Periodically

The Takeaway

By Jessica Lessin

An inside perspective on tech, media and startups from a reporter and founder who tells the truth about Silicon Valley.

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Recent Editions

The Takeaway

A Lesson to Consider from The Information

By Jessica Lessin · Dec 18, 2015 7:01am PST · 2 comments
As 2015 draws to a close, it seems like a good time to reflect on The Information—where we have been, where we are going and what lessons our experience may have for others in the rough and tumble world of journalism. There are no shortage of opinions about the future of journalism and its business models. Two years ago, many people... As 2015 draws to a close, it seems like a good time to reflect on The Information—where we...
Marissa Mayer. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Takeaway

A Letter to Marissa Mayer

By Jessica Lessin · Dec 11, 2015 7:00am PST · 2 comments
Dear Marissa,You have had a tough week—make that a tough year. Yahoo is, in the words of Re/Code, in the hands of the accountants. My fellow reporters have published some anecdotes about your management style that make you look pretty bad. And did you really pay your editor-in-chief $5 million a year? But there are sides to you people... Dear Marissa,You have had a tough week—make that a tough year. Yahoo is, in the words of...
Art by Matt Vascellaro.
The Takeaway

Encryption, Uber and What I Learned in London

By Jessica Lessin · Dec 4, 2015 8:01am PST
I’ve never enjoyed writing about “tech scenes.” You may remember I have ranted about the tendency to judge a city’s techiness based on how it compares to San Francisco and the Bay Area before. I’ve never felt that approach revealed much of value. So, I went to London determined not to fall into the comparison trap.... I’ve never enjoyed writing about “tech scenes.” You may remember I have ranted...
Bracing for the Shakeout in Digital Video
By Jessica Lessin · Nov 27, 2015 9:00am PST
The Takeaway

Bracing for the Shakeout in Digital Video

By Jessica Lessin · Nov 27, 2015 9:00am PST
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I was back East for the holiday, where I spent the week catching up with digital media executives from Yahoo, CNBC and various startups. Most conversations turned to video, which wasn’t surprising. Publishers have been obsessed with video since at least 2007 (that’s the year a fledgling Wall... I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I was back East for the holiday, where I spent the week...
Rent The Runway CEO Jennifer Hyman. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Takeaway

The Problem with Reporting About Startups

By Jessica Lessin · Nov 20, 2015 7:57am PST · 4 comments
Startup cultures make easy media targets. They’re messy and not often well understood—and lately, there’s been a lot of misleading reporting around them.On Twitter this week, I picked on Fortune a bit for its look at Rent the Runway. The piece lead with the revelation that the fashion startup’s high executive turnover has... Startup cultures make easy media targets. They’re messy and not often well...
The Takeaway

The Mystery and Myths of Mutual Fund Markdowns

By Jessica Lessin · Nov 13, 2015 7:20am PST · 2 comments
“It’s like we went public without even knowing it.”I heard this sentiment from leaders of major private tech companies this week, as mutual funds grabbed headlines for marking down Snapchat, Blue Bottle and other massive private tech companies. All of a sudden these founders, who have been hell-bent on staying out of the public... “It’s like we went public without even knowing it.”I heard this sentiment from...
The Takeaway

Why Apps Are Getting Complicated Again

By Jessica Lessin · Nov 6, 2015 8:01am PST · 1 comment
The bloated app is back and, with it, new business realities.Over the past year or so, apps have gotten skinny. Facebook cleaved off Messenger and launched more standalones like Moments. Foursquare split into two, and others followed. As many have pointed out, the unbundling has been driven by the fact there’s just less real estate on... The bloated app is back and, with it, new business realities.Over the past year or so, apps have...
Henry Kissinger. Photo by Bloomberg.
A Wake-Up Call for Private Boards
By Jessica Lessin · Oct 30, 2015 7:35am PDT · 1 comment
Henry Kissinger. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Takeaway

A Wake-Up Call for Private Boards

By Jessica Lessin · Oct 30, 2015 7:35am PDT · 1 comment
Theranos managed to make more headlines Thursday by saying it had quietly whittled down its board this past summer to remove people like 92-year-old Henry Kissinger. You’ll remember that one of the issues the press has raised about the company is the fact that its board roster read like a committee of the Council on Foreign... Theranos managed to make more headlines Thursday by saying it had quietly whittled down its board...
The Takeaway

Elizabeth Holmes’s Miscalculation

By Jessica Lessin · Oct 23, 2015 7:02am PDT · 12 comments
The line between vision and hubris in Silicon Valley has always been blurry. So often, CEOs are hailed as visionaries (Steve Jobs, Larry Page, Mark Zuckerberg). Other times, they’re hailed as overly arrogant and cocky. I increasingly think the difference boils down to a simple thing: how fast their companies are growing. A fast-growing... The line between vision and hubris in Silicon Valley has always been blurry. So often, CEOs are...
The Takeaway

VC is Getting Disrupted, But Not Democratized

By Jessica Lessin · Oct 16, 2015 8:16am PDT · 1 comment
There’s an idea floating around that venture capital is getting more open and accessible. People point to the rise of crowdfunding platforms like AngelList and relatively recent legislation like the Jobs Act and predict that it is only a matter of time before the Internet will allow anyone to become the next John Doerr. There’s an idea floating around that venture capital is getting more open and accessible. ...
TPG's Jim Coulter at the Summit. Photo by Erin Beach.
The Takeaway

Summaries from the Summit

By Jessica Lessin · Oct 9, 2015 8:22am PDT
Towards the beginning of Thursday’s Subscriber Summit in San Francisco, TPG’s founding partner Jim Coulter asserted that Silicon Valley has a naming issue.“We have a real branding problem,” he said. “For starters, there’s not much actual silicon any more..and companies are increasingly migrating about 40 miles... Towards the beginning of Thursday’s Subscriber Summit in San Francisco, TPG’s...
Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner. Photo by Bloomberg.
The New Dumb Money in Digital Media
By Jessica Lessin · Oct 2, 2015 9:53am PDT
Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Takeaway

The New Dumb Money in Digital Media

By Jessica Lessin · Oct 2, 2015 9:53am PDT
You know you are in for a treat when someone who just paid a boatload of cash for an asset tells you not to judge the price by “traditional metrics.” That’s what happened this week when Axel Springer paid $343 million for most of Business Insider, at a roughly 9x revenue multiple. Axel Springer Chief Executive Mathias... You know you are in for a treat when someone who just paid a boatload of cash for an asset tells...
Madison Bumgarner. Photo by AP.
The Takeaway

The Saturation Point of Entrepreneurs

By Jessica Lessin · Sep 25, 2015 7:16am PDT · 3 comments
There is no shortage of ways to predict whether the tech boom is waxing or waning. Some of my favorites: traffic on San Francisco’s 101 highway; MBAs heading into tech; or the frequency of headlines about dying unicorns.But one that keeps coming up in conversations is constraints on the supply of good entrepreneurs. If you think leaders... There is no shortage of ways to predict whether the tech boom is waxing or waning. Some of my...
Lyft co-founder and CEO Logan Green. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Takeaway

Ride-Sharing’s Tempestuous Teens

By Jessica Lessin · Sep 18, 2015 7:44am PDT
Don't let the escalating Uber-Lyft-Didi Kuaidi battle make you think otherwise. Ride-sharing is very much in its adolescent years. The current state of play—companies dominating specific markets—seems set, but it’s delicate. The status quo is being propped up by sloshing of loose capital that’s fueling a race for... Don't let the escalating Uber-Lyft-Didi Kuaidi battle make you think otherwise. Ride-sharing...
The Takeaway

Apple Is In the Grey

By Jessica Lessin · Sep 11, 2015 8:06am PDT · 1 comment
The media coverage of big Apple events is almost as entertaining as the events themselves, and this week’s iPad-AppleTV-iPhone bonanza was no different.  Within hours, reporters and analysts had declared the two hour and 20 minute pitch fest everything from the most spectacular press event in years to a snooze. The truth is it was... The media coverage of big Apple events is almost as entertaining as the events themselves, and...
Why Readers Don’t Get the True Story
By Jessica Lessin · Sep 4, 2015 8:26am PDT · 3 comments
The Takeaway

Why Readers Don’t Get the True Story

By Jessica Lessin · Sep 4, 2015 8:26am PDT · 3 comments
A few months ago, LinkedIn convened a dinner at Bar Agricole in San Francisco to give reporters a taste of its roadmap. Over pickles and pigs heads fritters, CEO Jeff Weiner spoke with around a dozen reporters from outlets including The Information. Not one of these reporters wrote about the news discussed. Why? Because it was discussed... A few months ago, LinkedIn convened a dinner at Bar Agricole in San Francisco to give reporters a...
The Takeaway

Apple, Amazon and the Race for Input Zero

By Jessica Lessin · Aug 28, 2015 7:24am PDT
While the tech industry has circled Sept. 9 as the date the new iPhone will be revealed, I am looking forward to it for a different reason: the new Apple TV box. I feel this way despite the fact Apple isn’t going to debut a fancy new television service with the box. The long, long, long-rumored television service remains delayed because... While the tech industry has circled Sept. 9 as the date the new iPhone will be revealed, I am...
The Takeaway

What I Learned From NYT’s Amazon Story

By Jessica Lessin · Aug 21, 2015 7:06am PDT · 4 comments
Almost a week since the New York Times’s Amazon.com exposé, the piece is still riling people. Was it fair? (me: undoubtedly). Is Amazon.com unique? (me: yes and no).Many technologists and tech reporters were dismissive, calling allegations of a “bruising workplace” of cut-throat competition and long working hours in... Almost a week since the New York Times’s Amazon.com exposé, the piece is still...
The Takeaway

Larry Page and ‘Retirement’ 2.0

By Jessica Lessin · Aug 14, 2015 8:24am PDT · 3 comments
Hardly a year has gone by in Silicon Valley without a big CEO transition—some rockier than others. Gates, Yang, Jobs, Ellison, Ballmer, Donahoe, Costolo. So why does Larry Page’s decision to hand over the reins of Google as we know it feel so different, so significant?It’s not just the fact he birthed Google’s algorithm... Hardly a year has gone by in Silicon Valley without a big CEO transition—some rockier than...
Announcing Our First Subscriber Summit (And a Request)
By Jessica Lessin · Aug 7, 2015 9:24am PDT
The Takeaway

Announcing Our First Subscriber Summit (And a Request)

By Jessica Lessin · Aug 7, 2015 9:24am PDT
I’m going to keep this short because I’m technically on vacation on the East Coast, where the heat is reminding me why I moved to San Francisco :) But I wanted to share some exciting news. We’re holding our first The Information Subscriber Summit in San Francisco this fall (probably early October)—and we want YOU to be a part of it. I’m going to keep this short because I’m technically on vacation on the East Coast, where the...