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

Art by Sam Lessin.

Modest Proposals

Time to Pay Attention to Cryptocurrencies

By Sam Lessin · May 22, 2017 7:02am PDT · 11 comments

In the last few weeks there have been massive runups in several cryptocurrencies. The market capitalization of Bitcoin has doubled since the start of the year to the equivalent of more than $30 billion. Currencies like Ethereum and Ripple are up even more sharply in the last two months. Ethereum is up 10 times to a capitalization of more than... In the last few weeks there have been massive runups in several cryptocurrencies. The market...

Modest Conversations

Modest Conversations: The Near Future of AI

By Sam Lessin · May 21, 2017 1:43pm PDT · 1 comment

For this week’s modest conversation we have a double header on the near future of AI. Lukas Biewald, the founder of Crowdflower and intern at OpenAI takes us through his thinking on what happens next in the land of AI.Daniel Gross, formerly of Greplin and Apple, and now partner at Y Combinator on the AI vertical shares his views of... For this week’s modest conversation we have a double header on the near future of AI....

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · May 20, 2017 8:01am PDT

Good Morning!We learned this week another reason why Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., will never be aligned. In the tech world, oversharing is a key feature in your product strategy. In D.C., it causes grave international security concerns. Good Morning!We learned this week another reason why Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., will...

The Information’s 411 — Airbnb in China

By Tom Dotan · May 19, 2017 12:50pm PDT · 1 comment

The Information’s 411 — Airbnb in China

By Tom Dotan · May 19, 2017 12:50pm PDT · 1 comment

Alfred talks about Spotify's losses and its unusual path to going public. Juro explains how Airbnb is coming up against cultural challenges in China. Alfred talks about Spotify's losses and its unusual path to going public. Juro explains how...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

What’s Next in the Business of News

By Jessica E. Lessin · May 19, 2017 7:02am PDT · 13 comments

I am a big believer that history provides more clues than we give it credit for. And this is a good lesson to keep in mind as we wonder which business models will take hold in industries disrupted by technology. In the news business, the patterns are strong. Today’s interest in premium newsletters and sponsored content, to take just two... I am a big believer that history provides more clues than we give it credit for. And this is a...

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek. Photo by Bloomberg.

Spotify’s Loss Widens Despite Big Jump in Revenue

By Alfred Lee · May 18, 2017 8:09am PDT · 3 comments

Spotify’s operating loss rose significantly to between 300 million and 400 million euros last year, the music streaming company has told its investors, from 184 million euros in 2015. That’s despite a 50% increase in revenues to 2.9 billion euros ($3.1 billion), according to two people briefed on its numbers. The wider loss... Spotify’s operating loss rose significantly to between 300 million and 400 million euros...

Huawei's former chief designer of user experience Abigail Brody. Photo by Florian Brody

Huawei Loses Ex-Apple Designer Hired to Revamp Smartphone Software

By Juro Osawa · May 18, 2017 7:01am PDT

A former longtime Apple designer who joined Huawei two years ago with much fanfare to help improve the oft-criticized user interface of the Chinese company’s smartphones, has recently quit. Abigail Brody’s departure highlights the risks and challenges facing Chinese technology giants as they step up their recruitment in Silicon... A former longtime Apple designer who joined Huawei two years ago with much fanfare to help...

Photo by Flickr/Ian Lamont.

Top Sales Executive Quits Dropbox

By Eugene Kim · May 17, 2017 2:28pm PDT

Photo by Flickr/Ian Lamont.

Top Sales Executive Quits Dropbox

By Eugene Kim · May 17, 2017 2:28pm PDT

Dropbox’s top global sales executive, Thomas Hansen, has quit suddenly, less than two years after joining, The Information has learned.Mr. Hansen, who came from Microsoft in July 2015, oversaw the company’s effort to sell more to corporate customers. His hiring was considered a key step in Dropbox’s desire to expand out of the... Dropbox’s top global sales executive, Thomas Hansen, has quit suddenly, less than two years...

Sentient CEO Babak Hodjat. Photo by Bloomberg.

Early AI Startup Sentient Diversifies As AI Field Gets More Crowded

By Kevin McLaughlin · May 17, 2017 7:00am PDT

Sentient Technologies was an AI startup years before AI became fashionable. Now that the field has become crowded with big and small rivals, Sentient wants to diversify its business.The company, whose founders include the engineers who went on to found high-profile AI startups Siri and Viv, has been looking to raise what would be its first round... Sentient Technologies was an AI startup years before AI became fashionable. Now that the field...

Jana CEO Nathan Eagle. Photo by Flickr/PopTech

The Big Interview

Verizon-backed Jana Rides India’s Mobile Web Boom and Bust

By Cory Weinberg · May 16, 2017 11:51am PDT

One small beneficiary of the investment rush into Indian internet companies two years ago was Jana, a Boston-based startup that sells ads on an app store for Indian phone users. Jana sold ad space to Indian firms like Flipkart and U.S. companies Amazon.com and Twitter, each hoping to reach Jana’s 40 million registered users. That business... One small beneficiary of the investment rush into Indian internet companies two years ago was...

Source: SEC Filings, mutual fund reports

Mutual Funds Double Down on Snap—Will They Hold On?

By Alfred Lee and Mike Sullivan · May 16, 2017 7:00am PDT

Fidelity Investments and T. Rowe Price more than doubled their stakes in Snap in the month after the company went public, buying around $500 million of stock between them, an analysis of SEC filings and online portfolio reports show. As a result, the two funds appear to have maintained their pre-IPO status as the biggest mutual fund investors in... Fidelity Investments and T. Rowe Price more than doubled their stakes in Snap in the month after...

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg.

Uber to Give Ex-Employees More Time to Exercise Options

By Amir Efrati · May 15, 2017 5:42pm PDT · 3 comments

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg.

Uber to Give Ex-Employees More Time to Exercise Options

By Amir Efrati · May 15, 2017 5:42pm PDT · 3 comments

Longtime employees of Uber will find it easier to quit the company, thanks to a change in how it deals with stock options.The ride-sharing firm is dropping the requirement that employees who quit must exercise any options they have within 30 days, or lose them, according to three people briefed on the change. Instead the departing employees will... Longtime employees of Uber will find it easier to quit the company, thanks to a change in how it...

HBO's former programming chief Michael Lombardo with Silicon Valley producer Mike Judge. Photo by AP.

Apple in Search for Programming Chief

By Tom Dotan · May 15, 2017 2:41pm PDT

HBO’s former programming head Michael Lombardo met with Apple executives earlier this year to discuss Apple’s video programming strategy, says a person familiar with the talks. The talks suggest Mr. Lombardo could be a candidate to run Apple’s video efforts. Apple has been looking to fill that role, said another person briefed... HBO’s former programming head Michael Lombardo met with Apple executives earlier this year...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo by Bloomberg.

Airbnb’s China Challenge: Difficult Guests

By Juro Osawa · May 15, 2017 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Some Airbnb hosts in Shanghai were recently grousing about a shocking customer request on a competing Chinese vacation-rental site that resonated with their own frustration. A finicky guest demanded a host be on call every day during a monthlong stay to piggyback a wheelchair-bound father up and down to the apartment. Fed up with the demands,... Some Airbnb hosts in Shanghai were recently grousing about a shocking customer request on a...

Modest Conversations

Modest Conversations: Morning Routines of 2027 and 2047

By Sam Lessin · May 14, 2017 2:51pm PDT

Amanda and I pace out what a morning routine might look like in +10 and +30 years in the future. What will be the same about morning routines and what will technology change? Amanda and I pace out what a morning routine might look like in +10 and +30 years in the future....

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · May 13, 2017 8:02am PDT

The Weekly Digest

The Information You Missed This Week

By The Information Staff · May 13, 2017 8:02am PDT

Good Morning!Evan Spiegel has finally hit on something that Facebook won’t want to copy: poor earnings, a collapsing stock and a disastrous analyst conference call. Good Morning!Evan Spiegel has finally hit on something that Facebook won’t want to copy:...

The Information’s 411 — Snap Analogies and Judgments

By Tom Dotan · May 12, 2017 12:37pm PDT

Amir talks about turnover in Uber's litigation team and he and Tom discuss Snap's earnings call. Plus Martin compares Evan's Yahoo-Facebook analogy to a tech moment of the past. Amir talks about turnover in Uber's litigation team and he and Tom discuss Snap's...

Shen Hao, former president of 21st Century Media, convicted of extortion two years ago. Photo by AP.

In China, Fake (Business) News Makes the Truth Hard to Find

By Shen Xinmei · May 12, 2017 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

There’s a media boom in China. Amateur journalists and ex-reporters are setting up accounts in social media platforms and news aggregators to self-publish stories—bringing with it a rash of fake news. But this kind of fake news is aimed at taking down companies, not politicians.“Hei gao,” or black drafts in Chinese, are... There’s a media boom in China. Amateur journalists and ex-reporters are setting up accounts...

A smartphone app for Chinese auto information website Yiche.com, formerly called Bitauto.com, whose parent company is a big shareholder in Yixin. Photo by AP.

Tencent-backed Chinese Car-Financing Firm Plans $5 Billion IPO

By Juro Osawa · May 11, 2017 9:23am PDT

A Chinese online auto-financing marketplace backed by local tech giants Tencent, Baidu and JD.com, is planning a Hong Kong IPO that could value the company at nearly $5 billion, people familiar with the matter said.Yixin Capital, a closely-held arm of U.S.-listed Chinese online car information portal Bitauto, could go public as early as the end... A Chinese online auto-financing marketplace backed by local tech giants Tencent, Baidu and...

Facebook's Building 20 at its Menlo Park campus. Photo by Facebook.

When Tech Workers Sit as Far as the Eye Can See

By Cory Weinberg · May 11, 2017 7:01am PDT · 11 comments

Facebook's Building 20 at its Menlo Park campus. Photo by Facebook.

When Tech Workers Sit as Far as the Eye Can See

By Cory Weinberg · May 11, 2017 7:01am PDT · 11 comments

Some Facebook employees have a not-so-affectionate nickname for the Menlo Park building that houses its most important employee groups and executives: “the factory.” Spanning nearly 10 acres and housing 2,800 employees in one giant, dimly lit room, it’s typical of a new wave of Silicon Valley architecture. But what’s... Some Facebook employees have a not-so-affectionate nickname for the Menlo Park building that...