The Information

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti. Photo by Bloomberg.

BuzzFeed in Talks to Acquire Complex Networks

By Jessica Toonkel · May 11, 2021 9:07am PDT

BuzzFeed is in talks to acquire digital lifestyle publisher Complex Networks as part of its plan to go public by merging with special purpose acquisition company 890 Fifth Avenue Partners, according to three people familiar with the situation. The Complex acquisition would increase BuzzFeed’s revenue by about 30%, giving it more scale and... BuzzFeed is in talks to acquire digital lifestyle publisher Complex Networks as part of its plan...

A photo (top left) of a suspected detention center next to Artux Kunshan Industrial Park in Xinjiang, where an Apple supplier operated. Apple CEO Tim Cook (right). Photos by AP; Bloomberg. Collage by Mike Sullivan

Seven Apple Suppliers Accused of Using Forced Labor From Xinjiang

By Wayne Ma · May 10, 2021 6:00am PDT

Advanced-Connectek has made unglamorous but critical computer components for Apple for more than a decade. For two of those years, it operated a factory inside an industrial park on the edge of the deserts of Xinjiang, a region of western China populated by a predominantly Muslim group known as Uyghurs. The industrial park is surrounded by walls... Advanced-Connectek has made unglamorous but critical computer components for Apple for more than...

Photos by Bloomberg; Illustration by Mike Sullivan

Zuckerberg’s Plan to Repair Facebook’s Image: More Zuckerberg

By Alex Heath and Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · May 6, 2021 12:53pm PDT · 3 comments

During a companywide Q&A with Facebook employees last Thursday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg turned to a question about a recent uptick in posts on his Facebook page, including a joke he made referencing the actor Vin Diesel a few days prior. He acknowledged that his public persona has been “really serious,” bordering on “squarely... During a companywide Q&A with Facebook employees last Thursday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg turned to...

Didi’s offices in Hangzhou, China. Photo: Bloomberg

China’s Ride-Hailing Giant Didi Plans Separate IPO of Grocery Business

By Yunan Zhang · May 6, 2021 6:01am PDT · 2 comments

Didi’s offices in Hangzhou, China. Photo: Bloomberg

China’s Ride-Hailing Giant Didi Plans Separate IPO of Grocery Business

By Yunan Zhang · May 6, 2021 6:01am PDT · 2 comments

Didi Chuxing, a Chinese ride-hailing giant that plans to go public in New York this summer, is already making plans to spin off its newly created grocery-delivery service a year or two after the initial public offering. Didi executives have told investors in the grocery service that it intends to take the grocery business public sometime between... Didi Chuxing, a Chinese ride-hailing giant that plans to go public in New York this summer, is...

Apple's App Store is increasingly facing antitrust accusations. Illustration by Jesus Escudero.

The Guardians of Apple’s App Store Gird for Battle

By Josh Sisco · Apr 29, 2021 11:53am PDT

For the next three weeks, one of Apple’s most senior executives, Phil Schiller, will spend his days in a sterile courtroom in Oakland, Calif., 50 miles from Apple’s gleaming spaceship-like headquarters in Cupertino. Schiller, who helped launch the App Store 13 years ago and still oversees it, is the designated “corporate... For the next three weeks, one of Apple’s most senior executives, Phil Schiller, will spend...

Illustration by Jonathan Holt

Spotify’s Next Dilemma: Grappling With Hate Speech

By Jessica Toonkel and Mark Di Stefano · Apr 29, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

At a Spotify employee workshop held in late 2018, participants were presented with a series of statements which they were told came from a podcast on the service, urging violence against the police. The participants were asked if the statements amounted to hate speech and should be removed from Spotify. Most everyone attending agreed they should... At a Spotify employee workshop held in late 2018, participants were presented with a series of...

Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba. Photo by Bloomberg

Alibaba Frets Over Apple Privacy Policy

By Juro Osawa · Apr 28, 2021 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Last week, Alibaba invited half a dozen marketing industry executives to discuss a growing worry: Apple’s new privacy policy on its mobile software threatens to cut off the Chinese e-commerce giant and its advertising partners from troves of user data that fuel the company’s all-important ad business. The private meeting at Alibaba... Last week, Alibaba invited half a dozen marketing industry executives to discuss a growing worry:...

Justin Zhu, Former Iterable CEO. Photo provided by Iterable

Before CEO’s Ouster for LSD Use, Iterable Investor Sold Stake to Silver Lake

By Kate Clark · Apr 27, 2021 4:47pm PDT · 6 comments

Justin Zhu, Former Iterable CEO. Photo provided by Iterable

Before CEO’s Ouster for LSD Use, Iterable Investor Sold Stake to Silver Lake

By Kate Clark · Apr 27, 2021 4:47pm PDT · 6 comments

Weeks before the board of Iterable pushed out its CEO Justin Zhu for violating a company drug policy, one of the company’s biggest investors sold about half its stake in an unusual move that could signal its dissatisfaction with his leadership. Earlier this month, venture capital firm Index Ventures sold about $92 million worth of shares... Weeks before the board of Iterable pushed out its CEO Justin Zhu for violating a company drug...

Image: Gopuff

Gopuff Revenue Triples, but Growing Competition to Test Expansion

By Cory Weinberg · Apr 26, 2021 9:01am PDT · 1 comment

Online delivery service Gopuff more than tripled revenue last year to $340 million as the pandemic sent demand for deliveries soaring, according to a person familiar with the matter and an internal presentation viewed by The Information. Gopuff has told employees it expects to nearly triple revenue again this year to about $1 billion, as it... Online delivery service Gopuff more than tripled revenue last year to $340 million as the...

Stripe's offices in San Francisco, left, and a Lyft drivers' lounge in Oakland, Calif. Photos: Bloomberg

Stripe and Lyft Speed Up Equity Payouts to First Year

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan and Sarah Krouse · Apr 26, 2021 6:01am PDT · 12 comments

Lyft and Stripe have changed their compensation packages so employees vest their entire stock awards in one year, doing away with a long-standing Silicon Valley custom of requiring staff to stick around for four years before they have their full compensation in hand. Stripe, an electronic payments startup that could go public as soon as this... Lyft and Stripe have changed their compensation packages so employees vest their entire stock...

Slack employees at the company's New York office. Photo provided by Slack

Slack’s Investigation Into Executive Highlights Diversity Challenges

By Kevin McLaughlin · Apr 23, 2021 6:00am PDT · 5 comments

Earlier this week, Slack revealed that underrepresented minorities have begun leaving the company at higher rates than in the past, disclosing the trend as part of a broader report about the diversity of its workforce. It’s a particularly sensitive issue for Slack’s CEO, Stewart Butterfield, who has long been a vocal proponent of... Earlier this week, Slack revealed that underrepresented minorities have begun leaving the company...

Rapyd's office in Mountain View, Calif. Photo: AP

Fintech Startup Rapyd Doubles Valuation Again to Over $5 Billion

By Kate Clark · Apr 21, 2021 4:23pm PDT

Rapyd's office in Mountain View, Calif. Photo: AP

Fintech Startup Rapyd Doubles Valuation Again to Over $5 Billion

By Kate Clark · Apr 21, 2021 4:23pm PDT

Rapyd, a startup whose technology helps businesses embed financial services into their own apps, is raising money in a round that would double its valuation to more than $5 billion, just four months after unveiling its last fundraising, according to two people familiar with the deal. Existing investors including European venture firm Target... Rapyd, a startup whose technology helps businesses embed financial services into their own apps,...

DataRobot founder and former CEO Jeremy Achin in a screengrab from a company promotional video via YouTube

Conflict Over IPO, Sales Led to CEO Ouster at DataRobot

By Kevin McLaughlin · Apr 21, 2021 6:01am PDT · 2 comments

Jeremy Achin had had enough of the questions about an initial public offering. Late last year, Achin—then the CEO of DataRobot, a nine-year-old artificial intelligence startup valued at nearly $3 billion by blue-chip investors—presided over a virtual company meeting in which he responded pointedly to employee questions about when... Jeremy Achin had had enough of the questions about an initial public offering. Late last year,...

Illustration by Mike Sullivan

‘Truly extraordinary’: Unicorn Startups Boast 300X Valuations

By Kate Clark · Apr 20, 2021 6:00am PDT · 3 comments

Orca Security’s March funding round made the two-year-old software startup a unicorn—and gave it an unusual claim to fame. With approximately $4 million in annualized revenue when it briefed investors early this year, the cybersecurity company’s $1.2 billion valuation translated to 300 times that revenue, according to two... Orca Security’s March funding round made the two-year-old software startup a...

February's Super Bowl. Photo by AP

Sports Site Action Network Looks for Buyer as Online Betting Grows

By Jessica Toonkel · Apr 19, 2021 9:01am PDT

Several sports media firms are looking for buyers or investors, hoping to cash in on the expansion of online sports betting across the U.S. The Chernin Group’s The Action Network, a news and data source for sports betting, has tapped boutique bank Moelis & Co. to explore a sale, according to people familiar with the situation. The... Several sports media firms are looking for buyers or investors, hoping to cash in on the...

Dion Foxworth, co-host of the “Stock Market Moves” show, uses the Clubhouse app. Photo:Bloomberg

Andreessen Horowitz Values Clubhouse at $4 Billion With DST, Tiger

By Alex Heath · Apr 16, 2021 6:20pm PDT · 6 comments

Dion Foxworth, co-host of the “Stock Market Moves” show, uses the Clubhouse app. Photo:Bloomberg

Andreessen Horowitz Values Clubhouse at $4 Billion With DST, Tiger

By Alex Heath · Apr 16, 2021 6:20pm PDT · 6 comments

Andreessen Horowitz is valuing the social media app Clubhouse at $4 billion in a round of financing with new investors DST Global and Tiger Global Management, according to a person familiar with the matter. The round triples Clubhouse’s valuation from January, in a deal Andreessen Horowitz also led, and comes as rivals Twitter and Spotify... Andreessen Horowitz is valuing the social media app Clubhouse at $4 billion in a round of...

Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou. Art by Mike Sullivan

NFT Startup Dapper Labs Raising Money at Over $7.5 Billion Valuation

By Kate Clark and Alex Heath · Apr 16, 2021 1:38pm PDT · 2 comments

The rush of enthusiasm for blockchain-based collectives is driving an extraordinary surge of investor interest in Dapper Labs, the developer of collectibles like NBA Top Shot. Just a few weeks after Dapper Labs raised $305 million at a valuation of $2.6 billion, the company is raising a new round at a valuation above $7.5 billion, according to a... The rush of enthusiasm for blockchain-based collectives is driving an extraordinary surge of...

IRL CEO Abraham Shafi. Image: Mike Sullivan

Social App IRL in Talks to Raise Funds at $1 Billion Valuation

By Alex Heath · Apr 16, 2021 11:21am PDT · 3 comments

Group messaging app IRL is in talks to raise more than $50 million at a $1 billion valuation, 10 times the level of its last round, according to two people familiar with the matter. The funding for IRL, which has caught on quickly in recent months among teenagers in the U.S., follows a resurgence in competitive deals for social media startups... Group messaging app IRL is in talks to raise more than $50 million at a $1 billion valuation, 10...

Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. Art by Mike Sullivan.

‘These Guys Are Very Different’: Inside Andreessen Horowitz’s Rise

By Kate Clark and Amir Efrati · Apr 16, 2021 6:01am PDT · 9 comments

As recently as two years ago, the performance of Andreessen Horowitz’s investments in tech startups were average, despite the firm’s outsize public profile. But its partners had placed bigger bets on cryptocurrencies than almost anyone else, and they did so during moments when most investors had soured on the field. The firm’s... As recently as two years ago, the performance of Andreessen Horowitz’s investments in tech...

Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey. Photo by Bloomberg.

Anduril Raising New Round That Will Double Valuation to Over $4 Billion

By Berber Jin and Alex Heath · Apr 12, 2021 2:50pm PDT

Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey. Photo by Bloomberg.

Anduril Raising New Round That Will Double Valuation to Over $4 Billion

By Berber Jin and Alex Heath · Apr 12, 2021 2:50pm PDT

Anduril Industries, a defense technology startup aiming to take on large U.S. contractors like Lockheed Martin Corp., is raising a new round of funding that will more than double the firm’s valuation to between $4 billion and $5 billion, two people familiar with the talks said. The Irvine, Calif.-based startup, valued at $1.9 billion last... Anduril Industries, a defense technology startup aiming to take on large U.S. contractors like...