The Information

An ad for eHi in a railway station in China. Photo by AP.

After Slaying Uber, Didi Faces Domestic Rivals

By Shai Oster, Amir Efrati and Juro Osawa · Mar 31, 2017 7:00am PDT

Didi Chuxing, the Chinese ride hailing app that defeated Uber in China, is facing fresh challenges from a host of local rivals that are raising money and expanding through alliances.The latest challenge may be a potential alliance between China’s second largest car rental firm, eHi Car Services, and Shouqi Group, a state-owned taxi and... Didi Chuxing, the Chinese ride hailing app that defeated Uber in China, is facing fresh...

Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet software and services. Photo by Bloomberg.

Apple Hires Former YouTube Exec to Boost Video Effort

By Amir Efrati · Mar 30, 2017 3:34pm PDT · 1 comment

Apple has hired Shiva Rajaraman, a veteran product manager from YouTube and Spotify, to help shape the company’s video strategy, according to three people briefed on the hiring. Mr. Rajaraman is the latest in a string of outsiders Apple has hired in recent months to strengthen its position in video, where it lags rivals like Amazon.com and... Apple has hired Shiva Rajaraman, a veteran product manager from YouTube and Spotify, to help...

Baidu CEO Robin Li. Photo by Bloomberg.

Behind the Decline at China’s Tech Giant Baidu

By Juro Osawa and Yunan Zhang · Mar 29, 2017 7:01am PDT · 2 comments

When Google pulled its search engine out of China seven years ago, it handed a near monopoly to Baidu, the domestic rival founded by Robin Li. The ambitious U.S.-educated computer scientist-turned tech billionaire was hailed as a role model for the wave of overseas Chinese returnee entrepreneurs. Yet, instead of filling the void to become... When Google pulled its search engine out of China seven years ago, it handed a near monopoly to...

Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cisco Moving to Break Apart Networking Software from Hardware

By Kevin McLaughlin · Mar 28, 2017 10:47am PDT · 8 comments

Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins. Photo by Bloomberg.

Cisco Moving to Break Apart Networking Software from Hardware

By Kevin McLaughlin · Mar 28, 2017 10:47am PDT · 8 comments

Under pressure from its big corporate customers, Cisco Systems is getting ready to disrupt one of its biggest businesses.Cisco is planning to sell operating system software for networking devices—which switch internet traffic between networks—without requiring customers also buy Cisco’s high-end hardware, said two people... Under pressure from its big corporate customers, Cisco Systems is getting ready to disrupt one of...

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg.

Uber Group’s Visit to Seoul Escort Bar Sparked HR Complaint

By Amir Efrati · Mar 24, 2017 9:05pm PDT · 29 comments

A woman who dated Uber CEO Travis Kalanick for three years, Gabi Holzwarth, says she was with Mr. Kalanick when he and a team of five Uber employees visited an escort-karaoke bar in Seoul in mid-2014. At the bar, women sat in a circle, identified by numbered tags. Four male Uber managers picked women out of the group, calling out their numbers,... A woman who dated Uber CEO Travis Kalanick for three years, Gabi Holzwarth, says she was with Mr....

Kasita CEO Jeff Wilson inside one of Kasita's prefabricated homes. Photo by Flickr/Nicolas Boullosa.

Airbnb, Alphabet Eye Homebuilding

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 24, 2017 7:00am PDT · 6 comments

Last year, employees in Airbnb’s experimental design studio explored ways of manufacturing small homes for people’s backyards, to provide extra space for guests. But the effort, which hasn’t previously been reported, was mostly scuttled for now, said a person with knowledge of the situation. Airbnb senior executives worried... Last year, employees in Airbnb’s experimental design studio explored ways of manufacturing...

Art by Matt Vascellaro.

How Travis Kalanick’s Iron Grip Weakened Uber

By Amir Efrati · Mar 22, 2017 7:01am PDT · 6 comments

Several months ago, at an Uber company staff meeting, an employee asked CEO Travis Kalanick about a regulatory matter in Southeast Asia. When Mr. Kalanick said he didn’t know about the issue, Uber’s top operations executive for Asia, Andrew MacDonald, spoke up to tell Mr. Kalanick he’d fill him in about it later. Mr. Kalanick... Several months ago, at an Uber company staff meeting, an employee asked CEO Travis Kalanick about...

Alphabet CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Drops Employee Waiver for Pornography Suits

By Reed Albergotti · Mar 21, 2017 12:30pm PDT · 1 comment

Alphabet CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Drops Employee Waiver for Pornography Suits

By Reed Albergotti · Mar 21, 2017 12:30pm PDT · 1 comment

Google will no longer require employees to waive their right to sue over pornography at work. The company changed its previous policy after an employee lawsuit alleged it violated labor laws. The Information brought the lawsuit to light last week.Google had previously required new employees to sign a form waiving their right to sue if they saw... Google will no longer require employees to waive their right to sue over pornography at work. The...

Huawei's booth at the Mobile World Congress last month in Barcelona. Photo by Bloomberg.

After Google Phone Fizzles, Huawei Turns to AT&T for U.S. Expansion

By Juro Osawa · Mar 21, 2017 7:02am PDT · 3 comments

Huawei, which is closing in on Apple and Samsung in smartphones, is making a fresh effort to sell its phones through a U.S. carrier. The smartphone maker is in the process of getting its homegrown Chinese mobile chipset accredited by AT&T in the U.S., an early but significant move in a market it has so far failed to crack, people familiar... Huawei, which is closing in on Apple and Samsung in smartphones, is making a fresh effort to sell...

Alphabet CEO Larry Page. Photo by Bloomberg.

Google Employees Have to Waive Right to Sue on Pornography

By Reed Albergotti · Mar 17, 2017 10:39am PDT · 6 comments

Courts have long held that people can sue for sexual harassment if they see pornography at work. But at Google, employees are required to waive their right to sue on those grounds, according to a lawsuit. Google requires new employees to sign an “Adult Content Liability Release,” according to a court filing this week in the lawsuit,... Courts have long held that people can sue for sexual harassment if they see pornography at work....

Writers for "The Mindy Project," now on Hulu, at an event last September. Photo by AP.

Hulu Looking for Executive to Oversee Programming

By Tom Dotan · Mar 16, 2017 5:23pm PDT · 2 comments

Hulu is searching for a senior executive to oversee its programming, said two people familiar with the search, as the company prepares to expand with a new service of traditional cable channels in addition to its on-demand offering.The company has reached out to a number of high-level television executives for a position called chief content... Hulu is searching for a senior executive to oversee its programming, said two people familiar...

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Photo by Bloomberg.

Twitter Broadens Live Video Push

By Tom Dotan · Mar 15, 2017 2:59pm PDT

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Photo by Bloomberg.

Twitter Broadens Live Video Push

By Tom Dotan · Mar 15, 2017 2:59pm PDT

Twitter plans to announce next week that it will allow media firms to post live streaming videos directly into the service, the latest step in its path to becoming a hub for live video, according to two people briefed on the plans.The company will open up its live-streaming API, allowing media firms to plug directly into Twitter’s... Twitter plans to announce next week that it will allow media firms to post live streaming videos...

Charoen chairman Dhanin Chearavanant with Alibaba chairman Jack Ma in November. Photo by Bloomberg.

China’s Finance Giant On the Move

By Juro Osawa · Mar 14, 2017 10:07am PDT · 1 comment

Alibaba Group’s internet finance arm Ant Financial Services is accelerating its global expansion. In its latest effort, Ant is in talks to create a payment joint venture in Indonesia with a local media conglomerate, Emtek, people familiar with the discussions said. A partnership with Emtek, one of Indonesia’s largest conglomerates... Alibaba Group’s internet finance arm Ant Financial Services is accelerating its global...

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Photo by Bloomberg.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Has a New “Shadow”

By Eugene Kim · Mar 13, 2017 3:51pm PDT

Amazon has appointed a former Kindle vice president to be the new technical advisor to CEO Jeff Bezos, a highly coveted position within the company that’s often called Jeff Bezos’s “shadow.” That’s because the person in the role accompanies Mr. Bezos everywhere he goes, including to all meetings, with the aim of... Amazon has appointed a former Kindle vice president to be the new technical advisor to CEO Jeff...

Velodyne Lidar devices attached to the top of a car at an exhibition. Photo by Flickr/ETC-USC

Key Sensor for Self-Driving Cars is in Short Supply

By Amir Efrati · Mar 13, 2017 7:02am PDT · 6 comments

Lots of things are holding up the development of self-driving cars, including government regulation and the sheer complexity of getting the tech right. But one of the biggest issues right now is a crippling shortage of a special laser sensor, used by autonomous vehicles to figure out what’s going on around them.Wait times for this laser,... Lots of things are holding up the development of self-driving cars, including government...

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo by Bloomberg.

Airbnb Looks To Add To Executive Ranks

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 10, 2017 5:27pm PST

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Photo by Bloomberg.

Airbnb Looks To Add To Executive Ranks

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 10, 2017 5:27pm PST

Airbnb’s on-again, off-again search for another senior executive to help CEO Brian Chesky manage the rapidly growing company is active again, said three people briefed on the matter. Among the people approached recently was Brent Bellm, former chief operating officer of vacation-rentals rival HomeAway and current CEO of ecommerce platform... Airbnb’s on-again, off-again search for another senior executive to help CEO Brian Chesky...

Facebook vp of product Fidji Simo. Photo by Flickr/LeWeb.

Facebook’s Uphill Battle To Win Back Publishers

By Cory Weinberg · Mar 9, 2017 1:25pm PST · 3 comments

Facebook product managers gathered about a dozen news publishers at the company’s New York office two weeks ago to unveil potential changes to Instant Articles, the nearly-two-year-old program aimed at making news articles load faster on the social network. The roadmap, including giving publishers more ways to track reader habits and to... Facebook product managers gathered about a dozen news publishers at the company’s New York...

Former Quixey co-founder CEO Tomer Kagan, second from right. Photo by Flickr/TechCrunch.

Alibaba-Backed Quixey Shutting Down

By Amir Efrati · Mar 8, 2017 4:41pm PST · 2 comments

Quixey, a seven-year-old mobile search company that raised more than $130 million from Alibaba Group and others, is in the process of shutting down, said a person with direct knowledge of the situation. Numerous employees were laid off two weeks ago, according to a former employee.Quixey came to prominence as a potential alternative to Google... Quixey, a seven-year-old mobile search company that raised more than $130 million from Alibaba...

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg

Uber CEO, Facing Multiple Controversies, Seeks No. 2 Exec

By Amir Efrati and Alfred Lee · Mar 4, 2017 6:06pm PST · 3 comments

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick plans to appoint a number two executive to serve alongside him and make key decisions, said a person briefed on the plan. The decision is a concession for Mr. Kalanick, who has long operated Uber without a formal second in command. Along with two colleagues, he controls a majority of the shareholder votes.The expected... Uber CEO Travis Kalanick plans to appoint a number two executive to serve alongside him and make...

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg.

How Uber Can Drive Profits

By Amir Efrati · Mar 3, 2017 7:01am PST · 4 comments

Uber CEO Travis Kalanick. Photo by Bloomberg.

How Uber Can Drive Profits

By Amir Efrati · Mar 3, 2017 7:01am PST · 4 comments

How much the recent spate of negative media coverage of Uber and its workplace culture will have on its business and ability to attract talent is anybody’s guess. But new financial data shows how profitable the ride-sharing firm is in key cities in the U.S. and Europe—and gives a clue about what it has to do to cut its enormous... How much the recent spate of negative media coverage of Uber and its workplace culture will have...