slow Internet access, according to a person who has worked on the project. Alphabet wants to focus on Google Station, a more recently developed effort meant to be introduced in more countries, said a... Alphabet is shuttering Accelerator, a year old-service designed to speed streaming performance of...

Dave Waiser, Gett CEO. Photo by Flickr/TechCrunch.

The Big Interview

How Gett-Juno Deal Could Shake Up NY’s Ride-Hailing Market

By Amir Efrati · May 3, 2017 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

Europe-focused ride-hailing firm Gett strengthened a foothold in the U.S. with last week’s $200 million all-stock acquisition of New York ride-sharing firm Juno. Now, the firm sees a U.S. expansion beyond New York on the horizon, according to Gett CEO Dave Waiser.“History shows there’s room for three or four national players in... Europe-focused ride-hailing firm Gett strengthened a foothold in the U.S. with last week’s...

Sinovation founder Kai-Fu Lee. Photo by Bloomberg.

The Big Interview

China’s Kai-fu Lee on Why the U.S. Could Fall Behind in AI

By Shai Oster · May 2, 2017 10:01am PDT · 5 comments

One of the best-known Chinese tech investors, Kai-fu Lee, predicts that AI-driven advances like self-driving cars will be widely deployed in China before the U.S., thanks to more welcoming government regulators and greater social acceptance. And because machines learn by getting exposure to more and more examples, if they’re used first in... One of the best-known Chinese tech investors, Kai-fu Lee, predicts that AI-driven advances like...

Dan Rose, Facebook's vice president of partnerships, in charge of maintaining healthy relationships with media companies. Photo by Bloomberg.

Media Execs Wary of Facebook’s Video Ad Plans

By Cory Weinberg · May 2, 2017 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

Dan Rose, Facebook's vice president of partnerships, in charge of maintaining healthy relationships with media companies. Photo by Bloomberg.

Media Execs Wary of Facebook’s Video Ad Plans

By Cory Weinberg · May 2, 2017 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

Facebook is slowly allowing more publishers to insert ads into the middle of video clips running on the social network. But among media and ad executives, doubts persist about whether the 15-second mid-roll “ad breaks” will make enough business sense to persuade media companies to produce longer videos.Among the concerns is the... Facebook is slowly allowing more publishers to insert ads into the middle of video clips running...

Microsoft executive Julie Larson-Green at a Microsoft developers conference in 2013. Photo by Bloomberg.

Microsoft’s Larson-Green Takes a Step Back

By Eugene Kim · May 1, 2017 6:23pm PDT

Julie Larson-Green, a senior executive within Microsoft’s Office team who was once seen as a possible successor to former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, is leaving the team, citing health reasons, according to an internal email sent earlier last month. She will take on a broader position at the company, serving as the chief experience... Julie Larson-Green, a senior executive within Microsoft’s Office team who was once seen as...

ESPN CEO John Skipper. Photo by Bloomberg.

Where ESPN Is Getting Left Behind

By Tom Dotan · May 1, 2017 12:28pm PDT · 7 comments

The ESPN layoffs last week that roiled the media industry didn’t just signify that the “worldwide leader” in sports was trying to cut costs. It was a reminder of how much sports media has changed—and how hard it will be for ESPN to keep its perch.The network’s cost-cutting is most obviously a result of falling cable... The ESPN layoffs last week that roiled the media industry didn’t just signify that the...

T. Rowe Price fund manager Henry Ellenbogen, who spearheaded the firm's private tech push. Photo by Bloomberg.

Mutual Funds Curtail Private Tech Disclosures

By Alfred Lee · May 1, 2017 7:01am PDT

Some of the biggest mutual fund investors in private tech, including T. Rowe Price and Morgan Stanley, have quietly cut back disclosures on the carrying value of their investments. The changes mean observers have to wait longer to find out whether mutual funds have marked up or down their private tech stakes.The reduced disclosures could also... Some of the biggest mutual fund investors in private tech, including T. Rowe Price and Morgan...

08 - Entrepreneurial Resilience - Leila Janah, Founder Samasource and LXMI

By Sam Lessin · Apr 30, 2017 7:14am PDT · 1 comment

Modest Conversations

08 - Entrepreneurial Resilience - Leila Janah, Founder Samasource and LXMI

By Sam Lessin · Apr 30, 2017 7:14am PDT · 1 comment

Leila, the founder of Samasource and LXMI, joins to talk about entrepreneurial resilience. We talk about emotional stability, balance, and the lack thereof in the startup community. We also debate when to stay the course vs. swerve. Leila, the founder of Samasource and LXMI, joins to talk about entrepreneurial resilience....

Art by Sam Lessin.

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Apr 29, 2017 8:02am PDT

Good Morning!There's serious doubt now that Travis Kalanick really is the second-ranked Wii Tennis player in the world. In the same vein, can Larry Page really be the second-largest winner of Waze Goodies? Does Tim Cook really hold the record for the world’s second-longest Snapchat streak? Good Morning!There's serious doubt now that Travis Kalanick really is the second-ranked Wii...

The Information’s 411 — News is the News

By Tom Dotan · Apr 28, 2017 4:54pm PDT

Eugene talks about Dropbox's enterprise ambitions. Cory and Tom recap the New York subscriber summit. Eugene talks about Dropbox's enterprise ambitions. Cory and Tom recap the New York...

Photo by Karen Obrist

NYC Subscriber Summit

Watch Interviews from the Summit

By The Information Staff · Apr 28, 2017 3:49pm PDT · 1 comment

If you missed the New York Subscriber Summit this past Tuesday, you can watch the interviews below. Among those on stage were CNN CEO Jeff Zucker, Quora CEO Adam D'Angelo and Facebook executive Adam Mosseri. If you missed the New York Subscriber Summit this past Tuesday, you can watch the interviews...

Tencent president Martin Lau and CEO Ma Huateng. Photo by Bloomberg.

Tencent Finally Makes a Big Bet on Artificial Intelligence

By Juro Osawa · Apr 28, 2017 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Tencent president Martin Lau and CEO Ma Huateng. Photo by Bloomberg.

Tencent Finally Makes a Big Bet on Artificial Intelligence

By Juro Osawa · Apr 28, 2017 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Tencent, the company behind China’s largest social network and the world’s biggest online games business, always gets props for its products—but not necessarily for its cutting-edge tech. Now the juggernaut is taking steps to change that perception with a big push into AI.The owner of the WeChat messaging app will soon open an... Tencent, the company behind China’s largest social network and the world’s biggest...

LG Electronics’ vice president David VanderWaal and Amazon Echo vice president Mike George unveiling an LG fridge equipped with Amazon Alexa at CES in January. Photo by AP

Amazon Plans to Make AI Apps Easy to Build

By Kevin McLaughlin · Apr 27, 2017 7:01am PDT

The contest between Amazon.com and Alphabet to win over developers for their virtual assistants, Alexa and Google Assistant, may come down to whether developers want simpler tools that can do less. Amazon has prioritized AI tools that are easy for developers to work on, conscious that many developers don’t have the resources to work on... The contest between Amazon.com and Alphabet to win over developers for their virtual assistants,...

Dropbox COO Dennis Woodside. Photo by Bloomberg.

Dropbox Sees Growth in Business Sales But Challenges Remain

By Eugene Kim · Apr 26, 2017 11:50am PDT

Dropbox appears to be making progress in its efforts to expand in the large-business market but executive departures may complicate its efforts.Patrick Heim, Dropbox’s former head of trust and security, stepped down in January to join a startup called ClearSky Security, according to his LinkedIn page. Mr. Heim, who previously served as the... Dropbox appears to be making progress in its efforts to expand in the large-business market but...

The Information editor in chief Jessica Lessin. Photo by Karen Obrist

NYC Subscriber Summit

Watch the Keynote Address from the NYC Subscriber Summit

By The Information Staff · Apr 26, 2017 10:16am PDT

If you missed Tuesday's New York Subscriber Summit, you can watch The Information editor-in-chief Jessica Lessin's keynote address below. Ms Lessin gave an overview of the state of the media industry and also announced some important news from The Information.For coverage of the summit, see here, here and here. If you missed Tuesday's New York Subscriber Summit, you can watch The Information...

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom. Photo by Bloomberg.

Instagram’s Latest Growth Hacks

By Cory Weinberg · Apr 26, 2017 7:01am PDT

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom. Photo by Bloomberg.

Instagram’s Latest Growth Hacks

By Cory Weinberg · Apr 26, 2017 7:01am PDT

To take on Snapchat, Instagram has done more than just copy its features. It’s also heavily ramped up advertising on its parent site Facebook, and adopted other growth strategies long used by Facebook, such as sending more messages to users to get them to reopen the app. Instagram last year boosted digital ad spending by 30% to 40% to... To take on Snapchat, Instagram has done more than just copy its features. It’s also heavily...