The Information

Art by Mike Sullivan

Google Seeks Search Deals For TikTok and Instagram Videos

By Sarah Krouse and Kaya Yurieff · Sep 24, 2021 6:01am PDT · 2 comments

If you’ve ever tried searching on Google for one of those TikTok or Instagram videos all your friends are gushing about—such as sea shanties or the Renegade dance—you’ll notice something. The videos don’t show up. Google is trying to fix that—but there’s no guarantee its efforts will succeed. Google... If you’ve ever tried searching on Google for one of those TikTok or Instagram videos all...

Rendering of the YAM-4 spacecraft bus by Blue Canyon Technologies for Loft Orbital. Image provided by Business Wire

Blackrock Values ‘Space Carpool’ Startup Loft Orbital at $550 Million

By Aidan Ryan and Berber Jin · Sep 23, 2021 12:02pm PDT

Commercial space startups have had a mixed track record as investment prospects: While shares in space tourism outfit Virgin Galactic have doubled in two years, satellite internet provider OneWeb ended up in bankruptcy court last year. Even after that bumpy ride, investors are still keen on the sector, which they see as a way to bet on the next... Commercial space startups have had a mixed track record as investment prospects: While shares in...

Gorillas founder Kağan Sümer. Photo provided by Gorillas

Gorillas Raising $950 Million Amidst European Delivery Wars

By Mark Di Stefano and Kate Clark · Sep 23, 2021 11:45am PDT

Gorillas, one of the biggest of a crop of European startups in the convenience delivery market, has finalized a $950 million series C fundraising round, valuing the company at $3 billion, according to two people with direct knowledge of the situation. The fundraising is the latest example of the investor frenzy around startups seeking to deliver... Gorillas, one of the biggest of a crop of European startups in the convenience delivery market,...

Illustration by Haejin Park

How Google Spies on Its Employees

By Sarah Krouse · Sep 23, 2021 6:00am PDT · 5 comments

Illustration by Haejin Park

How Google Spies on Its Employees

By Sarah Krouse · Sep 23, 2021 6:00am PDT · 5 comments

At Google, a seemingly innocuous action can earn an employee the attention of the company’s corporate security department. For example, when Google wants to find out who has been accessing or leaking sensitive corporate information, the company often homes in on employees who are thinking about leaving it. In the past, its security teams... At Google, a seemingly innocuous action can earn an employee the attention of the company’s...

The Athletic co-founder Alex Mather with The Information's Jessica Lessin in 2018. Photo by Erin Beach.

The Athletic Hires LionTree to Find Buyer at Price of More Than $750 Million

By Sahil Patel and Jessica Toonkel · Sep 22, 2021 10:01am PDT

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. That appears to be the motto of The Athletic in its efforts to sell itself. After holding unsuccessful discussions for a sale with both Axios and the New York Times Co. over the past few months, the online sports news subscription site has hired investment bank LionTree to help it find a... If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. That appears to be the motto of The Athletic...

FTC Chair Lina Khan. Photo by Bloomberg

As FTC Shifts Priorities Under Khan, Collusion Probe of Hyatt, Hilton Goes on Ice

By Josh Sisco · Sep 22, 2021 6:01am PDT

As Federal Trade Commission antitrust lawyers try to police vast swaths of the economy with limited resources, they’re making trade-offs. The FTC earlier this year stepped up a long-running investigation into whether a group of major hotels including Hyatt, Hilton and Marriott hurt customers by colluding to stop competing for ad space in... As Federal Trade Commission antitrust lawyers try to police vast swaths of the economy with...

Sarah Guo, a general partner at Greylock Partners. Photo by Bloomberg.

Greylock Raises $500 Million in Battle for Seed Deals

By Kate Clark · Sep 21, 2021 11:57am PDT · 2 comments

Greylock Partners has raised $500 million to focus exclusively on seed deals, a pool of funds that will give the 56-year-old venture capital firm the ability to write large checks at “lean-in valuations” and emphasize its commitment to early-stage investing, said general partner Sarah Guo. The money is part of an expansion of a... Greylock Partners has raised $500 million to focus exclusively on seed deals, a pool of funds...

Illustration by Josh Brill

More Startup CEOs Are Moonlighting as VC Investors

By Berber Jin · Sep 21, 2021 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Illustration by Josh Brill

More Startup CEOs Are Moonlighting as VC Investors

By Berber Jin · Sep 21, 2021 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Late last year, Lattice CEO Jack Altman started an unusual side gig for a startup founder: He raised $20 million from investors for a venture capital fund he was launching while continuing to run Lattice, the developer of human resource management software he co-founded six years ago. Altman’s feat reflects a new trend in startup... Late last year, Lattice CEO Jack Altman started an unusual side gig for a startup founder: He...

Asia Innovations Group co-founder and CEO Andy Tian. Photo by Asia Innovations Group

More TikToks? Consumer Apps Developed in China Find Customers Overseas

By Shai Oster · Sep 20, 2021 6:01am PDT

For years, it seemed China’s mighty consumer app giants couldn’t figure out how to expand overseas. Alibaba, Tencent and many others famously failed. That changed when ByteDance turned TikTok into a global hit. But it’s not just TikTok. China’s software engineers and product managers are starting to crack the code and are... For years, it seemed China’s mighty consumer app giants couldn’t figure out how to...

Chart by Mike Sullivan

The Information Investigation: Amazon Delivery Stations Have More Than Double the Injury Rate of Other Warehouses

By Paris Martineau · Sep 17, 2021 11:26am PDT

Working at an Amazon warehouse is more dangerous than working at the typical warehouse. But working at an Amazon delivery station, a small shipping hub where delivery vans whiz in and out daily, appears to be the most hazardous warehouse job of all. In 2019 and 2020, injury rates at Amazon delivery stations were more than double the... Working at an Amazon warehouse is more dangerous than working at the typical warehouse. But...

Insight Partners, Venture Capital’s ‘Sleeping Giant,’ Wakes Up

By Kate Clark · Sep 17, 2021 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

In 2009, a 23-year-old analyst at Insight Partners walked out of the private equity and venture capital firm’s New York headquarters for the last time—with heaps of proprietary data in tow. The junior deal maker had downloaded information from Insight’s database of private company information dating back to its 1995 founding,... In 2009, a 23-year-old analyst at Insight Partners walked out of the private equity and venture...

Didi Global's offices in Hangzhou, China. Photo by Bloomberg

Could Didi List in Hong Kong to Stop Bleeding for Shareholders?

By Juro Osawa and Shai Oster · Sep 16, 2021 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Didi Global's offices in Hangzhou, China. Photo by Bloomberg

Could Didi List in Hong Kong to Stop Bleeding for Shareholders?

By Juro Osawa and Shai Oster · Sep 16, 2021 6:01am PDT · 1 comment

Could the path to relief for Didi Global’s beleaguered shareholders run through Hong Kong? It’s a pressing question as Full Truck Alliance, a U.S.-listed Chinese commercial freight company, which like Didi is under cybersecurity investigation by Chinese authorities, explores with bankers the possibility of listing its shares in Hong... Could the path to relief for Didi Global’s beleaguered shareholders run through Hong Kong?...

Joe Lonsdale in 2017. Photo: Bloomberg

Tiger Global to Invest in Joe Lonsdale’s Newest Fintech Venture

By Kate Clark · Sep 15, 2021 12:38pm PDT · 4 comments

Joe Lonsdale, the former PayPal intern who co-founded big-data analytics business Palantir and wealth management platform Addepar, is raising capital for a new company to help financial advisers make private market investments. Tiger Global Management has agreed to invest at least $50 million as part of a Series A funding round for the new... Joe Lonsdale, the former PayPal intern who co-founded big-data analytics business Palantir and...

Redbird's Gerry Cardinale next to a statute of the Incredible Hulk. Photo by Bloomberg

Sports Media Investor RedBird Capital Is In Talks to Invest in LeBron James’ SpringHill

By Jessica Toonkel and Sahil Patel · Sep 15, 2021 11:06am PDT · 1 comment

RedBird Capital Partners, an investment firm specializing in sports media, is in advanced talks to buy a minority stake in NBA superstar LeBron James’ entertainment firm, SpringHill Company, according to people familiar with the matter. The talks are the latest sign of investor appetite for independent entertainment businesses, sparked by... RedBird Capital Partners, an investment firm specializing in sports media, is in advanced talks...

Reddit COO Jen Wong.

Reddit’s Ad Revenue Expected to Double to at Least $350 Million This Year

By Sahil Patel · Sep 15, 2021 6:01am PDT

The “meme stock” rally that sent shares of companies like GameStop and AMC Entertainment soaring earlier this year was driven in large part by discussion on Reddit, the 16-year-old online news aggregator and discussion forum. That reflects the size of Reddit’s audience, which runs to 430 million monthly users globally,... The “meme stock” rally that sent shares of companies like GameStop and AMC...

A container ship sailing past the city of Qingdao in east China's Shandong province last month. Photo by AP.

Former Ant Executive’s Fintech Startup in Funding Talks at $1 Billion Valuation

By Juro Osawa · Sep 14, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

A container ship sailing past the city of Qingdao in east China's Shandong province last month. Photo by AP.

Former Ant Executive’s Fintech Startup in Funding Talks at $1 Billion Valuation

By Juro Osawa · Sep 14, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

XTransfer, a Chinese cross-border payment startup headed by a former Ant Group executive, is in advanced talks with Dan Sundheim’s D1 Capital Partners and other investors to raise capital at a pre-money valuation of $1 billion, more than triple its previous funding round in January, people familiar with the matter said. The funding would... XTransfer, a Chinese cross-border payment startup headed by a former Ant Group executive, is in...

Illustration by Josh Brill

Startup Founders Use Record-High Valuations to Cash Out Earlier

By Berber Jin · Sep 13, 2021 6:01am PDT · 20 comments

Earlier this year, Pipe raised a new round of funding led by investment firm Greenspring Associates that valued the financial software startup at $2 billion. As part of the round, Pipe co-CEO Harry Hurst also sold an undisclosed number of his own shares in the company, which he had co-founded two years before. Such a share sale would have been... Earlier this year, Pipe raised a new round of funding led by investment firm Greenspring...

Ted Lasso poster by Apple. Illustration by Mike Sullivan

Apple, a Streaming Punchline No More?

By Jessica Toonkel · Sep 10, 2021 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

When Apple launched its Apple TV+ service nearly two years ago, executives throughout Hollywood and Silicon Valley snickered about the streaming video service. This dilettante—which knew everything about making phones and nothing about making movies and television—would surely lose interest in the business before long, they wagged. ... When Apple launched its Apple TV+ service nearly two years ago, executives throughout Hollywood...

Konstantin Richter, CEO and Founder of Blockdaemon. Photo courtesy of Blockdaemon. Art by Mike Sullivan.

SoftBank Values Cryptocurrency Startup Blockdaemon at $1.2 Billion

By Berber Jin and Hannah Miller · Sep 9, 2021 12:42pm PDT

Cryptocurrency startup Blockdaemon is raising new capital that will value the company at $1.2 billion including the investment, said a person familiar with the matter. SoftBank Vision Fund 2, the $30 billion venture fund of SoftBank Group, is leading the investment. Los Angeles–based Blockdaemon manages hardware and software to help... Cryptocurrency startup Blockdaemon is raising new capital that will value the company at $1.2...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Facebook Develops New Machine Learning Chip

By Wayne Ma · Sep 9, 2021 6:01am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan.

Facebook Develops New Machine Learning Chip

By Wayne Ma · Sep 9, 2021 6:01am PDT

Google, Amazon and Microsoft have all been hiring and spending millions of dollars to design their own computer chips from scratch, with the goal of squeezing financial savings and better performance from servers that handle and train the companies’ machine-learning models. Facebook has joined the party too, and is developing a chip that... Google, Amazon and Microsoft have all been hiring and spending millions of dollars to design...