The Information

Art by Clark Miller; Optimus image courtesy of Tesla.

As Elon Musk Preps Tesla’s Optimus for Prime Time, Big Hurdles Remain

By Theo Wayt · Oct 7, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

When Elon Musk takes the stage at Tesla’s annual meeting next month, one of the centerpieces of his plan to impress shareholders will be a dancing troupe of Optimus bots, the humanoid machines that he says will eventually eclipse Tesla’s electric vehicle business, which is suffering from flagging sales growth. Behind the scenes, however, the... When Elon Musk takes the stage at Tesla’s annual meeting next month, one of the centerpieces of...

Sam Altman, left, and Peter Thiel. Photos by Getty

Founders Fund Shifts From Caution to Concentrated Bets on AI

By Miles Kruppa · Oct 6, 2025 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund is doubling down on its biggest artificial intelligence bets, embracing a concentrated strategy as rivals spread their bets across a wide swath of startups. Among them are OpenAI, data center builder Crusoe and General Matter, a nuclear fuel startup the firm has incubated, Founders Fund said at its recent annual... Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund is doubling down on its biggest artificial intelligence bets,...

Meta's Yann LeCun. Photo via Getty

A Meta Change on Publishing Research Causes a Stir in Its AI Group

By Kalley Huang and Cory Weinberg · Oct 2, 2025 6:00am PDT · 8 comments

In recent weeks, Meta Platforms made a change to its Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Research lab that rubbed members of the group the wrong way: FAIR, as the group is known, would have to undergo additional review of its research before publishing it, according to two people familiar with the matter. The new policy was a tough pill to... In recent weeks, Meta Platforms made a change to its Fundamental Artificial Intelligence Research...

Snyk CEO Peter McKay. Screenshot via YouTube

Cybersecurity Startup Snyk Considers Buyout Interest as IPO Plans Stall

By Valida Pau, Cory Weinberg, Katie Roof and Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 1, 2025 10:36am PDT · 3 comments

Snyk CEO Peter McKay. Screenshot via YouTube

Cybersecurity Startup Snyk Considers Buyout Interest as IPO Plans Stall

By Valida Pau, Cory Weinberg, Katie Roof and Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 1, 2025 10:36am PDT · 3 comments

Snyk, a startup that sells security tools for developers, seemed like a shoo-in for a lucrative initial public offering a few years ago. Sales were doubling or tripling every year, reaching into the hundreds of millions of dollars annually, as exploding corporate use of open-source software code created vulnerabilities that businesses needed to... Snyk, a startup that sells security tools for developers, seemed like a shoo-in for a lucrative...

Adam Presser. Photo via Getty

TikTok Insiders Bet No. 2, Adam Presser, Will Run New Venture

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Juro Osawa · Oct 1, 2025 10:08am PDT · 2 comments

President Donald Trump’s recent announcement that a joint venture will oversee TikTok’s U.S. business left unanswered the important question of who will run the new company. Inside TikTok, executives say there’s a very obvious candidate: Adam Presser, the longtime No. 2 to TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew, and one of the top Americans at the company. In... President Donald Trump’s recent announcement that a joint venture will oversee TikTok’s U.S....

OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar via Getty

OpenAI’s First Half Results: $4.3 Billion in Sales, $2.5 Billion Cash Burn

By Stephanie Palazzolo, Amir Efrati and Cory Weinberg · Sep 29, 2025 9:18pm PDT · 31 comments

OpenAI generated around $4.3 billion in revenue in the first half of 2025, about 16% more than it generated all of last year, according to financial disclosures to shareholders. The company said it burned $2.5 billion, in large part due to its research and development costs for developing artificial intelligence and for running ChatGPT. Some of... OpenAI generated around $4.3 billion in revenue in the first half of 2025, about 16% more than it...

Dbt Labs founder and CEO Tristan Handy, left, and Fivetran founder and CEO George Fraser. Photos via YouTube; Getty

Data Startup Fivetran In Talks to Buy Dbt Labs in Multibillion Dollar Deal

By Valida Pau, Katie Roof and Kevin McLaughlin · Sep 27, 2025 4:30pm PDT

Fivetran, a startup used by companies to manage and prepare data for analytics and artificial intelligence, is in talks to buy data management company dbt Labs, according to people with direct knowledge of the deal. The deal would combine two data companies that are facing competition from artificial intelligence. Fivetran and dbt Labs have... Fivetran, a startup used by companies to manage and prepare data for analytics and artificial...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images.

Ex-OpenAI Trio in Funding Talks at $500 Million Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Natasha Mascarenhas · Sep 26, 2025 2:34pm PDT

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images.

Ex-OpenAI Trio in Funding Talks at $500 Million Valuation

By Stephanie Palazzolo and Natasha Mascarenhas · Sep 26, 2025 2:34pm PDT

As artificial intelligence developers increasingly rely on reinforcement learning to improve their models, investors are funding startups that focus on helping businesses utilize the technique to automate more tasks. In the latest example, Applied Compute, founded in May by three former OpenAI staffers, is in talks to raise new funding at a $500... As artificial intelligence developers increasingly rely on reinforcement learning to improve...

Human Interest CEO Jeff Schneble. Image courtesy of YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

Retirement startup Human Interest in Talks for Fundraising at $3 Billion Valuation

By Katie Roof · Sep 25, 2025 8:42pm PDT

Human Interest, a startup that manages employer retirement accounts, is in talks with investors to raise about $200 million at a valuation of close to $3 billion, more than doubling its valuation from a fundraising a year ago, according to a person with direct knowledge of the fundraising. The decade-old startup provides employers with 401(K)... Human Interest, a startup that manages employer retirement accounts, is in talks with investors...

Mark Zuckerberg. Photo via Getty

Meta in Talks With Google to Use Gemini to Improve Ad Efforts

By Erin Woo · Sep 25, 2025 1:32pm PDT · 1 comment

Meta Platforms staffers have had discussions with Google Cloud about the possibility of using Google’s artificial intelligence models to improve Meta’s ad business, according to people with knowledge of the conversations. The discussions are the latest sign of how Meta’s stumbles with its own AI have prompted it to consider using other companies... Meta Platforms staffers have had discussions with Google Cloud about the possibility of using...

Art via Mike Sullivan

U.S. Loses Appeal for Chinese AI Researchers

By Juro Osawa and Qianer Liu · Sep 24, 2025 6:00am PDT

The U.S. artificial intelligence sector is so crowded with Chinese researchers that some joke the global AI race is between two groups of Chinese—those in the U.S. and those in China. That joke may soon feel a bit stale. A growing number of Chinese AI researchers and doctorate students in the U.S. are seriously considering moving back to... The U.S. artificial intelligence sector is so crowded with Chinese researchers that some joke the...

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang via Getty

In OpenAI Megadeal, Nvidia Discusses a New Business Model: Chip Leasing

By Anissa Gardizy and Sri Muppidi · Sep 23, 2025 2:31pm PDT · 7 comments

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang via Getty

In OpenAI Megadeal, Nvidia Discusses a New Business Model: Chip Leasing

By Anissa Gardizy and Sri Muppidi · Sep 23, 2025 2:31pm PDT · 7 comments

OpenAI and Nvidia are discussing an unusual way to structure their new artificial intelligence data center partnership, under which OpenAI would lease Nvidia’s AI chips rather than buying them, according to two people who spoke to executives at the companies about it. The discussion shows how Nvidia is considering new business models to sell its... OpenAI and Nvidia are discussing an unusual way to structure their new artificial intelligence...

A Volvo EX30. Photo via Getty

Volvo’s Top U.S. Exec Says Carmaker Will Proceed With New EVs

By Steve LeVine · Sep 23, 2025 3:00am PDT · 1 comment

A wave of automakers has cancelled plans to produce electric vehicles in the U.S., responding to slow sales of the cars. But Volvo Cars, an automaker owned by China’s Geely Group, is boosting its EV manufacturing plans at its South Carolina plant, a move that could be a model for other Chinese automakers amid a potential thaw in U.S.-China... A wave of automakers has cancelled plans to produce electric vehicles in the U.S., responding to...

Image courtesy of 1X Technologies.

Humanoid Robot Developer 1X Targets $1 Billion in New Funding

By Wayne Ma, Natasha Mascarenhas and Valida Pau · Sep 22, 2025 5:26pm PDT

Humanoid robotics startup 1X has told investors and employees it is trying to raise as much as $1 billion, according to three people who spoke to CEO Bernt Øivind Børnich. The decade-old company is aiming for a valuation of at least $10 billion, Børnich said, or more than 12 times its previous valuation from a January... Humanoid robotics startup 1X has told investors and employees it is trying to raise as much as $1...

Arjun Prakash, co-founder & CEO Distyl AI. Image via YouTube. Art by Clark Miller.

AI Consulting Startup Founded by Ex-Palantir Employees Raises at $1.8 Billion Valuation

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Sep 22, 2025 12:57pm PDT · 4 comments

A raft of venture-backed startups are emerging to offer high-tech consultants for businesses needing help with artificial intelligence, posing competition for companies like Palantir and McKinsey & Co. that specialize in high-priced consulting services. One is Distyl AI. The three-year-old startup provides companies like T-Mobile with what’s... A raft of venture-backed startups are emerging to offer high-tech consultants for businesses...

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Image via Getty.

Apple Rushes to Boost Production of Cheaper iPhone 17

By Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu · Sep 19, 2025 10:59am PDT

Apple CEO Tim Cook. Image via Getty.

Apple Rushes to Boost Production of Cheaper iPhone 17

By Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu · Sep 19, 2025 10:59am PDT

Apple is rushing to boost production of its newly released entry-level model iPhone 17 after strong pre-orders last weekend. The tech giant told at least two suppliers to boost their daily output of the standard model by at least 30%, according to people familiar with the matter. The shift suggests more consumers than Apple expected opted to buy... Apple is rushing to boost production of its newly released entry-level model iPhone 17 after...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

OpenAI to Spend $100 Billion on Backup Servers for AI Breakthroughs

By Sri Muppidi · Sep 19, 2025 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

When OpenAI in March released ChatGPT features that could turn photos into animated characters, a spike in usage forced the company to put temporary limits on the features. It wasn’t the first time this had happened. Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar told investors at a Goldman Sachs conference last week that the company has to regularly hold... When OpenAI in March released ChatGPT features that could turn photos into animated characters, a...

Photos of Jony Ive and Sam Altman via Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan

OpenAI Raids Apple for Hardware Talent, Manufacturing Partners

By Wayne Ma, Aaron Tilley, Qianer Liu and Juro Osawa · Sep 19, 2025 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

As OpenAI’s plans to make devices infused with its artificial intelligence get closer to reality, the company is increasingly plucking talent from Silicon Valley’s most successful device maker: Apple. In recent months, the startup behind ChatGPT has been raiding the ranks of Apple’s design, manufacturing and supply chain teams, in addition to ... As OpenAI’s plans to make devices infused with its artificial intelligence get closer to reality,...

An Axon body camera on a police officer. Photo via Getty

Axon in Advanced Talks to Buy Emergency Response Startup for $800 Million

By Katie Roof · Sep 17, 2025 4:37pm PDT · 1 comment

Axon Enterprise, a maker of police body cameras and Taser electroshock devices, is in advanced talks to buy Prepared, a startup that sells software to emergency responders, including an artificial intelligence tool that summarizes real-time transcripts of 911 calls, according to a person involved in the deal. The companies are discussing a deal... Axon Enterprise, a maker of police body cameras and Taser electroshock devices, is in advanced...

Art via Mike Sullivan

How Anthropic and OpenAI Are Developing AI ‘Co-Workers’

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 16, 2025 10:01am PDT · 2 comments

Art via Mike Sullivan

How Anthropic and OpenAI Are Developing AI ‘Co-Workers’

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 16, 2025 10:01am PDT · 2 comments

Anthropic, OpenAI and other artificial intelligence developers are sending large language models to the office. The AI models are being taught how to use everything from Salesforce’s customer relationship management software to Zendesk’s customer support and Cerner’s health records apps. The idea is to teach AI how to handle some of the... Anthropic, OpenAI and other artificial intelligence developers are sending large language models...