The Information

The Metaverse Money Pit: How Meta’s $70 Billion Bet Compares to Tech’s Biggest GamblesView Now

Ana Kirova courtesy of Feeld.

‘Monogamy Should Not Be the Default’: What a Dating App CEO and Her Tech Clientele Have in Common

By Annie Goldsmith · Sept. 23, 2022 11:00 AM PDT · 5 comments

Ana Kirova is a frequent user of her own dating app—but not without complications. As CEO of Feeld, which describes itself as “a dating app for exploration, curiosity and pleasure,” Kirova never knows when to divulge her role at the company to potential matches. “Should I say it outright?” she asked rhetorically... Ana Kirova is a frequent user of her own dating app—but not without complications. As CEO...

Art by Clark Miller.

venture capital

‘I Don’t Think There’s Anything Foolish About Blitzscaling’: Reid Hoffman Regrets Nothing—Except Maybe Those SPACs

By Adam Lashinsky · Aug. 19, 2022 12:00 PM PDT · 7 comments

It's check-writing season for Reid Hoffman, and not just for his two venture capital firms, two special purpose acquisition corporations, two podcasts, six startup boards or any of the other extracurricular activities that keep him stupendously busy. (I counted one real job—at Greylock Partners—and 15 side hustles, which he... It's check-writing season for Reid Hoffman, and not just for his two venture capital firms,...

Lulu Cheng Meservey. Art by Clark Miller.

‘The Truth Had Been Distorted Beyond Recognition’: Lulu Cheng Meservey on Joining the Activision Board and Defending Free Speech on Substack

By Adam Lashinsky · July 15, 2022 1:00 PM PDT · 9 comments

Lulu Cheng Meservey isn’t your typical corporate flack. The Washington, D.C.-based head of communications for Substack, a digital newsletter platform, Meservey is brash and outspoken online—far more so than the company’s founders. Her pre-PR background included a short stint on Wall Street and working for one of former... Lulu Cheng Meservey isn’t your typical corporate flack. The Washington, D.C.-based head of...

Photo Bloomberg. Art by Clark Miller.

‘Our Aspiration Is to Be the First $100 Billion Cybersecurity Company’: Nikesh Arora on Making Palo Alto Networks a Juggernaut

By Adam Lashinsky · July 1, 2022 2:00 PM PDT · 4 comments

Photo Bloomberg. Art by Clark Miller.

‘Our Aspiration Is to Be the First $100 Billion Cybersecurity Company’: Nikesh Arora on Making Palo Alto Networks a Juggernaut

By Adam Lashinsky · July 1, 2022 2:00 PM PDT · 4 comments

When Nikesh Arora and I met in mid-June near the windswept entrance of his Palo Alto Networks offices in Sunnyvale, Calif., he was feeling a lot less Covid cautious than I was. That’s because the 54-year-old chief executive had gotten infected the previous month at the World Economic Forum. “My big takeaway from Davos was... When Nikesh Arora and I met in mid-June near the windswept entrance of his Palo Alto Networks...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

‘I choose to be intentionally paranoid’: Adam Selipsky Navigates AWS Into a Cloudy Future

By Adam Lashinsky · June 18, 2022 7:00 AM PDT · 2 comments

Of the five big tech companies that dominate their respective corners of the industry, Amazon is the only one whose headquarters sprout from the soil of a bustling metropolis. There’s no suburban sprawl in Seattle’s Belltown neighborhood, where a cluster of Amazon office towers is located, along with the company’s distinctive,... Of the five big tech companies that dominate their respective corners of the industry, Amazon is...

Photo Bloomberg. Art by Clark Miller.

‘The Worst-Case Scenario Is That I Look Like an Idiot’: Aaron Levie Still Refuses to Swallow the Crypto Red Pill

By Adam Lashinsky · May 27, 2022 1:00 PM PDT · 17 comments

“I think I’m just a very boring realist,” said Aaron Levie, CEO of Box, over a 44-minute Zoom call last Monday. He was talking about the yearslong crypto craze, which may have finally sobered up amid the market dives and token implosions of the last several weeks. Levie is one of the few leaders in tech who has consistently... “I think I’m just a very boring realist,” said Aaron Levie, CEO of Box, over a...

Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Clark Miller.

‘I Don’t Know How Steve Jobs Would Survive Today in This Environment’: Tony Fadell Has Opinions to Share and Scores to Settle

By Adam Lashinsky · May 13, 2022 1:00 PM PDT · 18 comments

Within Silicon Valley power circles, being “on the beach” is a euphemism that covers a continuum of unemployment, from “retired rich” to “brief pause between high-powered jobs.” Tony Fadell has been metaphorically on the beach for six years, ever since leaving Google, which paid $3.2 billion for Nest Labs, the... Within Silicon Valley power circles, being “on the beach” is a euphemism that covers...