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

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong. Photo via Getty.

Coinbase’s Meme Moment

By Martin Peers · Feb 13, 2025 5:00pm PST

Coinbase ran a victory lap tonight, delivering boffo fourth-quarter numbers that capped a good year both business-wise and politically for the crypto giant. In a shareholder letter, Coinbase signaled its optimism for the future with the most predictable of cliches. Thanks to Donald Trump’s election as president, “It’s the dawn of a new era for... Coinbase ran a victory lap tonight, delivering boffo fourth-quarter numbers that capped a good...

Why Early-Stage Founders Are Opting to ‘Seed-Strap’ Their Startups

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Feb 13, 2025 4:04pm PST

Artificial intelligence startups such as coding assistant Cursor and legal AI software-maker Harvey have become fundraising beasts, raising hundreds of millions of dollars in rounds just months apart. But some founders are bucking that trend, instead opting to “seed-strap” their businesses, using revenue to expand operations after an initial... Artificial intelligence startups such as coding assistant Cursor and legal AI software-maker...

Photo via Getty.

Creator Economy

Creator Economy: TikTok Employees Have Something Else to Fret About

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Feb 13, 2025 2:25pm PST

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew had some good news for employees at the company’s all-hands meeting Wednesday night—and then some less than stellar news.While its short-lived shutdown in the U.S. nearly a month ago hurt the business, the app has seen “positive momentum” since then, Chew said, adding: “100% of our ad campaigns that were paused as a... TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew had some good news for employees at the company’s all-hands meeting...

art via Midjourney by Mike Sullivan

Agents Hit Trust Roadblock With Logistics Execs; Anthropic Targets OpenAI Customers

By Theo Wayt, Jon Victor and Aaron Holmes · Feb 13, 2025 10:49am PST

art via Midjourney by Mike Sullivan

Agents Hit Trust Roadblock With Logistics Execs; Anthropic Targets OpenAI Customers

By Theo Wayt, Jon Victor and Aaron Holmes · Feb 13, 2025 10:49am PST

Artificial intelligence agents designed to make decisions for their customers are all the rage. But as companies developing agents make their pitches, they’re going to have to figure out how to quell customers’ trust issues and skepticism. I could see this dynamic at Manifest, an e-commerce and logistics conference I attended in Las Vegas... Artificial intelligence agents designed to make decisions for their customers are all the rage....

Partner Content

How Ready Are You for the Next Phase of Cloud AI?

By The Information Partnerships · Feb 13, 2025 10:16am PST

Inexorable, overhyped, underappreciated: These are the seemingly mutually exclusive adjectives The Information’s readers use to describe cloud artificial intelligence in a recent survey (see methodology). The reason for these divergent opinions is the relatively early stage of cloud AI deployment, where success in cloud AI has not yet been fully... Inexorable, overhyped, underappreciated: These are the seemingly mutually exclusive adjectives...

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew at the inauguration. Photo via AP.

TikTok CEO Hints At Cuts as Talks With Trump Team Continue

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Juro Osawa · Feb 13, 2025 8:19am PST

TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said in a staff meeting Wednesday evening that he is working closely with the Trump administration to determine the best course of action for the app’s future in the U.S. At the meeting, Chew also discussed another priority: To continue shedding layers and overlapping roles within TikTok. “We have to review our teams. We... TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said in a staff meeting Wednesday evening that he is working closely with...

Photo by Getty

Anthropic Strikes Back

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Feb 13, 2025 7:00am PST

After OpenAI released its reasoning models last fall, Google, Alibaba, High-Flyer Capital Management and others followed with their own. One prominent competitor, Anthropic, has been noticeably absent from the race. Now we know one reason: Anthropic is taking a slightly different approach to reasoning. It has developed a hybrid AI model... After OpenAI released its reasoning models last fall, Google, Alibaba, High-Flyer Capital...

Meta AI's booth at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Photo via Getty.

Meta’s AI May Not Be as Good for Ad Growth as Investors Think

By Anita Ramaswamy · Feb 13, 2025 6:00am PST

Meta AI's booth at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Photo via Getty.

Meta’s AI May Not Be as Good for Ad Growth as Investors Think

By Anita Ramaswamy · Feb 13, 2025 6:00am PST

Meta Platforms has been this year’s artificial intelligence darling. The Facebook and Instagram parent’s shares are up roughly 24% so far in 2025, despite CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s declaration last month that the company would lift capital expenditures 60%, mostly to pay for AI development. The rally in Meta’s stock contrasts sharply with the anemic... Meta Platforms has been this year’s artificial intelligence darling. The Facebook and Instagram...

The Archer Midnight at the Dubai Air Show, November 2023. Photo: Getty

The Electric: Amid an Industry Bloodbath, Electric Aviation Startups Have Raised $2 Billion

By Steve LeVine · Feb 13, 2025 4:30am PST

Many electric vehicle and battery startups are in danger of running out of money before they can generate profits. By contrast, electric aviation startups are enjoying fundraising success that resembles the industry’s party days of 2020 and 2021, when investors were throwing money at EV and battery startups. Many electric vehicle and battery startups are in danger of running out of money before they can...

Photo via Getty

Reddit and AppLovin, the Young Turks of Digital Advertising

By Martin Peers · Feb 12, 2025 5:00pm PST

Oh, to be young again. That must be what folks at Google and Meta Platforms think when they look at the two digital-ad rocket ships of the past 12 months, AppLovin and Reddit. (Sure, Reddit is 20 years old, but it’s relatively new to the ad market.) That youth is demonstrated by how much their businesses, and their stocks, exploded last year.We... Oh, to be young again. That must be what folks at Google and Meta Platforms think when they look...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Photo via Getty

Anthropic Projects Soaring Growth to $34.5 Billion in 2027 Revenue

By Jon Victor and Stephanie Palazzolo · Feb 12, 2025 4:07pm PST

After burning $5.6 billion in cash last year, Anthropic said it would reduce that amount by nearly half in 2025 and projected up to $3.7 billion in revenue for the year as it gains on OpenAI, according to two people who have viewed the company’s figures. Anthropic is also projecting that its revenue could grow to as high as $34.5 billion in... After burning $5.6 billion in cash last year, Anthropic said it would reduce that amount by...

Still from Poppi's 2025 Super Bowl commercial. Screenshot via YouTube.

Why Poppi’s Super Bowl Creator Campaign Backfired

By Ann Gehan · Feb 12, 2025 2:45pm PST

Still from Poppi's 2025 Super Bowl commercial. Screenshot via YouTube.

Creator Economy

Why Poppi’s Super Bowl Creator Campaign Backfired

By Ann Gehan · Feb 12, 2025 2:45pm PST

Since its launch in 2020, soda startup Poppi has used social media and viral trends to spread the word about its low calorie sodas. It’s also made attention-grabbing partnerships with creators a big piece of its strategy. The brand hosted influencer Alix Earle in a Poppi-themed house at Coachella last year to promote the launch of its lemon lime... Since its launch in 2020, soda startup Poppi has used social media and viral trends to spread the...

Image via Shutterstock.

How Meme Coins Could Go Mainstream: Event Recap

By Rocket Drew · Feb 12, 2025 1:03pm PST

Crypto has been in the spotlight since the election of President Donald Trump, who has promised to ease regulations and make the U.S. the crypto capital of the world. What the crypto industry probably didn’t anticipate, however, is that Trump himself would also be at the center of a new mania—meme coins—that’s stoking trading... Crypto has been in the spotlight since the election of President Donald Trump, who has promised...

Thrive Capital founder Josh Kushner.

OpenAI Investor Kushner Tells Startup’s Staff: Leaving Is a Bad Idea

By Natasha Mascarenhas, Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Feb 12, 2025 11:57am PST

How fierce is the fight for talent at OpenAI and its rivals?One sign came Tuesday when Josh Kushner, founder of major OpenAI investor Thrive Capital, gave a presentation to some of OpenAI’s staff. As part of his talk about why Thrive had committed over $1 billion to the ChatGPT maker, Kushner drove home this message: Leaving would be a bad... How fierce is the fight for talent at OpenAI and its rivals?One sign came Tuesday when Josh...

Masayoshi Son, left, and Vikas Parekh. Photos via Getty; Softbank

Masayoshi Son’s New Loyal Soldier on AI Megadeals

By Cory Weinberg · Feb 12, 2025 10:00am PST

The last time SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son bet tens of billions of dollars on hot startups, he made snap decisions and took advice from a group of swashbuckling investors known as much for their infighting as for their deals. Today, he’s moving more deliberately and listening to people like Vikas J. Parekh, who has emerged as Son’s trusted deputy... The last time SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son bet tens of billions of dollars on hot startups, he made...

Photo of Elon Musk via Getty

Musk’s OpenAI Bid Leaves Door Open For Boardroom Activism

By Rocket Drew and Stephanie Palazzolo · Feb 12, 2025 7:00am PST

Photo of Elon Musk via Getty

Musk’s OpenAI Bid Leaves Door Open For Boardroom Activism

By Rocket Drew and Stephanie Palazzolo · Feb 12, 2025 7:00am PST

As the OpenAI-Elon Musk drama bogged down in arguments about whether Musk’s group had actually sent the takeover offer to the board, another issue surfaced. While OpenAI is signalling it will dismiss the Musk-led group’s offer, it turns out any of OpenAI’s 10 board directors could take matters into their own hands. That’s because of a... As the OpenAI-Elon Musk drama bogged down in arguments about whether Musk’s group had actually ...

The Tech People Helping the Trump Administration Shake Up Government

By Julia Black · Feb 12, 2025 6:00am PST · 3 comments

So far, most of the spotlight on Silicon Valley’s Washington invasion has focused on how Elon Musk and a band of young techies from his companies are scouring the federal government looking for waste. But a significant cohort of staff from other Valley firms are assuming outsize roles in the Trump administration as well. In fact, you could... So far, most of the spotlight on Silicon Valley’s Washington invasion has focused on how Elon...

Photos via Getty

Would Musk Be Better Than Altman at Running OpenAI?

By Martin Peers · Feb 11, 2025 5:00pm PST · 1 comment

Here’s a question: If you had to choose between Sam Altman and Elon Musk as the best person to safeguard the future of humanity, who would you pick? It’s a tough choice—you can be forgiven if you say neither. A (slightly) easier question is: If you had to pick one of them to run OpenAI, who would it be? Conventional wisdom is that a... Here’s a question: If you had to choose between Sam Altman and Elon Musk as the best person to...

Photo via Getty

Will We Get a $1 Trillion Private Tech Firm?

By Cory Weinberg · Feb 11, 2025 3:29pm PST

Will a private tech company reach a $1 trillion valuation in the coming years? It’s not a ridiculous question. A couple of companies seem like potential candidates. OpenAI is closing in on $300 billion in its financing with SoftBank, and SpaceX recently shot to $350 billion. Will a private tech company reach a $1 trillion valuation in the coming years? It’s not a...

Photo via Adobe

The Aftermath of India’s TikTok Ban Holds Lessons for the U.S.

By Kaya Yurieff · Feb 11, 2025 2:05pm PST

Photo via Adobe

Creator Economy

The Aftermath of India’s TikTok Ban Holds Lessons for the U.S.

By Kaya Yurieff · Feb 11, 2025 2:05pm PST

TikTok now has 53 days to figure out a deal to keep it alive in the U.S.—otherwise it will have to go dark again under a law passed last year. While President Donald Trump delayed enforcement of that law until early April and has signaled he wants to find a way for TikTok to stay in the U.S., it’s worth looking at what happened to the video app’... TikTok now has 53 days to figure out a deal to keep it alive in the U.S.—otherwise it will have...