Flexport Company News & Analysis — The Information

Recent Articles about Flexport

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Anthropic’s ID Verification Imperils Chinese Founders

By Juro Osawa · Apr 21, 2026 7:00am PDT

Anthropic has quietly flourished in China thanks to businesses—including big tech firms and startups—circumventing Anthropic’s official restrictions on usage. That may soon change.Anthropic last week started requiring some customers to provide a government-issued photo ID and an image of themselves taken from their phone or webcam. It’s the... Anthropic has quietly flourished in China thanks to businesses—including big tech firms and...

Sunday Insights

China’s 10 Most Important Chip Design Firms

By Qianer Liu · Apr 19, 2026 8:00am PDT · 2 comments

Ask Washington’s most plugged-in politicians and lobbyists which Chinese chip company is the biggest threat to Nvidia and you’ll hear one name: Huawei Technologies. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has repeatedly cited Huawei’s rising prominence in both private meetings with lawmakers and public forums. Huawei has become shorthand for China’s... Ask Washington’s most plugged-in politicians and lobbyists which Chinese chip company is the...

Art by Clark Miller; YouTube

How Dylan Patel and SemiAnalysis Grabbed Sway in Silicon Valley

By Abram Brown · Apr 17, 2026 9:05am PDT · 4 comments

For Dylan Patel, founder of SemiAnalysis, an influential AI industry newsletter and research firm, Nvidia deserves the kind of dogged observation and study the tabloid press once devoted to Princess Diana. He scrutinizes the chip giant’s new products, documents its delays and scoops details about its inner workings.... For Dylan Patel, founder of SemiAnalysis, an influential AI industry newsletter and research...

Art by Mike Sullivan

China’s DeepSeek is Raising Money for First Time, At $10 Billion-Plus Valuation

By Qianer Liu, Jing Yang and Juro Osawa · Apr 17, 2026 7:36am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

China’s DeepSeek is Raising Money for First Time, At $10 Billion-Plus Valuation

By Qianer Liu, Jing Yang and Juro Osawa · Apr 17, 2026 7:36am PDT

DeepSeek is in talks to raise outside capital for the first time, seeking to beef up its financial war chest so it can better compete in the costly battle to develop leading AI models, according to five people familiar with the matter. DeepSeek is owned by Chinese hedge fund High-Flyer Capital Management, which has financed the startup so far.... DeepSeek is in talks to raise outside capital for the first time, seeking to beef up its...

Art by Mike Sullivan

China’s Probe of Meta’s Manus Purchase Sends Startups Scrambling

By Jing Yang and Juro Osawa · Apr 15, 2026 7:00am PDT

China’s AI startup founders are jittery. The Chinese government’s investigation of Manus’ sale to Meta Platforms has cast a shadow over a popular exit path for startup founders. And it has caused some startups to consider moving out of China or to shift some operations to Singapore.While some AI startups are happy to stay in China, relying on... China’s AI startup founders are jittery. The Chinese government’s investigation of Manus’ sale to...

China's Geely displayed its M9 Galaxy SUV in Las Vegas in January. Photo: Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg/Getty

The Electric: High Gas Prices Are Giving Chinese EV Makers Even Greater Advantage

By Steve LeVine · Apr 9, 2026 9:00am PDT · 1 comment

Oil prices have plunged from their highs on the news of the two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran and a partial reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. But they remain roughly $100 a barrel—about 50% higher than they were before the war began—and economists expect prices at the pump to remain elevated for much of the year. Oil prices have plunged from their highs on the news of the two-week ceasefire between the U.S....

Illustration: Clark Miller

Frontier Tower, A Hot Spot for Strange Tech, Plots Global Expansion and New Hotel

By Eli Rosenberg · Apr 4, 2026 6:54am PDT · 4 comments

Near the corner of Sixth and Market streets in downtown San Francisco, Frontier Tower has become a 15-story haven for the wildest and weirdest thinkers in technology. Floor 11 is full of longevity and health tech enthusiasts. The crypto folks are a floor above, with a lounge full of expensive furniture. AI is on floor 9. And the big event there... Near the corner of Sixth and Market streets in downtown San Francisco, Frontier Tower has become...

Art by Mike Sullivan

DeepSeek’s New AI Model Will Be a Victory for Huawei

By Qianer Liu · Apr 3, 2026 6:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

DeepSeek’s New AI Model Will Be a Victory for Huawei

By Qianer Liu · Apr 3, 2026 6:00am PDT

When DeepSeek introduces its next-generation model, likely in the next few weeks, it will mark a milestone in China’s yearslong quest for semiconductor self-sufficiency. That’s because the new model, called V4, will be able to run on the latest chips designed by Huawei Technologies. And in preparation for V4’s launch, Chinese tech giants,... When DeepSeek introduces its next-generation model, likely in the next few weeks, it will mark a...

Wrtn Technologies co-founder and chief product officer Djay Lee. Photos courtesy of Wrtn Technologies.

An AI Storytelling Startup is On Pace to Generate $100 Million in Annual Sales

By Juro Osawa · Apr 2, 2026 7:00am PDT

Besides ChatGPT, relatively few AI consumer apps have become breakout hits. But one app maker’s experience suggests there are plenty of lucrative consumer niches to be served.Seoul-based Wrtn Technologies says it’s generating more than $8 million in revenue a month from operating AI storytelling apps for hardcore anime and game fans in South... Besides ChatGPT, relatively few AI consumer apps have become breakout hits. But one app maker’s...

Hunter Hunt, CEO of Hunt Energy. Photo by Aaron M. Sprecher/ Getty Images

AI Infrastructure

Big Tech Schools Big Energy on Powering AI

By Ann Davis Vaughan · Mar 30, 2026 8:00am PDT · 1 comment

Please join The Information at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday, April 27, for The Information’s “Financing the AI Revolution” forum. Hear from top executives and investors on how the rapid build-out of AI is reshaping tech, finance and capital markets. Learn more here.The energy dominance bulls in the Trump administration came to Houston... Please join The Information at the New York Stock Exchange on Monday, April 27, for The...

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Claude Code and Codex Are Outpacing Cursor Among Notion's Engineers

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Mar 23, 2026 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Software engineers embracing the AI coding revolution don’t have much loyalty to any particular coding tool, especially when a new, better one comes out. In the latest example of that, the growth of Anthropic’s Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex is outpacing that of Cursor among hundreds of engineers at Notion, a maker of popular... Software engineers embracing the AI coding revolution don’t have much loyalty to any particular...

Joan Cros/Getty Images.

Stock Comp and Software’s Illusory Profits

By Martin Peers · Mar 22, 2026 3:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Joan Cros/Getty Images.

Stock Comp and Software’s Illusory Profits

By Martin Peers · Mar 22, 2026 3:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Memo to software executives: Now is the time to radically reduce the amount of stock you give employees. That would win you some favor with investors, who’ve generally gone off your sector thanks to worries about the threat posed by AI. Even if those concerns are overblown, cutting costs in the face of a major disruption is a smart idea.It’s no... Memo to software executives: Now is the time to radically reduce the amount of stock you give...

LGES's Spring Hill, Tenn. iron battery production plant. Photo: Courtesy LGES

The Electric: The U.S. is Challenging China's Dominance of Iron Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Mar 19, 2026 4:30am PDT

Until recently, Western car and battery companies seemed to agree that there was no point challenging China’s near-monopoly on the production of iron-based batteries, which power most electric vehicles and are the battery of choice in AI data centers. Until recently, Western car and battery companies seemed to agree that there was no point...

Illustraiton: Clark Miller (Photo: Getty Images)

Patrick Collison’s Palace Intrigue Complaint

By Abram Brown · Mar 14, 2026 7:00am PDT · 2 comments

Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Kings League, a fast-growing, internet-savvy soccer startup, takes a lean approach to pro sports• Tech Culture: Can protein-obsessed techies help save Sweetgreen? • Plus, Recommendations—our weekly pop culture picks: “Real Vikings,” “Kutchinsky’s Egg” and “Sirat”Patrick Collison, one... Welcome, Weekenders! In this newsletter:• The Big Read: Kings League, a fast-growing,...

Art via Getty Images

What’s CXL? The Alternative Memory Technology Embraced by Google, Nvidia

By Qianer Liu · Mar 11, 2026 7:00am PDT

The global memory chip shortage sparked by the AI boom has prompted companies including Google and Nvidia to spend more effort on alternatives that could ease the supply crunch. One of them is a technology that allows servers to share memory across a data center.The technology, Compute Express Link, or CXL, is seven years old but was slow to... The global memory chip shortage sparked by the AI boom has prompted companies including Google...