The Information

Container ships and bulk carriers offshore from Singapore. Photo by Bloomberg

Startup Powering China’s Consumer Export Blitz in Talks to Raise $800 Million

By Juro Osawa · Jan 24, 2022 12:28pm PST

Xingyun Group, a seven-year-old startup that helps Chinese makers of everything from Bluetooth speakers to laundry detergent sell directly to overseas consumers, is in talks with investors to raise $800 million, and it is seeking a pre-money valuation of $5 billion, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The startup is... Xingyun Group, a seven-year-old startup that helps Chinese makers of everything from Bluetooth...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Tech’s Great Headhunter Shortage: Employers Shower Recruiters With Better Pay, Benefits

By Mark Matousek · Jan 24, 2022 6:00am PST · 2 comments

In the middle of 2020, not long after the Covid-19 pandemic began sparking layoffs across the country, Joe Price watched as eight members of the recruiting department at an automotive software company he worked for lost their jobs. It turned out to be a fleeting downturn in his field. By the end of the year, tech companies were bombarding Price... In the middle of 2020, not long after the Covid-19 pandemic began sparking layoffs across the...

Image: Gopuff

Inside Gopuff’s Ambitious and Costly Bid to Dominate European Instant Delivery

By Mark Di Stefano and Berber Jin · Jan 21, 2022 6:00am PST

Executives at Gopuff, a U.S. instant-delivery company that has planned to go public this year, recently told investors that its foray into Europe, which began last year, has topped expectations: The business is on pace to generate $100 million in annual revenue there, or about 5% of its overall revenue currently, and is growing three times... Executives at Gopuff, a U.S. instant-delivery company that has planned to go public this year,...

Nick Tran. Photo by Hulu. Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok’s Global Marketing Chief Abruptly Departs

By Jessica Toonkel and Sarah Krouse · Jan 18, 2022 1:50pm PST

Nick Tran. Photo by Hulu. Art by Mike Sullivan

TikTok’s Global Marketing Chief Abruptly Departs

By Jessica Toonkel and Sarah Krouse · Jan 18, 2022 1:50pm PST

TikTok’s leaders have pushed out Nick Tran, the company’s head of global marketing, two people familiar with the situation told The Information. Since joining in 2020, Tran has spearheaded TikTok’s efforts to build hype by helping top video creators launch non-fungible tokens, promoting new ways for users to interact with... TikTok’s leaders have pushed out Nick Tran, the company’s head of global marketing,...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Inside the Battle for Streaming’s Home Screens: Hollywood Egos Collide With Algorithms

By Jessica Toonkel · Jan 18, 2022 6:00am PST · 2 comments

Last summer, executives at Eurosport—a London-based live sports TV network owned by U.S. media company Discovery—couldn’t believe their eyes. Discovery+, a new streaming service from Eurosport’s parent company, wasn’t promoting live events from the Tokyo Olympics on the home screen of the service in European... Last summer, executives at Eurosport—a London-based live sports TV network owned by U.S....

An Amazon worker receives a Covid-19 vaccine. Photo by Bloomberg.

Amazon Paying U.S. Workers $40 to Get Vaccine Booster

By Mark Di Stefano · Jan 13, 2022 1:23pm PST · 1 comment

Faced with the Omicron wave of infections, Amazon will pay its U.S. warehouse workers $40 to get the vaccine booster shot. One of the country’s biggest employers, Amazon is continuing to use financial incentives to ensure that low-paid hourly workers are fully vaccinated. Amazon told its army of hourly workers, which includes some 750,000... Faced with the Omicron wave of infections, Amazon will pay its U.S. warehouse workers $40 to get...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero

When the Crypto Founder Is Real but the Name Is Fake

By Kate Clark · Jan 12, 2022 6:00am PST · 5 comments

Last year, Nader Al-Naji, founder of a crypto startup called BitClout, began using a pseudonym online—Diamondhands—to mask his true identity. In fact, he was so determined to conceal his real name that he bought a $500 piece of hardware to manipulate his voice so no one would recognize him during podcast and press interviews. ... Last year, Nader Al-Naji, founder of a crypto startup called BitClout, began using a pseudonym...

Nisa Leung, managing partner at Qiming Venture Partners. Photo by Bloomberg.

After China Tech Bloodbath, Top VC Tests U.S. Appetite For $1.2 Billion Fund

By Juro Osawa and Shai Oster · Jan 11, 2022 6:00am PST

Nisa Leung, managing partner at Qiming Venture Partners. Photo by Bloomberg.

After China Tech Bloodbath, Top VC Tests U.S. Appetite For $1.2 Billion Fund

By Juro Osawa and Shai Oster · Jan 11, 2022 6:00am PST

Are American investors going to keep putting money into China? Western investors and Chinese entrepreneurs are anxious about the world’s second-largest tech startup market after a bruising six months in which Beijing’s crackdown on domestic tech companies escalated and political tensions between the U.S. and China grew. Americans are... Are American investors going to keep putting money into China? Western investors and Chinese...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Crypto Talent Wars Fuel Sweeter Salaries, Better Perks for Employees

By Mark Matousek · Jan 10, 2022 6:00am PST

It used to be that crypto startups could count on their missionary appeal to woo and retain top-notch talent, along with the possibility of a big payoff from tokens and equity they doled out to employees. In exchange, many employees didn’t mind missing out on some standard job perks or even taking slight haircuts on salary. Now though, as... It used to be that crypto startups could count on their missionary appeal to woo and retain...

The Athletic founder Alex Mather.

NYT To Buy The Athletic for $550 Million

By Jessica Toonkel · Jan 6, 2022 7:15am PST · 9 comments

The New York Times Co has agreed to acquire subscription sports site The Athletic in a deal valued at around $550 million, the company announced, confirming The Information's report earlier today. The deal is a major acquisition for the Times, giving it a new pocket of subscription customers to the New York Times, which has set an ambitious... The New York Times Co has agreed to acquire subscription sports site The Athletic in a deal...

From left: Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, Blackstone's Joe Baratta, Kevin Mayer, Tom Staggs and Reese Witherspoon. Photos by Bloomberg; AP. Art by Mike Sullivan

Inside Blackstone’s Plans to Create an Entertainment Empire

By Jessica Toonkel · Jan 6, 2022 6:00am PST · 1 comment

Two years ago, Joe Baratta couldn’t figure out what Blackstone, the private equity giant he worked for, should do for its next move in media and entertainment. The big TV companies, such as ViacomCBS and Discovery, were bleeding viewers as people cut the cord to cable television and streaming powerhouses like Netflix grew ever bigger.... Two years ago, Joe Baratta couldn’t figure out what Blackstone, the private equity giant he...

Photo by AP.

Gopuff to Launch Private Label Products as DoorDash Rival Heads Toward IPO

By Berber Jin · Jan 5, 2022 1:58pm PST

Photo by AP.

Gopuff to Launch Private Label Products as DoorDash Rival Heads Toward IPO

By Berber Jin · Jan 5, 2022 1:58pm PST

Quick-delivery startup Gopuff is planning to sell more than a dozen of its own private-label goods as it expands its product offerings ahead of a public listing as early as the second half of this year, said a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The startup, last valued at $15 billion by investors, will first focus on selling its own... Quick-delivery startup Gopuff is planning to sell more than a dozen of its own private-label...

Simulation of Meta's Project Nazare augmented reality glasses. Credit: Meta

Meta Platforms Halts VR and AR Operating System Project

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Jan 5, 2022 6:00am PST · 11 comments

Facebook parent company Meta Platforms has stopped development of a new software operating system to power its virtual reality devices and upcoming augmented reality glasses, according to two people familiar with the decision. Shelving the project, which had been underway for several years and involved hundreds of employees, marked a setback for... Facebook parent company Meta Platforms has stopped development of a new software operating system...

Will Smith. Photo by AP

Blackstone-backed Media Company Takes Stake in Will Smith’s Westbrook

By Jessica Toonkel · Jan 4, 2022 12:06pm PST

The Blackstone-backed media company led by former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs is acquiring a minority stake in Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s entertainment company, Westbrook, according to people familiar with the situation. This is the latest in a string of deals for the two media veterans, who have been building out... The Blackstone-backed media company led by former Disney executives Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs is...

Jonathan Kanter. Photo by Flickr/New America. Art by Mike Sullivan

Justice Department Eyes New Antitrust Enforcers, But Tensions Slow Hiring Process

By Josh Sisco · Jan 4, 2022 7:00am PST

Jonathan Kanter took over as head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division almost two months ago. So far, the division has been slow to hire staff to top jobs, potentially delaying Kanter’s aggressive enforcement and policy agenda, including its plans to rein in the power of the technology industry. The hiring holdups... Jonathan Kanter took over as head of the Justice Department’s antitrust division almost two...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero

Instant Delivery Startups Test a New Tactic: Slower Delivery

By Berber Jin · Jan 3, 2022 6:00am PST · 11 comments

Illustration by Jesus Escudero

Instant Delivery Startups Test a New Tactic: Slower Delivery

By Berber Jin · Jan 3, 2022 6:00am PST · 11 comments

Instant-delivery startups promising to ferry groceries to customers in 15 minutes or less have rushed to expand in major cities like New York and Chicago in the past year. But they’re burning far more cash in the U.S. than in other countries where they operate, causing several of them to test major changes to their business... Instant-delivery startups promising to ferry groceries to customers in 15 minutes or less have...

Apple CEO Tim Cook at an AirPods production line with Luxshare CEO Grace Wang (standing behind Cook) in 2017. Photos by Bloomberg; Shutterstock; Luxshare. Art by Mike Sullivan

How Apple Grew Closer to China By Turning ‘Little Foxconn’ Into a National Champion

By Wayne Ma · Dec 30, 2021 6:00am PST · 7 comments

If you’ve used an iPhone 13, an Apple Watch or AirPods, chances are you’ve touched the handiwork of Luxshare, which assembles them. Over the past decade, it became the biggest Chinese manufacturer of consumer electronics. Luxshare got to this vaunted position because of Apple. For more than a decade Apple has been sending its... If you’ve used an iPhone 13, an Apple Watch or AirPods, chances are you’ve touched...

Illustration by Scotty Reifsnyder

From a CEO Revolving Door to Comparisons With Snowflake: Security Startup Lacework Bounces Back

By Kevin McLaughlin · Dec 28, 2021 6:00am PST

A couple years ago, Lacework reached the kind of crossroads where once-promising startups can easily slide toward also-ran status—or worse. Faced with sluggish sales of its cloud-based cybersecurity product, Lacework was struggling to raise more money from existing investors and facing a revolving door of CEOs. At one point, after Lacework... A couple years ago, Lacework reached the kind of crossroads where once-promising startups can...

Kevin Martin, U.S. public policy chief for Meta, at an event in Washington, D.C., in 2018. Photo by Bloomberg

Meta Brings Back Republican to Top Lobbying Job After Search for a Democrat Fizzles

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Dec 22, 2021 11:35am PST · 1 comment

Meta Platforms is throwing in the towel on a plan to hire a top Democrat to lead its lobbying team after searching in vain for almost a year for a candidate from the party. Instead, Meta—the parent company of Facebook—has announced internally that Kevin Martin, the Republican who previously held the company’s top lobbying role,... Meta Platforms is throwing in the towel on a plan to hire a top Democrat to lead its lobbying...

Bolt CEO Ryan Breslow. Photo by Bolt

Bolt Seeks Valuation Lift to $14 Billion Weeks After Raising Last Round

By Malique Morris and Kate Clark · Dec 21, 2021 2:15pm PST

Bolt CEO Ryan Breslow. Photo by Bolt

Bolt Seeks Valuation Lift to $14 Billion Weeks After Raising Last Round

By Malique Morris and Kate Clark · Dec 21, 2021 2:15pm PST

With the ink barely dry on one fundraising effort by Bolt, a firm that makes e-commerce checkout software, the startup is already pitching investors on a new round. Shortly after raising nearly $400 million at an $11 billion valuation in a Series E funding round, according to three people familiar with the matter, Bolt is seeking another nearly... With the ink barely dry on one fundraising effort by Bolt, a firm that makes e-commerce checkout...