Jasper, an Early Generative AI Winner, Cuts Internal Valuation as Growth SlowsRead more

Briefing
enterprise

Zendesk Agrees to $10.2 billion Buyout Months After Rejecting Higher Bid

By
Aaron Holmes
· · Source: The Information

Zendesk has agreed to be acquired by an investor group in a $10.2 billion all-cash transaction, the collaboration software firm announced Friday. The acquisition is led by investment firms Hellman & Freeman and Permira, along with the Singapore sovereign wealth fund and a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and will take Zendesk private once the deal closes. Zendesk shares rose...

Get access to exclusive coverage
Read deeply reported stories from the largest newsroom in tech.
Latest Articles
 
Meet the AI Agents amazon ai
Why Your AI Startup is Probably Already Dead w/Special Guest Scott Belsky
By Jessica E. Lessin · Sept. 29, 2023 10:31 AM PDT
Just when I thought I understood the basics of what’s happening in AI, the field moves again. This week we welcomed our first “fifth wheel”—Scott Belsky, who runs emerging products for Adobe and is also its chief strategy officer. Scott has been living and breathing AI and brought us inside the latest on agents, promising (and not-so-promising) startups and more. Plus, a...
Latest Briefs
 
Marc Lore’s Wonder to Buy Blue Apron for $103 Million
By Theo Wayt · Sept. 29, 2023
X’s Daily Active Users Have Dropped Since Musk Bought Company
By Erin Woo · Sept. 29, 2023
Jasper Cuts Internal Valuation, Revenue Projections
By Natasha Mascarenhas · Sept. 28, 2023
Stay in the know
Receive a summary of the day's top tech news—distilled into one email.
Access on the go
View stories on our mobile app and tune into our weekly podcast.
Join live video Q&A’s
Deep-dive into topics like startups and autonomous vehicles with our top reporters and other executives.
Enjoy a clutter-free experience
Read without any banner ads.
Former Apple design chief Jony Ive and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Photos by Getty.
Exclusive
Designer Jony Ive and OpenAI’s Sam Altman Discuss AI Hardware Project
By Jessica E. Lessin and Stephanie Palazzolo
Jony Ive, the renowned designer of the iPhone, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman have been discussing building a new AI hardware device, according to two people familiar with the conversations.
From left to right: Blair Effron, Robert Pruzan and David Handler. Photos by Getty; Tidal Partners.
Exclusive Finance
Disputes, Employee Misconduct Rattle Centerview’s Silicon Valley Dreams
By Michael Roddan
The San Francisco Bay Area–based bankers at Centerview Partners, the investment bank that advised Silicon Valley Bank’s owner and Credit Suisse through recent turmoil, got two doses of bad news last week.
Art by Clark Miller
Exclusive startups entertainment
MasterClass Takes a Crash Course in Frugality
By Paris Martineau
MasterClass had a problem with the shoot featuring its latest star instructor, Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photos via Getty
Exclusive microsoft ai
How Microsoft is Trying to Lessen Its Addiction to OpenAI as AI Costs Soar
By Aaron Holmes
Microsoft’s push to put artificial intelligence into its software has hinged almost entirely on OpenAI , the startup Microsoft funded in exchange for the right to use its cutting-edge technology.
From left: Paul Graham, Garry Tan and Michael Seibel. Photos by Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan.
Exclusive startups ai
Y Combinator’s Garry Tan Goes to the Mat
By Kate Clark
Garry Tan was in his happy place. Surrounded by food trucks and techies basking in San Francisco’s September sun, the CEO of Y Combinator snapped selfies with entrepreneurs as he meandered through a crowd of 2,700 attendees at the startup accelerator’s annual alumni event.
Art by Clark Miller
The Big Read policy
Europe Has Figured Out How to Tame Big Tech. Can the U.S. Learn Its Tricks?
By Chris Stokel-Walker
Late last month in Belgium, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) had a pressing question for Paul Tang, a Dutch politician and member of the European Parliament.