The Information

ClickHouse CEO Aaron Katz. Image via YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

Snowflake Challenger ClickHouse Targets $6 Billion Valuation

By Sri Muppidi · May 9, 2025 1:12pm PDT · 3 comments

Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake and Databricks. Now venture capitalists are circling ClickHouse, a startup some investors believe could rival the incumbents, particularly as the rise of artificial intelligence increases demand for its database software. The startup is in... Investors have reaped billions of dollars in gains from backing database software firms Snowflake...

Fidji Simo, left, and Sam Altman. Photos via Getty

How Simo Will Fill Altman’s Management Gaps at OpenAI

By Amir Efrati and Stephanie Palazzolo · May 9, 2025 12:45pm PDT · 3 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to Instacart CEO Fidji Simo sets up a key partnership that will be closely watched as one of the world’s fastest-growing technology companies looks to extend its lead in artificial intelligence. For her part, Simo will have to wring more revenue from and... OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s surprise decision to hand over much of his company’s business to...

Mark D’Arcy. Photo via Getty

Microsoft Hires Former Meta Marketing Exec to Work on Copilot AI

By Aaron Holmes and Jessica E. Lessin · May 8, 2025 11:55am PDT · 5 comments

Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and Time Warner, to serve as a creative director of the company’s Copilot consumer artificial intelligence chatbot, according to two people briefed on the situation. The hiring is a sign of how AI firms are starting to focus their attention on... Microsoft has hired a veteran marketing executive, with experience at both Meta Platforms and...

Art by Clark Miller.

Spies Are Everywhere in Cutthroat Fintech Industry

By Michael Roddan · May 8, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Art by Clark Miller.

Spies Are Everywhere in Cutthroat Fintech Industry

By Michael Roddan · May 8, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

It’s easier than ever to spy on a rival company. It’s also easier than ever to catch a spy. The result is a surge in spy-versus-spy lawsuits in the fintech industry, one of the most cutthroat in Silicon Valley. It’s easier than ever to spy on a rival company. It’s also easier than ever to catch a spy. The...

Instacart CEO Fidji Simo. Photo via Getty

OpenAI Hires Instacart CEO Simo For Major Leadership Role

By Jessica E. Lessin and Amir Efrati · May 7, 2025 9:43pm PDT · 6 comments

Update: OpenAI confirmed it is hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to oversee some of the company’s divisions in a major leadership restructuring at the artificial intelligence firm. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, confirming an earlier report by The Information, said he would continue overseeing research and infrastructure teams that are core to... Update: OpenAI confirmed it is hiring Instacart CEO Fidji Simo to oversee some of the...

A Foundation robot. Screenshot via YouTube

Ex-Synapse CEO’s Robot Startup Targets $1 Billion Valuation

By Michael Roddan and Natasha Mascarenhas · May 7, 2025 5:33pm PDT · 2 comments

A humanoid robotics startup founded by the former chief executive of failed fintech firm Synapse is aiming to finalize a $100 million fundraising that will value the year-old company at $1 billion, according to people who spoke to the company’s founders this week. The startup is in talks to raise money from the family office of a member of the... A humanoid robotics startup founded by the former chief executive of failed fintech firm Synapse...

David Bailey. Photo by Getty.

David Bailey, Who Advised Trump on Crypto, Plans Bitcoin Investing Firm

By Yueqi Yang · May 7, 2025 8:05am PDT · 1 comment

David Bailey, who advised President Donald Trump on crypto policy during his 2024 campaign, is raising $300 million to launch a publicly traded bitcoin investing company, according to people familiar with the matter. He is following a string of companies that buy up crypto seeking to replicate the success of Michael Saylor’s Strategy, which... David Bailey, who advised President Donald Trump on crypto policy during his 2024 campaign, is...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, left, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo via Getty

OpenAI Plans to Slash Revenue Share to Microsoft After Restructuring

By Sri Muppidi, Aaron Holmes, Stephanie Palazzolo and Erin Woo · May 6, 2025 6:52pm PDT · 2 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, left, and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo via Getty

OpenAI Plans to Slash Revenue Share to Microsoft After Restructuring

By Sri Muppidi, Aaron Holmes, Stephanie Palazzolo and Erin Woo · May 6, 2025 6:52pm PDT · 2 comments

As OpenAI moves ahead with a corporate restructuring to appease its investors as well as regulators, it needs to get clearance from Microsoft, its biggest outside shareholder and business partner. One part of OpenAI’s plan involves reducing the percentage of revenue it shares with Microsoft. In financial projections OpenAI shared with investors,... As OpenAI moves ahead with a corporate restructuring to appease its investors as well as...

Illustration via Getty.

Amazon and Shopify Sellers Face Crunch as E-Commerce Lenders Pull Back

By Theo Wayt and Ann Gehan · May 6, 2025 11:01am PDT

On Friday, Amazon sent many merchants selling goods on its e-commerce site a memo with pointers on how to navigate trade uncertainty amid steep U.S. tariffs. Suggestions included pivoting to selling in new countries and reshuffling inventory to different warehouses. Amazon also suggested merchants consider taking out loans, giving them funds to... On Friday, Amazon sent many merchants selling goods on its e-commerce site a memo with pointers...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Apple Plans iPhone Release Schedule Shakeup, New Styles

By Wayne Ma · May 3, 2025 8:00am PDT · 1 comment

After years of incremental changes to the iPhone, Apple is mixing things up much more dramatically. Later this year it’s expected to introduce an ultrathin new device, followed by a foldable phone expected in 2026. Also next year, Apple plans to change its release strategy, launching pricier, more premium versions in the fall as usual, but... After years of incremental changes to the iPhone, Apple is mixing things up much more...

Anthropic to Buy Back Employee Shares at $61.5 Billion Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo · May 2, 2025 2:01pm PDT · 2 comments

Anthropic is offering to buy back shares from hundreds of current and former employees, the first transaction of its kind for the four-year-old company. The buyback is a sign of how integral these have become in rewarding employees at fast-growing startups and retaining rare research talent in the artificial intelligence talent war. San... Anthropic is offering to buy back shares from hundreds of current and former employees, the...

Art by Clark Miller.

Advertisers Plan Cuts to TV Advertising As Economic Worries Mount

By Sahil Patel · May 2, 2025 8:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller.

Advertisers Plan Cuts to TV Advertising As Economic Worries Mount

By Sahil Patel · May 2, 2025 8:00am PDT

Google and Meta Platforms have signaled they’re not seeing much pullback by advertisers worried about the economy, but it’s likely to be a different story for TV networks and video-streaming services. TV ad sales executives and ad buyers say marketers are already indicating plans to cut back spending on entertainment and news programming by as... Google and Meta Platforms have signaled they’re not seeing much pullback by advertisers worried...

Jensen Huang. Photo by Getty.

Nvidia Is Again Working on China-Tailored Chips After U.S. Export Ban

By Qianer Liu · May 2, 2025 6:00am PDT

The U.S. government is steadily tightening the noose on Nvidia’s sales to China. But the AI chip giant isn’t giving up on the market. Nvidia has told some of its biggest Chinese customers, including ByteDance, Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings, that it is tweaking the design of its artificial intelligence chips so they can be sold to Chinese... The U.S. government is steadily tightening the noose on Nvidia’s sales to China. But the AI chip...

Photo via Getty.

Amazon Takes Aim at Cursor With New AI Coding Service

By Kevin McLaughlin · May 1, 2025 10:54am PDT · 2 comments

Artificial intelligence–assisted coding firms are some of the hottest startups in Silicon Valley right now, drawing attention from OpenAI, among others. Amazon Web Services sees an opportunity. AWS is working on its own AI-assisted coding service that offers features similar to those from startups Anysphere, which makes Cursor, and... Artificial intelligence–assisted coding firms are some of the hottest startups in Silicon...

Crypto Venture Capital Fundraising Springs Back to Life

By Yueqi Yang · May 1, 2025 6:00am PDT

Fundraising is picking up among crypto venture funds after two dismal years, as investors hope to profit from the friendly regulatory environment under President Donald Trump. The rebound is likely to be modest because venture capital funds are no longer the only game in town for big investors who want crypto exposure. Crypto VC funds are on... Fundraising is picking up among crypto venture funds after two dismal years, as investors hope to...

Art by Clark Miller

Sleeping in Warehouses: The Hidden Costs of Shein and Temu Deliveries

By Theo Wayt · Apr 30, 2025 6:00am PDT

Art by Clark Miller

Sleeping in Warehouses: The Hidden Costs of Shein and Temu Deliveries

By Theo Wayt · Apr 30, 2025 6:00am PDT

In January, three police officers arrived at a warehouse in central Connecticut run by a company called UniUni, a logistics startup that handles millions of packages each week for mostly China-founded e-commerce clients like Temu, Shein and TikTok Shop. Inside, they found piles of cardboard boxes and plastic mailing bags in the brightly lit main... In January, three police officers arrived at a warehouse in central Connecticut run by a company...

Mira Murati. Photo via Getty

Thinking Machines Lab CEO Has Unusual Control in Andreessen-Led Deal

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Natasha Mascarenhas · Apr 29, 2025 1:00pm PDT · 3 comments

It’s common nowadays for founders of hot startups to hold special shares that give them more voting power than most investors. But Mira Murati, a former OpenAI chief technology officer who is now a founder and the CEO of artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab, may exert an unusual level of control even by those standards. Murati... It’s common nowadays for founders of hot startups to hold special shares that give them more...

Sridhar Ramaswamy. Photo by Getty

Snowflake Sets $100 Million Target in AI Sales Push

By Kevin McLaughlin · Apr 29, 2025 10:46am PDT

Snowflake and other enterprise software firms whose success predates the rise of ChatGPT are trying to recast themselves as artificial intelligence companies. They’ll have to persuade corporate customers to choose their offerings in what has become a very crowded field. The pressure is particularly acute for Snowflake CEO Sridhar Ramaswamy, who... Snowflake and other enterprise software firms whose success predates the rise of ChatGPT are...

Art by Clark Miller; images via Getty.

Andreessen Horowitz Comes to Deel’s Defense in Spy Battle

By Cory Weinberg and Michael Roddan · Apr 26, 2025 8:00am PDT · 4 comments

Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has landed in the middle of a nasty Silicon Valley spy scandal between one of its most successful startups and a company run by a chief executive the VC firm pushed out nearly a decade ago from the company he founded. The VC firm is playing a central role in the fight between rival human resources... Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has landed in the middle of a nasty Silicon Valley spy...

Yichao "Peak" Ji, co-founder and Chief Scientist at Manus AI. Photo via YouTube/Manus AI.

Startup Behind Manus AI Agent Navigates U.S.-China Tensions After Benchmark Deal

By Juro Osawa · Apr 25, 2025 3:19pm PDT

Yichao "Peak" Ji, co-founder and Chief Scientist at Manus AI. Photo via YouTube/Manus AI.

Startup Behind Manus AI Agent Navigates U.S.-China Tensions After Benchmark Deal

By Juro Osawa · Apr 25, 2025 3:19pm PDT

Leaders of the Chinese startup behind the hit artificial intelligence agent Manus have discussed setting up new headquarters outside China, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions. The discussions signal that the startup doesn’t want its ability to do business in the U.S. to be constrained by its Chinese roots. The startup,... Leaders of the Chinese startup behind the hit artificial intelligence agent Manus have discussed...