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

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Recent Editions

ClickHouse CEO Aaron Katz. Image via YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

Snowflake Challenger ClickHouse Targets $6 Billion Valuation

By Sri Muppidi · May 9, 2025 1:12pm PDT · 3 comments

Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake and Databricks. Now venture capitalists are circling ClickHouse, a startup some investors believe could rival the incumbents, particularly as the rise of artificial intelligence increases demand for its database software. The startup is in... Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake...

Fidji Simo, left, and Sam Altman. Photos via Getty

How Simo Will Fill Altman’s Management Gaps at OpenAI

By Amir Efrati and Stephanie Palazzolo · May 9, 2025 12:45pm PDT · 3 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to Instacart CEO Fidji Simo sets up a key partnership that will be closely watched as one of the world’s fastest-growing technology companies looks to extend its lead in artificial intelligence. For her part, Simo will have to wring more revenue from and... OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to...

OpenAI Acquires Windsurf for $3B, Google’s Stock Dips

By Jessica E. Lessin · May 9, 2025 12:22pm PDT

A vibe coding vibe check, the M&A uptick and VC goes retail on this week’s More or Less. Apple Spotify A vibe coding vibe check, the M&A uptick and VC goes retail on this week’s More or Less. ...

Photo via SaaStr Annual

Pro Weekly: New IPO Rumbings, Tech Events Cheat Sheet

By Akash Pasricha · May 9, 2025 8:00am PDT

Photo via SaaStr Annual

Pro Weekly: New IPO Rumbings, Tech Events Cheat Sheet

By Akash Pasricha · May 9, 2025 8:00am PDT

In case you missed it, we published our first-ever Tech Events Calendar last week, exclusively for Pro subscribers. We mapped out the must-know events for 2025, including key conferences where deals are struck and big decisions are made. Check out the full calendar here. We also asked our newsroom experts what to expect from upcoming... In case you missed it, we published our first-ever Tech Events Calendar last week, exclusively...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Software’s New Turf Wars

By Jon Victor · May 9, 2025 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

The rise of new artificial intelligence–powered business software threatens the future of long-established software firms. Their response is to jump into new markets with their own AI-powered software. That’s pitting companies against each other in new ways. ServiceNow earlier this week announced an AI agent to handle sales management,... The rise of new artificial intelligence–powered business software threatens the future of...

Incoming OpenAI CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo. Photo via Getty

AI Firms Get Religion on Marketing

By Martin Peers · May 8, 2025 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Artificial intelligence scientists and researchers, make room. You’re about to get an influx of new colleagues from the world of advertising and marketing, as the headlong race for AI dominance moves into a new, more commercial, phase. Exhibit A: As we scooped today, veteran marketing executive Mark D’Arcy, who spent a decade at Meta Platforms... Artificial intelligence scientists and researchers, make room. You’re about to get an influx of...

Photo via Skild

Skild AI Round Gets Pricier as Robot Fever Rises

By Natasha Mascarenhas and Rocket Drew · May 8, 2025 3:51pm PDT

Robotics startups are taking over the fundraising market.On Wednesday, my colleague Michael and I published a scoop about Foundation, a robotics startup launched by the former CEO of failed fintech firm Synapse, seeking capital at a $1 billion valuation despite just a year under its belt. That’s one of several robotics rounds in play. Skild... Robotics startups are taking over the fundraising market.On Wednesday, my colleague Michael and I...

Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Photo via Getty

Instagram Keeps Highlighting the TikTok Threat

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Kaya Yurieff · May 8, 2025 2:39pm PDT

Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

Instagram Keeps Highlighting the TikTok Threat

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Kaya Yurieff · May 8, 2025 2:39pm PDT

A central tenet of the government's antitrust case against Meta Platforms is that its 2012 Instagram acquisition crushed competition and left consumers with too few social networking options—just Snapchat, Facebook and a few others. Meta has argued that it actually competes with many more, notably TikTok. To buttress its argument, Instagram... A central tenet of the government's antitrust case against Meta Platforms is that its 2012...

Mark D’Arcy. Photo via Getty

Microsoft Hires Former Meta Marketing Exec to Work on Copilot AI

By Aaron Holmes and Jessica E. Lessin · May 8, 2025 11:55am PDT · 5 comments

Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and Time Warner, to serve as a creative director of the company’s Copilot consumer artificial intelligence chatbot, according to two people briefed on the situation. The hiring is a sign of how AI firms are starting to focus their attention on... Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and...

Wayve, May Mobility, Einride and Nuro self-driving vehicles. Photos: Wayve, May Mobility, Nuro, Einride, Getty. Art: Shane Burke

Startups to Watch

Nine Self-Driving Startups Chasing Waymo’s Lead

By Alex Perry · May 8, 2025 10:30am PDT · 5 comments

For years, self-driving cars were a feature of the sci-fi future. But Waymo’s leap from testing to ferrying paying customers in four cities has made robotaxis a reality. That’s set off a race among newcomers and industry stalwarts to expand new businesses that support autonomous vehicles. Below we provide exclusive details on nine startups worth... For years, self-driving cars were a feature of the sci-fi future. But Waymo’s leap from testing...

Illustration via Getty

Why Voice AI Is Hard to Listen To

By Jon Victor · May 8, 2025 10:00am PDT

Artificial intelligence has gotten great at automating customer support emails and text chats. But automating customer support phone calls is far more challenging because AI that can understand and generate human-sounding speech is still too costly, slow and unreliable, said Jesse Zhang, CEO of Decagon, a developer of AI for customer support.... Artificial intelligence has gotten great at automating customer support emails and text chats....

Robotic arms harvesting crops inside a greenhouse. Photo by Getty.

OpenAI’s Big Hire; Farming Robots Seed New Startups, Despite Setbacks

By Rocket Drew · May 8, 2025 7:42am PDT

Robotic arms harvesting crops inside a greenhouse. Photo by Getty.

OpenAI’s Big Hire; Farming Robots Seed New Startups, Despite Setbacks

By Rocket Drew · May 8, 2025 7:42am PDT

Before we get into today’s column, OpenAI late Wednesday evening announced the hire of Fidji Simo, currently the Instacart CEO and a member of OpenAI’s board, in the newly created position of CEO of OpenAI Applications, to run “the product, business, and other company functions,” reporting to CEO Sam Altman. (My colleagues Jessica Lessin and... Before we get into today’s column, OpenAI late Wednesday evening announced the hire of Fidji Simo...

Art by Clark Miller.

Spies Are Everywhere in Cutthroat Fintech Industry

By Michael Roddan · May 8, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

It’s easier than ever to spy on a rival company. It’s also easier than ever to catch a spy. The result is a surge in spy-versus-spy lawsuits in the fintech industry, one of the most cutthroat in Silicon Valley. It’s easier than ever to spy on a rival company. It’s also easier than ever to catch a spy. The...

Coreshell Technologies headquarters in San Leandro, Calif. Photo: Courtesy Coreshell

Exclusive From The Electric: With a Poached Gigafactory Veteran, Coreshell Looks for Manufacturing Street Cred

By Steve LeVine · May 8, 2025 4:30am PDT

Asia’s battery powerhouses have frightened many next-generation Western startups into abandoning their ambitions to manufacture electric vehicle batteries. But California-based silicon anode developer Coreshell Technologies is pushing ahead with a well-tested survival strategy: It has poached a key South Korean gigafactory expert to help take on... Asia’s battery powerhouses have frightened many next-generation Western startups into abandoning...

Instacart CEO Fidji Simo. Photo via Getty

OpenAI Hires Instacart CEO Simo For Major Leadership Role

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · May 7, 2025 9:43pm PDT · 6 comments

Update: OpenAI confirmed it is hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to oversee some of the company’s divisions in a major leadership restructuring at the artificial intelligence firm. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, confirming an earlier report by The Information, said he would continue overseeing research and infrastructure teams that are core to... Update: OpenAI confirmed it is hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to oversee some of the...

A Foundation robot. Screenshot via YouTube

Ex-Synapse CEO’s Robot Startup Targets $1 Billion Valuation

By Michael Roddan and Natasha Mascarenhas · May 7, 2025 5:33pm PDT · 2 comments

A Foundation robot. Screenshot via YouTube

Ex-Synapse CEO’s Robot Startup Targets $1 Billion Valuation

By Michael Roddan and Natasha Mascarenhas · May 7, 2025 5:33pm PDT · 2 comments

A humanoid robotics startup founded by the former chief executive of failed fintech firm Synapse is aiming to finalize a $100 million fundraising that will value the year-old company at $1 billion, according to people who spoke to the company’s founders this week. The startup is in talks to raise money from the family office of a member of the... A humanoid robotics startup founded by the former chief executive of failed fintech firm Synapse...

Photo via Getty

Disney's Sports Advantage Over Netflix

By Martin Peers · May 7, 2025 5:00pm PDT

Television advertising is becoming a one-trick pony—it’s all about sports. Check out Walt Disney Co.’s March-quarter results, released Wednesday. Ad revenue from its sports TV and streaming businesses rose 22%, due to staggering growth at ESPN’s U.S. business. “Live sports, as you know, is doing extremely well,” said Chief Financial... Television advertising is becoming a one-trick pony—it’s all about sports. Check out Walt...

World record holder Tobi Amusan (#4 in center) competes in the women's 100 meter hurdles at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest. Photo via Getty

Creator Economy

Sports Influencers Edge Into Journalists’ Turf

By Sara Germano and Kaya Yurieff · May 7, 2025 2:18pm PDT

I write The Arena column, where last week I took a deep dive into the increasingly central role that creators play in driving young audiences to live sporting events. For anyone who’s watched the Golf Channel, the NBA All-Star Game, or the Olympics, this trend has been brewing for some time.The rise of influencers in sports coincides with the... I write The Arena column, where last week I took a deep dive into the increasingly central role...

David Bailey. Photo by Getty.

David Bailey, Who Advised Trump on Crypto, Plans Bitcoin Investing Firm

By Yueqi Yang · May 7, 2025 8:05am PDT · 1 comment

David Bailey, who advised President Donald Trump on crypto policy during his 2024 campaign, is raising $300 million to launch a publicly traded bitcoin investing company, according to people familiar with the matter. He is following a string of companies that buy up crypto seeking to replicate the success of Michael Saylor’s Strategy, which... David Bailey, who advised President Donald Trump on crypto policy during his 2024 campaign, is...

Mira Murati. Photo by Getty

VCs Are Giving AI Founders Ever More Leverage

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

Mira Murati. Photo by Getty

VCs Are Giving AI Founders Ever More Leverage

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

These days, investors are pulling out all the stops and getting more creative to convince founders of AI startups—particularly those with experience as executives at AI labs like OpenAI and Anthropic—to take their money, VCs tell me.The latest example we wrote about concerned Thinking Machines Lab, the buzzy startup cofounded by ex-OpenAI chief... These days, investors are pulling out all the stops and getting more creative to convince...