The Information

Oracle chairman and chief technology officer Larry Ellison. Photo by Bloomberg

Larry Ellison Returns to War (and Diaper Changing)

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jun 12, 2019 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

When Thomas Kurian, a high-profile former Oracle executive, left the software company last September, his peers at the database software company expected Oracle to replace him. But Larry Ellison, Oracle’s co-founder and chief technology officer, had other plans. Mr. Kurian had been leading Oracle’s response to a growing threat from... When Thomas Kurian, a high-profile former Oracle executive, left the software company last...

Apple CEO Tim Cook in March. Photo by Bloomberg

Apple Discusses Acquisition of Intel’s German Modem Unit

By Aaron Tilley · Jun 11, 2019 3:37pm PDT

Apple is in talks to buy a key part of Intel’s smartphone modem business—its German operations—in a deal that could boost the iPhone maker’s plans to internally develop a modem for its devices, according to four people briefed on the discussions.The talks come as Intel considers selling its struggling modem business in... Apple is in talks to buy a key part of Intel’s smartphone modem business—its German...

Shania Twain, who will star in Lionsgate's upcoming movie "I Still Believe." Photo by AP

Lionsgate’s Hulu-FX Movie Deal Shows Change in TV Landscape

By Jessica Toonkel · Jun 11, 2019 2:11pm PDT

In the latest sign of how streaming services are shaking up traditional TV, Disney’s majority-owned Hulu and fully owned cable channel FX have jointly bought the rights to show Lionsgate’s recently released movies starting next year, according to people familiar with the situation.FX and Hulu are buying rights now held by MGM’s... In the latest sign of how streaming services are shaking up traditional TV, Disney’s...

AI Hiring Frenzy Settles Down

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jun 11, 2019 10:00am PDT

AI Hiring Frenzy Settles Down

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jun 11, 2019 10:00am PDT

The hiring boom in artificial intelligence research is finally slowing down. The frenzied competition for talent that drove the cost of hiring data scientists and AI researchers into the stratosphere appears to have sharply cooled. At both Alphabet and Microsoft, two of the biggest recruiters of AI talent, the growth rate of hiring for... The hiring boom in artificial intelligence research is finally slowing down. The frenzied...

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. Photo: Bloomberg

Uber CEO Shielded From Stock Drop by Options Repricing

By Alfred Lee and Amir Efrati · Jun 11, 2019 7:00am PDT

Uber’s sluggish public market debut has meant losses for some investors. But CEO Dara Khosrowshahi is sitting on healthy paper gains, thanks to changes that were made to his stock options before the company went public. The exercise price of Mr. Khosrowshahi’s options was lowered to $33.65 per share by the company early last year,... Uber’s sluggish public market debut has meant losses for some investors. But CEO Dara...

Cruise president/CTO Kyle Vogt. Photo by Bloomberg

Cruise’s Secret ‘Apollo’ Robotaxi Milestones

By Amir Efrati · Jun 7, 2019 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

As Cruise set out in 2017 to verify the safety of its self-driving vehicles, it came up with a set of milestones to measure progress in its software development. These milestones, which measure the frequency and severity of safety incidents, offer a rare view of how autonomous vehicle developers judge the quality of their software, and the... As Cruise set out in 2017 to verify the safety of its self-driving vehicles, it came up with a...

An Uber autonomous vehicle testing in early 2018. Photo by AP

How Uber Wants Self-Driving Cars to Help Ride-Hailing Business

By Amir Efrati · Jun 7, 2019 7:01am PDT

Uber is among the robotaxi developers that have been trying to improve the way they measure software quality, to help prepare for the launch of commercial services. The company recently discussed tracking precisely where cars with its software appear to drive better than human drivers and where they won’t. Uber would then assign... Uber is among the robotaxi developers that have been trying to improve the way they measure...

A Cruise car driving in San Francisco. Photo by AP

Technical Glitches Plague Cruise, GM’s $19 Billion Self-Driving Car Unit

By Amir Efrati · Jun 7, 2019 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

A Cruise car driving in San Francisco. Photo by AP

Technical Glitches Plague Cruise, GM’s $19 Billion Self-Driving Car Unit

By Amir Efrati · Jun 7, 2019 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

In the middle of April, Honda Motor CEO Takahiro Hachigo hopped into a self-driving car prototype made by General Motors’ Cruise Automation for a demonstration ride. It didn’t go well. About 20 minutes in, the car’s software suddenly turned itself off even as the car kept moving. A man sitting behind the wheel—the backup... In the middle of April, Honda Motor CEO Takahiro Hachigo hopped into a self-driving car prototype...

A Drive.ai car on the road. Photo by Drive.ai

Apple Looks to Acquire Struggling Self-Driving Car Startup Drive.ai

By Amir Efrati and Alex Heath · Jun 5, 2019 7:53pm PDT

Apple is in the process of acquiring a well-known but struggling self-driving shuttle firm, Drive.ai, for its engineering talent in order boost Apple’s own development of a self-driving vehicle system, according to two people briefed about the situation. The planned deal, described as an “acqui-hire” of the Silicon Valley firm... Apple is in the process of acquiring a well-known but struggling self-driving shuttle firm,...

David Marcus, the head of Facebook's cryptocurrency project. Photo by Bloomberg

Facebook Plans Outside Foundation to Govern Cryptocurrency

By Alex Heath and Jon Victor · Jun 5, 2019 11:57am PDT · 2 comments

Facebook plans to cede control of its forthcoming cryptocurrency to outside backers, a move meant to encourage trust in the digital payment system and reassure financial regulators, The Information has learned.In recent months, the social network has courted dozens of financial institutions and other tech companies to join an independent... Facebook plans to cede control of its forthcoming cryptocurrency to outside backers, a move meant...

Cockroach Labs co-founders (from left): Peter Mattis, Spencer Kimball, and Ben Darnell. Photo by Cockroach Labs.

Cockroach Labs Stands Up to Amazon’s Open Source Offensive

By Kevin McLaughlin · Jun 4, 2019 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

Amazon Web Services, the online retail giant’s cloud computing unit, has recently ruffled feathers among open source software companies by using free code to create paid services of its own. Now, open source database startup Cockroach Labs, founded by three former Googlers, is hitting back.The next version of CockroachDB, the free database... Amazon Web Services, the online retail giant’s cloud computing unit, has recently ruffled...

A WeWork co-working space. Photo by Bloomberg

WeWork Finds Keeping Big Customers Can Be Hard

By Cory Weinberg · May 30, 2019 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

A WeWork co-working space. Photo by Bloomberg

WeWork Finds Keeping Big Customers Can Be Hard

By Cory Weinberg · May 30, 2019 7:01am PDT · 1 comment

WeWork wants to be the office-space provider for big as well as small companies. But it is finding that bigger clients come with bigger expectations.Take Amazon. The e-commerce giant is one of WeWork’s biggest customers, occupying dozens of WeWork spaces around the world. But earlier this year, when it prepared to expand in Nashville,... WeWork wants to be the office-space provider for big as well as small companies. But it is...

Art by Danielle Davis

Studies Don’t Support Elon Musk’s Autopilot Safety Claims

By Matt Drange · May 29, 2019 7:01am PDT · 6 comments

For years, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been making bold claims that the “Autopilot” feature that allows Tesla drivers to drive hands-free is safer than traditional driving. In 2016, for instance, he said that “half a million” people would be saved if Autopilot were more widely available. In 2017, Musk tweeted that the latest... For years, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been making bold claims that the “Autopilot”...

Bill Gurley and Travis Kalanick. Photos by Bloomberg

How Kalanick-Gurley Tensions Shaped Uber of Today

By Amir Efrati · May 28, 2019 7:01am PDT

In the run-up to Uber’s IPO, the company presented a new face to Wall Street. Two relatively new executives, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi and CFO Nelson Chai, appeared at investor meetings around the country. Former CEO Travis Kalanick wasn’t even on the stock exchange podium the day of the offering. But it was the relationship between Mr.... In the run-up to Uber’s IPO, the company presented a new face to Wall Street. Two...

Robinhood Financial CEO Baiju Bhatt at a conference last year. Photo by Bloomberg

Robinhood Nears Funding at Valuation Over $7 Billion

By Zoë Bernard · May 24, 2019 11:46am PDT

Robinhood Markets, a financial services firm that has won a following among millennials by offering free stock trades, is nearing the close of a funding round from existing investors at a valuation of between $7 billion and $8 billion, according to a person with direct knowledge of its plans. That near term effort could be a prelude to a much... Robinhood Markets, a financial services firm that has won a following among millennials by...

A Walmart store in Shanghai. Photo by Bloomberg

Walmart Taps China’s Startups for Innovation

By Wayne Ma · May 23, 2019 7:01am PDT

A Walmart store in Shanghai. Photo by Bloomberg

Walmart Taps China’s Startups for Innovation

By Wayne Ma · May 23, 2019 7:01am PDT

Last year, a Chinese startup that makes ultra-thin blankets to keep shipments of food and drink cold got a big break: Walmart decided to use the blankets in its 30 e-commerce depots in China. The startup got the lucrative deal through a special Walmart program, known as Omega 8, which recruits Chinese tech firms to develop technology for the... Last year, a Chinese startup that makes ultra-thin blankets to keep shipments of food and drink...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan.

Tech’s Low-Profile Unicorn Sells Juul Pods, Beer to College Students

By Cory Weinberg and Alfred Lee · May 22, 2019 10:01am PDT · 2 comments

Amid the cutthroat food-delivery wars, one hot startup has tried to stay under the radar to avoid alerting its rivals to its business model. But the word is getting out.GoPuff, a Philadelphia-based company that promises to deliver late-night beer, snacks and Juul pods to college students “when the party must go on,” appears to have... Amid the cutthroat food-delivery wars, one hot startup has tried to stay under the radar to avoid...

Huawei's consumer electronics chief Richard Yu. Photo by Bloomberg

Huawei Consumer Electronics Chief Braces for ‘Tough Time’

By Juro Osawa · May 21, 2019 9:02am PDT

When President Donald Trump decided to block Huawei’s access to U.S. technology last week, the Chinese company already had been developing its own chips and stockpiling parts from American suppliers to prepare for the worst. That clearly wasn’t enough. Huawei was broadsided by Google’s decision over the weekend to restrict its... When President Donald Trump decided to block Huawei’s access to U.S. technology last week,...

A collection of Google hardware devices. Photo by Bloomberg

Former Apple Chip Engineers Leave Google

By Aaron Tilley · May 20, 2019 10:02am PDT · 1 comment

A few years ago, Google began hiring Apple engineers responsible for developing a mobile chip that helped give iPhones and other devices a technical edge. But recently, some of those same engineers have left Google’s chip team, in a potential setback to its ambitions to build key ingredients in its own devices. Three chip... A few years ago, Google began hiring Apple engineers responsible for developing a mobile chip...

HashiCorp CEO Dave McJannet. Photo by HashiCorp

Cisco Held Preliminary Acquisition Talks With Cloud Startup HashiCorp

By Kevin McLaughlin · May 20, 2019 7:02am PDT

HashiCorp CEO Dave McJannet. Photo by HashiCorp

Cisco Held Preliminary Acquisition Talks With Cloud Startup HashiCorp

By Kevin McLaughlin · May 20, 2019 7:02am PDT

Cisco Systems held preliminary discussions recently with HashiCorp about an acquisition of the startup whose software manages applications running across multiple cloud providers, according to three people with direct knowledge of the talks. The talks, which took place over a month ago, don’t appear to have advanced very far though, with... Cisco Systems held preliminary discussions recently with HashiCorp about an acquisition of the...