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 — Jane’s (Tech) Addiction

By Tom Dotan · Feb 2, 2018 1:07pm PST · 2 comments

Jessica talks about the logic of comparing the tech industry to the tobacco companies. And Tom talks about why BuzzFeed News might raise money from an outside investor. Jessica talks about the logic of comparing the tech industry to the tobacco companies. And Tom...

Jobs@TheInformation

Join The Information as our Enterprise Sales Manager

By The Information Staff · Feb 2, 2018 12:26pm PST

The Information is a San Francisco-based subscription publication known for original, in-depth reporting about the technology industry. We’re the go-to daily read for the most important people in technology and business and are building a one-of-a kind community of subscribers. We have plenty of capital and big ambitions to grow our... The Information is a San Francisco-based subscription publication known for original, in-depth...

Salesforce chief Marc Benioff at Davos last month. Photo by Bloomberg.

Tobacco, Tech and Ulterior Motives

By Jessica E. Lessin · Feb 2, 2018 7:01am PST · 6 comments

Last week, I was scrolling through Twitter when I was stopped by a headline. From snowy Davos, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff was telling CNBC that Facebook should be regulated like a tobacco company.I wasn’t surprised by the analogy; I was surprised by who said it. I’ve been hearing that argument from the folks who run television news... Last week, I was scrolling through Twitter when I was stopped by a headline. From snowy Davos,...

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Art by Mike Sullivan

BuzzFeed’s News Headache

By Tom Dotan · Feb 1, 2018 6:21pm PST · 2 comments

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Art by Mike Sullivan

BuzzFeed’s News Headache

By Tom Dotan · Feb 1, 2018 6:21pm PST · 2 comments

Last summer, executives from NBCUniversal had a conversation with BuzzFeed about buying control of the media company, according to people familiar with the talks. At least some investors in BuzzFeed were keen for a deal to happen, so they could exit the high profile but unprofitable business.At the time, BuzzFeed was expecting to finish the year... Last summer, executives from NBCUniversal had a conversation with BuzzFeed about buying control...

Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick, left, with Anthony Levandowski, in 2016. Photo: AP

Waymo Case Against Uber Hinges on View of Trade Secrets Law

By Amir Efrati · Feb 1, 2018 12:07pm PST · 2 comments

No matter the outcome of next week’s trial, Waymo has accomplished a lot from its lawsuit against Uber for allegedly stealing Waymo’s trade secrets related to self-driving cars. The suit has hurt Uber’s reputation and its effort to develop the vehicles.The trial itself, which will start Monday unless the parties suddenly... No matter the outcome of next week’s trial, Waymo has accomplished a lot from its lawsuit...

Tel Aviv.

As Amazon Expands in Israel, Contest for Talent Heats Up

By Sarah Kuranda · Feb 1, 2018 7:01am PST

When Israeli cybersecurity firm GuardiCore launched five years ago, its founders had little difficulty hiring people, thanks to their connections in the Israeli Defense Forces. But that changed when Amazon came to town and offered salaries to some employees of 25% to 50% more than GuardiCore was paying. GuardiCore has responded by raising... When Israeli cybersecurity firm GuardiCore launched five years ago, its founders had little...

Note: Share price is for preferred stock;
Sources: CoinMarketCap, Company filings, The Information reporting

Cryptocurrency Surge Raises Questions About Company Valuations

By Alfred Lee · Jan 31, 2018 10:50am PST · 1 comment

Investors are finding yet another way to bet on the cryptocurrency boom: buying up stock in a well-known cryptocurrency company on private marketplaces.Investment funds and money managers for wealthy individuals have bid up shares of Ripple, the company behind the cryptocurrency XRP, to more than 10 times its previous price, valuing the private... Investors are finding yet another way to bet on the cryptocurrency boom: buying up stock in a...

Art by Matt Vascellaro

These Startups Aim to Disrupt Travel, Real Estate, Healthcare and Investing

By The Information Staff · Jan 31, 2018 7:02am PST · 5 comments

Art by Matt Vascellaro

Startups to Watch

These Startups Aim to Disrupt Travel, Real Estate, Healthcare and Investing

By The Information Staff · Jan 31, 2018 7:02am PST · 5 comments

One company hopes to use cryptocurrency to finance journalism. Another is using artificial intelligence to help people snare the best hotel prices. A third is making an extremely low-powered microphone for portable voice-activated devices. All three are in our latest group of startups we think are worth watching. The nine firms are in a wide... One company hopes to use cryptocurrency to finance journalism. Another is using artificial...

A Snapchat user putting a filter on Edmonton Oilers left wing Jujhar Khaira during a game earlier this month. Photo by AP.

Snap’s Focus on Stories Should Disappear

By Tom Dotan · Jan 30, 2018 1:02pm PST

For all of Snap’s focus on being a broadcasting service for millennials who share content with larger groups, what’s become clear is the app’s main usage remains where it started: messaging. But that’s not where it is making money. Instead it makes much of its ad revenue from users’ Stories, where people post... For all of Snap’s focus on being a broadcasting service for millennials who share content...

Sources: Newmark Cornish & Carey, Buildzoom, Hello Office, CBRE, other real estate sources, city records

Led by Alphabet, Apple, Tech Firms Could Double Footprint in Bay Area

By Cory Weinberg and Mike Sullivan · Jan 30, 2018 7:00am PST · 5 comments

Many of the world’s fastest-growing tech companies call the San Francisco Bay Area home. They have expanded over the past decade by turning old industrial land into sprawled-out offices and filling new skyscrapers. But the next phase of real estate growth is likely to be even more transformative, as the companies lay plans to double the... Many of the world’s fastest-growing tech companies call the San Francisco Bay Area home....

A session of the Chinese Communist Party's National Congress last October. Photo by Bloomberg.

Modest Proposals

Open vs. Closed in National Tech Strategies: the U.S. and China

By Sam Lessin · Jan 29, 2018 11:13am PST · 11 comments

In the last several months, the Chinese government has moved swiftly to manage and shape self-driving cars, genetics data and cryptocurrencies in their country—arguably the three most promising technologies of the immediate future.The Chinese are very good at this managed-closed strategy. Their top-down approach has some clear benefits... In the last several months, the Chinese government has moved swiftly to manage and shape...

Art by Javier Garcia

Amazon Says No to Ads on Alexa, Frustrating Sony

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jan 29, 2018 7:01am PST

Art by Javier Garcia

Amazon Says No to Ads on Alexa, Frustrating Sony

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jan 29, 2018 7:01am PST

Here’s a question for Amazon’s Alexa: Will running ads on the virtual assistant turn off users?The answer, according to Amazon, is yes. Last year, Sony Corp., maker of the Jeopardy game on Alexa, approached Amazon several times about running ads during the game, said a person with knowledge of the matter. But Amazon refused,... Here’s a question for Amazon’s Alexa: Will running ads on the virtual assistant turn...

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · Jan 27, 2018 8:00am PST

Good Morning!Data journalism website FiveThirtyEight is up for sale. Nate Silver is said to have told people there’s a 71.9% chance the business is profitable. Good Morning!Data journalism website FiveThirtyEight is up for sale. Nate Silver is said to have...

The Information’s 411 — Infinite Horizon

By Tom Dotan · Jan 26, 2018 2:10pm PST · 2 comments

Cory talks about his profile of Airbnb's CFO Laurence Tosi, while Priya talks about Amazon Go and whether Amazon Prime has a chance to take off in India. Cory talks about his profile of Airbnb's CFO Laurence Tosi, while Priya talks about Amazon...

Art by Matt Vascellaro

AI Doesn’t Have to Shrink Your Workforce

By Paul Daugherty and Harold Wilson · Jan 26, 2018 10:00am PST · 2 comments

The artificial intelligence revolution in business is here, and it has a lot of people worried. In a recent survey of 3,000 executives, a study we conducted at Accenture found that more than two-thirds were planning to invest heavily in AI-related technologies over the next three years. Such investments have sparked much discussion about what... The artificial intelligence revolution in business is here, and it has a lot of people worried....

The branding for Baidu's Apollo self-driving car system is displayed on a car at the Baidu World Technology Conference in Beijing, China. Photo by Bloomberg.

Waymo Faces Roadblocks in China

By Shai Oster and Yunan Zhang · Jan 26, 2018 7:02am PST

The branding for Baidu's Apollo self-driving car system is displayed on a car at the Baidu World Technology Conference in Beijing, China. Photo by Bloomberg.

Waymo Faces Roadblocks in China

By Shai Oster and Yunan Zhang · Jan 26, 2018 7:02am PST

China is the world’s biggest market for new cars, making it a hugely valuable place for global car makers to do business. But when it comes to autonomous vehicles, China is likely to impose severe restrictions on foreign companies, hurting firms like Alphabet’s Waymo in particular.Chinese policy makers want to leapfrog the West and... China is the world’s biggest market for new cars, making it a hugely valuable place for...

A Lyft car. Photo by Bloomberg.

Lyft Investigates Allegation That Employees Abused Customer Data

By Amir Efrati · Jan 25, 2018 12:51pm PST · 2 comments

Lyft is investigating whether employees abused access to its customers’ data, a spokeswoman said on Thursday, after a current or former Lyft employee anonymously alleged online that some employees had tracked Lyft rides taken by their romantic partners and pulled information about celebrities such as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.The... Lyft is investigating whether employees abused access to its customers’ data, a spokeswoman...

Source: CB Insights

VCs Step Up Investing in Mental Health Startups

By Serena Saitto · Jan 25, 2018 7:00am PST · 3 comments

Venture capitalists are paying more attention to mental health.Venture investment in mental health startups has nearly quadrupled since 2014, thanks in part to a 2008 federal law that required health insurers to treat mental health equally to other kinds of health care.In 2017, VCs invested $191.3 million across 33 deals in the sector, up from... Venture capitalists are paying more attention to mental health.Venture investment in mental...

Meg Whitman. Photo by Bloomberg.

What Meg Whitman’s TV Job Says About Tech and Media

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jan 24, 2018 3:11pm PST

Coming to you with a mid-week column, as Tom and I just got off the phone with Meg Whitman, who was talking about her surprise decision to become CEO of a short-form video startup in Los Angeles. Yup, that Meg Whitman. The outgoing CEO of Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, which came out of a $22 billion split she orchestrated as the company struggled... Coming to you with a mid-week column, as Tom and I just got off the phone with Meg Whitman, who...

Source: Second Measure

Sun Basket Raising Money Amid Pressure on Meal Kit Startups

By Alfred Lee · Jan 24, 2018 11:32am PST · 1 comment

Source: Second Measure

Sun Basket Raising Money Amid Pressure on Meal Kit Startups

By Alfred Lee · Jan 24, 2018 11:32am PST · 1 comment

Since Blue Apron’s disappointing IPO last summer, meal kit delivery startups have been under pressure to sell or fold. But at least one smaller competitor, Sun Basket, is showing decent growth, according to credit card data. Now the firm is raising money—and offering big protections to investors to limit their risk.Sun Basket, which... Since Blue Apron’s disappointing IPO last summer, meal kit delivery startups have been...