The Information

WeWork’s Biggest Losers—and Remaining Winners

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 24, 2019 10:15am PDT · 4 comments

SoftBank has given WeWork a new lease on life. But some of the company’s biggest shareholders, including Hony Capital, Fidelity and thousands of employees—as well as SoftBank itself—are now in the red.WeWork’s new valuation of $11.60 a share is below what was paid by every outside investor who put money into WeWork since... SoftBank has given WeWork a new lease on life. But some of the company’s biggest...

Carbon Robotics co-founder and CEO Rosanna Myers at a conference in Hong Kong last year. Photo by Bloomberg.

Startup Carbon Robotics Shutting Down, Selling Assets

By Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 23, 2019 12:49pm PDT

Robotic arms that can perform complex, delicate tasks—from assembling electronics to picking and packing online orders in warehouses—are one of the holy grails of researchers and tech companies. Developing them is also proving to be highly risky, as the failure of another robotic arm startup shows. Carbon Robotics, a San... Robotic arms that can perform complex, delicate tasks—from assembling electronics to...

CNN's offices in Atlanta. Photo by Bloomberg

CNN to Launch Digital News Service to Compete With Facebook, Apple

By Jessica Toonkel · Oct 23, 2019 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

First there was Knewz. Now there is “Newsco.” Media companies are ramping up their efforts to take on Facebook and Apple with digital news services. Just a few months after Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. announced it was developing Knewz.com, a news aggregation service offering articles from a wide range of outlets, CNN is... First there was Knewz. Now there is “Newsco.” Media companies are ramping up their...

Lime scooters in Munich, Germany. Photo: AP

Lime’s Loss to Top $300 Million in 2019

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 21, 2019 3:37pm PDT

Lime scooters in Munich, Germany. Photo: AP

Lime’s Loss to Top $300 Million in 2019

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 21, 2019 3:37pm PDT

Scooter rental operator Lime has touted itself as one of the fastest-growing startups ever, blanketing cities such as Berlin, Paris and Los Angeles with thousands of two-wheeled electric vehicles. But the firm is losing money nearly as quickly as it expands in part because the company’s vehicles tend to break down before they can generate... Scooter rental operator Lime has touted itself as one of the fastest-growing startups ever,...

AWS Customers Rack Up Hefty Bills for Moving Data

By Kevin McLaughlin and Amir Efrati · Oct 21, 2019 7:01am PDT · 3 comments

There are a lot of ways companies can rack up high bills for using cloud services, sometimes unexpectedly. One particularly stiff expense is the cost of shifting data from one cloud provider’s servers to another provider, or to a company’s own data center. The Information has learned just how much some companies have had to pay for... There are a lot of ways companies can rack up high bills for using cloud services, sometimes...

Former HBO chief Richard Plepler. Photo by Bloomberg

Ex-HBO Chief Plepler Has Discussed Launching Studio

By Jessica Toonkel and Alex Heath · Oct 18, 2019 11:36am PDT

Less than a year after leaving WarnerMedia, former HBO CEO Richard Plepler appears to be getting back in the entertainment business. Plepler has told industry associates over the past several weeks that he is looking to start his own production studio, tentatively called Eden Productions, according to people who have spoken to him. Plepler... Less than a year after leaving WarnerMedia, former HBO CEO Richard Plepler appears to be getting...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo: Bloomberg

Airbnb’s Q1 Loss More Than Doubled

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 17, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Airbnb’s operating loss more than doubled in the first quarter to $306 million from the year-earlier period, previously undisclosed financial data shows, a result in part of a sharply increased investment in marketing. While that spending could bring in a lot of new business, prospective investors could be unnerved if subsequent quarters... Airbnb’s operating loss more than doubled in the first quarter to $306 million from the...

Export of Sensitive U.S. Technology Slows Under Trump

By Matt Drange and Mike Sullivan · Oct 15, 2019 7:00am PDT

Export of Sensitive U.S. Technology Slows Under Trump

By Matt Drange and Mike Sullivan · Oct 15, 2019 7:00am PDT

The Trump administration has made it harder for U.S. tech companies to export sensitive U.S. technologies, such as encryption software, semiconductors and drones. Export license approvals have dropped and rejections have risen in recent years, data obtained by The Information shows, and lawyers advising companies seeking export licenses say... The Trump administration has made it harder for U.S. tech companies to export sensitive U.S....

Photo by Bloomberg

Head of Airbnb’s ‘Experiences’ Division to Step Down

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 8, 2019 4:44pm PDT · 1 comment

One of Airbnb’s earliest employees plans to leave his position atop the company’s “Experiences” division that sells travel tours and other activities, putting a spotlight on a division seen as key for Airbnb’s hopes of diversifying into a broader group of travel services than just accommodation, people familiar with... One of Airbnb’s earliest employees plans to leave his position atop the company’s...

Hillhouse Chairman Zhang Lei. Photo by Bloomberg

Tencent to Invest $500 Million in Hillhouse China Drugstores

By Wayne Ma · Oct 8, 2019 3:21pm PDT

Chinese internet giant Tencent is planning to invest about $500 million in Hillhouse Capital Group’s Chinese drugstore business, in a deal that values the unit at around $2.5 billion, a person familiar with the matter said.The potential investment would be another sign of how Tencent, which operates the ubiquitous WeChat social messaging... Chinese internet giant Tencent is planning to invest about $500 million in Hillhouse Capital...

A WeWork location in London. Photo: Bloomberg

WeWork Plans to Shed One-Third of Technology Employees

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 8, 2019 2:32pm PDT · 1 comment

WeWork expects to shed about 500 of the roughly 1,500 software engineers, product managers and data scientists employed in the company’s technology division, a person familiar with the matter said, as a result of layoffs and selling businesses. The job cuts could further dilute WeWork’s identity as a tech company in the real estate... WeWork expects to shed about 500 of the roughly 1,500 software engineers, product managers and...

Tubi CEO Farhad Massoudi. Photo courtesy of Tubi TV.

Video Streaming Service Tubi TV Looks to Raise $150 Million

By Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Oct 4, 2019 1:39pm PDT · 1 comment

Tubi CEO Farhad Massoudi. Photo courtesy of Tubi TV.

Video Streaming Service Tubi TV Looks to Raise $150 Million

By Tom Dotan and Jessica Toonkel · Oct 4, 2019 1:39pm PDT · 1 comment

Tubi TV, a free ad-supported video streaming service that shows old movies and TV shows, is in talks to raise around $150 million in a new round of funding, according to two people familiar with the plans. If successful, it would be by far the largest round raised by the service and would signal the interest investors have in the ad-supported... Tubi TV, a free ad-supported video streaming service that shows old movies and TV shows, is in...

Artie Minson, left, and Sebastian Gunningham. Photos courtesy of WeWork.

Inside WeWork’s Apologetic All-Hands

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 4, 2019 9:59am PDT

WeWork co-CEO Artie Minson apologized to employees Thursday for the controversies that have roiled the company in recent weeks and for the layoffs ahead. He said he knows what it is like to lose a job in a corporate restructuring. “Actually, in a very public way—cover of the Wall Street Journal way,” he said, an apparent... WeWork co-CEO Artie Minson apologized to employees Thursday for the controversies that have...

Travis Kalanick in San Francisco in 2018. Photo by Bloomberg.

Travis Kalanick Looks to China for CloudKitchens Expansion

By Juro Osawa · Oct 4, 2019 7:01am PDT

Travis Kalanick is trying again in China. The former Uber CEO’s latest startup, kitchen-rental firm CloudKitchens, has quietly acquired six Chinese startups this year as he looks to expand the business into a global leader.Earlier this year, Kalanick bought a Shanghai-based startup called Jike Alliance, one of the leading players in... Travis Kalanick is trying again in China. The former Uber CEO’s latest startup,...

Former CEO of WeWork, Adam Neumann. Photo by Reuters.

‘The Crew Was Not Tipped’: The Fallout From WeWork’s Excesses

By Cory Weinberg and Jessica E. Lessin · Oct 3, 2019 10:03am PDT · 1 comment

Even though it was an early flight, Adam Neumann’s airplane was stocked with champagne and Don Julio 42 tequila. Neumann, along with his personal assistant, a WeWork real estate executive, a pair of architects and a rabbi who was close to Neumann were flying to Mexico City in June 2015. It was a year before the company opened its first... Even though it was an early flight, Adam Neumann’s airplane was stocked with champagne and...

Blockchain CEO Peter Smith. Photo: Bloomberg

Executive Departures Roil Crypto Firm Blockchain

By Jon Victor · Oct 2, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Blockchain CEO Peter Smith. Photo: Bloomberg

Executive Departures Roil Crypto Firm Blockchain

By Jon Victor · Oct 2, 2019 7:02am PDT · 1 comment

Five years ago, the cryptocurrency startup Blockchain was seen as a rising star within the burgeoning field. Equipped with a conspicuous name and a practical-sounding plan to help consumers store crypto assets, it attracted $70 million in venture capital over several years from prominent funders.But behind the scenes, the London-based startup... Five years ago, the cryptocurrency startup Blockchain was seen as a rising star within the...

Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha, left, and Rubrik adviser and former Cisco CEO John Chambers. Photo by Bloomberg

Big Tech Firm Eyed Rubrik As Possible Acquisition

By Kevin McLaughlin and Zoë Bernard · Oct 1, 2019 2:24pm PDT · 1 comment

Rubrik, a startup backed by Silicon Valley luminaries that makes software for managing and recovering data, has had an approach from at least one large technology company about selling itself, according to one person with direct knowledge of the matter. The two companies held preliminary discussions that were underway sometime around... Rubrik, a startup backed by Silicon Valley luminaries that makes software for managing and...

A WeWork office in New York. Photo by Bloomberg

WeWork Puts Two More Businesses Up for Sale

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 1, 2019 1:33pm PDT · 1 comment

WeWork is putting two more recently acquired companies up for sale as it looks to raise cash, according to two people familiar with the matter. The latest on the block: Teem, which provides conference room scheduling software, and SpaceIQ, which makes workplace management software. WeWork bought Teem last fall for $94 million in cash, while... WeWork is putting two more recently acquired companies up for sale as it looks to raise cash,...

A Didi branch office in China. Photo by AP

Uber’s Stock Drop Weighs on Didi Chuxing’s Valuation

By Yunan Zhang, Shai Oster and Juro Osawa · Oct 1, 2019 7:01am PDT

Uber’s disappointing IPO and WeWork’s recent implosion are casting a shadow over another of SoftBank’s big bets: Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing.Some of Didi’s existing shareholders are looking to sell their stakes on the secondary market at much lower prices than the company’s most recent $57 billion... Uber’s disappointing IPO and WeWork’s recent implosion are casting a shadow over...

A WeWork space in Tokyo. Photo by Bloomberg

As WeWork Rethinks Expansion, Landlords Hesitate on Deals

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 27, 2019 10:47am PDT

A WeWork space in Tokyo. Photo by Bloomberg

As WeWork Rethinks Expansion, Landlords Hesitate on Deals

By Cory Weinberg · Sep 27, 2019 10:47am PDT

Harvest Properties, an Oakland, Calif.–based property developer, has always been cautious about the risks of leasing space to WeWork. But in recent months it had overcome those concerns and—until this week—was close to striking its biggest deal yet with the co-working giant. Harvest was going to lease hundreds of thousands of... Harvest Properties, an Oakland, Calif.–based property developer, has always been cautious...