The Information

Art by Clark Miller (photos: Getty Images)

Local Crime Fighting Gets Anduril-ized: How Tech Startups Are Changing City Police Forces

By Abram Brown · Dec 20, 2025 6:00am PST

Recently, Nick Noone, co-founder and CEO of Peregrine, was introduced to Candace Parker, sports broadcaster and retired WNBA star, by mutual friends. They hit it off. The two share a passion for athletics. (Noone was a Stanford gymnast.) And both have an interest in startups. (Parker is an active angel investor.) After Noone described how his... Recently, Nick Noone, co-founder and CEO of Peregrine, was introduced to Candace Parker, sports...

Art by Clark Miller

Whatnot’s Schlock Empire Shows Digital Live Shopping Can Thrive in America

By Ann Gehan · Dec 12, 2025 9:02am PST

In the weird, wild world of Whatnot, the startup defying Silicon Valley’s dismal track record with live shopping, the merchants speak a unique lingo. Whatnot is a resale market, where sellers auction off items like sports cards, last season’s suede sneakers and off-brand cologne through video livestreams: It’s eBay crossed with TikTok. So if... In the weird, wild world of Whatnot, the startup defying Silicon Valley’s dismal track record...

Art by Clark Miller

‘Diamonds and Turds’: How Hock Tan Turned Broadcom Into Nvidia’s Nightmare

By Jemima McEvoy, Qianer Liu and Wayne Ma · Dec 5, 2025 9:02am PST · 9 comments

Early last year, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan decided to host what he likes to call a “coffee chat” with the employees of VMware, the software giant that the Broadcom CEO had recently purchased for $84 billion. The companywide meeting was Tan’s effort to introduce himself and answer questions from those employees about life at the semiconductor firm. ... Early last year, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan decided to host what he likes to call a “coffee chat” with...

Klay co-founder and CEO Ary Attie. (Art by Clark Miller; photo courtesy of Klay)

Secretive Startup Klay Jumps Into the Fray Over AI Music

By Abram Brown · Nov 29, 2025 6:00am PST

Klay co-founder and CEO Ary Attie. (Art by Clark Miller; photo courtesy of Klay)

Secretive Startup Klay Jumps Into the Fray Over AI Music

By Abram Brown · Nov 29, 2025 6:00am PST

“So here’s a real surprise,” said Ary Attie, holding open a hidden door in the bowels of the Walker Hotel in the city’s Greenwich Village neighborhood. “There used to be a lot more cool, interesting places in New York—and there’s still a few left.” Attie, the 30-year-old founder of Klay, a new AI music startup, has a taste for such... “So here’s a real surprise,” said Ary Attie, holding open a hidden door in the bowels of the...

Art by Clark Miller

Zach Dell Thinks He Can Solve America’s Energy Crisis

By Steve LeVine · Nov 22, 2025 4:59am PST · 1 comment

To get inside why Zach Dell believes he will shake up the half-trillion-dollar U.S. power industry and then go global, it helps to take account of who’s inspiring the moves. That would be his father, Michael Dell, who sold computer parts out of his college dorm at 19, took Dell Computer public four years later and by age 26 had entirely... To get inside why Zach Dell believes he will shake up the half-trillion-dollar U.S. power...

Art by Clark Miller

Before Buyout Offer, a Boardroom Feud Festered at Grindr

By Cory Weinberg · Nov 14, 2025 9:04am PST · 1 comment

The week before Halloween, Grindr, the gay dating-and-hookup app, threw a big party near New York’s Chelsea neighborhood—its second annual Pleasure Ball. The theme: sexy garden, essentially. (“Nature’s gay and it’s hungry,” read the invitation.) Attendees showed up as scantily clad gnomes and fawns, and the crowd included influencers, New... The week before Halloween, Grindr, the gay dating-and-hookup app, threw a big party near New York...

Art by Clark Miller

Why Data Centers Want James Bond–Style Security Consultants

By Jemima McEvoy · Nov 7, 2025 9:00am PST

On a quiet September morning, Alex Leithiser was out in the woods somewhere in the South on a secret mission: to break into a data center. First, he slipped through a small gap in the facility’s barbed wire fence, and as soon as he hit the ground, he switched clothes, pulling a fresh set from a small backpack. With cameras and alarms all over... On a quiet September morning, Alex Leithiser was out in the woods somewhere in the South on a...

Art by Clark Miller; images via YouTube

Benchmark’s AI Pressure Test: High Prices, Smaller Stakes—and a Poached Star

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Oct 31, 2025 9:49am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller; images via YouTube

Benchmark’s AI Pressure Test: High Prices, Smaller Stakes—and a Poached Star

By Natasha Mascarenhas · Oct 31, 2025 9:49am PDT · 2 comments

Last year, Benchmark, the storied venture capital firm, embarked on a lavish courtship of Brendan Foody, founder and CEO of Mercor, a startup that fills a lucrative niche in AI by hiring workers to train AI programs. First, General Partner Victor Lazarte chatted with Foody over Zoom. Then Peter Fenton, the firm’s longest-tenured active GP, took... Last year, Benchmark, the storied venture capital firm, embarked on a lavish courtship of Brendan...

Art by Mark Sullivan.

OpenAI Readies Itself for Its Facebook Era

By Kalley Huang, Erin Woo and Stephanie Palazzolo · Oct 24, 2025 6:03am PDT · 6 comments

This summer, Fidji Simo wasted no time addressing a concern among many at OpenAI. Leading her first all-hands meeting as the startup’s new CEO of applications, she acknowledged that she and many others at OpenAI shared the same background: They’d previously worked at Meta Platforms. And then Simo, who’d risen to be head of Facebook over a decade... This summer, Fidji Simo wasted no time addressing a concern among many at OpenAI. Leading her...

Art by Clark Miller

E-Commerce Startups Are Back From the Dead

By Ann Gehan · Oct 10, 2025 9:24am PDT · 1 comment

Lately, venture capitalist Ben Lerer has found himself experiencing a bit of déjà vu: Once again, there’s a whole nest of thriving e-commerce startups worth his attention. When I reached him a couple weeks ago, his firm, Lerer Hippeau, was just putting money into two of them: Elm Biosciences, a new skin care startup, and Stiller’s... Lately, venture capitalist Ben Lerer has found himself experiencing a bit of déjà...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images, YouTube.

Can Reed Jobs Be More Than the Son of Steve?

By Jemima McEvoy · Oct 3, 2025 6:06am PDT · 1 comment

Last month, Reed Jobs was on Capitol Hill meeting with lawmakers and representatives from America’s top hospitals, universities and medical organizations. He came to deliver an impassioned plea: Save the National Institutes of Health, which faces a push by President Donald Trump to slash its budget 40%. As a keynote speaker at the... Last month, Reed Jobs was on Capitol Hill meeting with lawmakers and representatives from America...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

The $10 Billion Enigma of Mira Murati

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 26, 2025 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

The $10 Billion Enigma of Mira Murati

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Sep 26, 2025 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

This summer, Meta Platforms offered multiple researchers at artificial intelligence startup Thinking Machines Lab sizable compensation packages to join its new AI lab. When all of the researchers declined the offers, Thinking Machines CEO Mira Murati sent a flattering news report about Meta’s attempted raid to her staff over Slack. At the same... This summer, Meta Platforms offered multiple researchers at artificial intelligence startup...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

How an Ex-Oilman Became the Face of Elon Musk’s Supercomputers

By Theo Wayt · Sep 19, 2025 9:00am PDT

In February, a peace summit of sorts took place on the top floor of Memphis City Hall. On one side there were a handful of local politicians and environmental activists. On the other was the city’s mayor, Paul Young, and Brent Mayo—a youthful, bearded, hoodie-clad Texan—who came with a message that his boss, Elon Musk, had become... In February, a peace summit of sorts took place on the top floor of Memphis City Hall. On one...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images

As Tech Leaders Flatter Trump, Anthropic Takes a Cooler Approach

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Sep 12, 2025 9:00am PDT

In June, the artificial intelligence startup Anthropic was finally getting close to hiring a candidate—a Republican—for its top government relations job after months of searching for someone. That decision marked a shift: Anthropic had hired several former Biden staffers earlier in the year, which had aggravated people in the... In June, the artificial intelligence startup Anthropic was finally getting close to hiring a...

Art by Clark Miller; photos from Getty Images

Why Silicon Valley Believes GLP-1s Are All-Purpose Wonder Drugs

By Ann Gehan · Sep 5, 2025 9:13am PDT · 1 comment

Over the past year, investor Brian Sugar has developed what he considers a “superpower,” finding it newly possible to push himself harder than ever before at home, in the gym—and in the office. What’s given him this boost? He attributes it to a recently acquired prescription for semaglutide, which places him among a sizable portion of the... Over the past year, investor Brian Sugar has developed what he considers a “superpower,” finding...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty images.

Why Musk’s Legal Battle Over OpenAI’s Structure Isn’t a Total Long Shot

By Rocket Drew, Theo Wayt and Sri Muppidi · Aug 29, 2025 9:01am PDT · 2 comments

Art by Clark Miller; Getty images.

Why Musk’s Legal Battle Over OpenAI’s Structure Isn’t a Total Long Shot

By Rocket Drew, Theo Wayt and Sri Muppidi · Aug 29, 2025 9:01am PDT · 2 comments

Much is known about the pastimes of the world’s wealthiest person, Elon Musk. They include playing videogames, fathering children and reading Douglas Adams novels. Over the past couple of years, Musk has picked up another hobby: waging war against Sam Altman, an ex-friend with whom he co-founded OpenAI a decade ago as a nonprofit. And Musk’s... Much is known about the pastimes of the world’s wealthiest person, Elon Musk. They include...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images.

Struggling Snap Considers Outside Funding for AR Glasses

By Kaya Yurieff, Erin Woo and Jemima McEvoy · Aug 22, 2025 6:09am PDT · 2 comments

For nearly as long as Evan Spiegel has run Snap Inc., his big bet has been on Spectacles, the company’s augmented reality glasses. All together, he has poured $3 billion into the effort—a fraction of what Mark Zuckerberg at Meta Platforms has invested in wearable technology, but a major expense for a company of Snap’s modest size. Spiegel... For nearly as long as Evan Spiegel has run Snap Inc., his big bet has been on Spectacles, the...

Art by Clark Miller; Trump image via Getty

Tech Needs AI Talent From China and Other Countries. But Researchers Are Caught In a Bind

By Kalley Huang and Erin Woo · Aug 15, 2025 9:04am PDT · 2 comments

In the fast-paced AI wars, time is precious. So when Google last month said it would pay Windsurf $2.4 billion to license the prominent AI startup’s technology and hire some of its employees, the search giant hurried to add Windsurf’s researchers and engineers to its ranks. Within a day, Google had onboarded most of the Windsurf staff it had... In the fast-paced AI wars, time is precious. So when Google last month said it would pay Windsurf...

Art by Clark Miller; image via Getty.

Nvidia’s Quiet Rising Stars? The Son and Daughter of Billionaire Founder Jensen Huang

By Anissa Gardizy · Aug 8, 2025 9:01am PDT · 3 comments

At an all-hands meeting earlier this year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang received a question that prompted him to talk about a personal topic: nepotism at Nvidia. In response, Huang acknowledged that Nvidia had indeed hired the children of many employees and insisted it didn’t bother him. He said he believed those parents wouldn’t have vouched for... At an all-hands meeting earlier this year, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang received a question that...

Art by Clark Miller

How Microplastics Became Silicon Valley’s Big New Worry

By Ann Gehan · Aug 1, 2025 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

Art by Clark Miller

How Microplastics Became Silicon Valley’s Big New Worry

By Ann Gehan · Aug 1, 2025 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

Lee Jacobs, co-founder of Long Journey Ventures, thought he had seen it all among his friends and acquaintances in Silicon Valley: the continuous glucose monitors, the cortisol tests, the frequent bloodwork to monitor hundreds of biomarkers and maximize longevity. Recently, another wellness obsession took him by surprise. “I didn’t know the... Lee Jacobs, co-founder of Long Journey Ventures, thought he had seen it all among his friends and...