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Art by Jesús Escudero

Meta Responds to Its Next Threat: Apps That Link Instagram Influencers and Superfans

By Kaya Yurieff · Oct 26, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Meta Platforms is already waging a high-profile battle to keep TikTok from draining audiences from its best-known apps, Instagram and Facebook. Now Meta is having to respond to another set of competitors who are more quietly beginning to nip at its heels. Increasingly, Instagram influencers are encouraging their most avid followers to meet up... Meta Platforms is already waging a high-profile battle to keep TikTok from draining audiences...

Emad Mostaque, CEO of Stability AI. Photo via Scale AI on YouTube

Stability AI CEO, After Ruffling Feathers of Researchers, Discussed $1 Billion in New Financing

By Erin Woo and Jon Victor · Oct 25, 2022 6:21pm PDT · 4 comments

Emad Mostaque, the former hedge fund manager who made his startup, Stability AI, one of the most visible standard-bearers of software that creates original images from simple text descriptions, could soon test the limits of hype around the new technology. After raising $100 million of venture capital in three successive equity funding deals in... Emad Mostaque, the former hedge fund manager who made his startup, Stability AI, one of the most...

Cybereason co-founder and CEO, Lior Div. Photo by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

$2.5 Billion–Valuation Security Firm Cybereason Hires JPMorgan to Find Buyer

By Kevin McLaughlin and Maria Heeter · Oct 21, 2022 11:12am PDT · 1 comment

Cybereason, a prominent Israeli security software firm valued at $2.5 billion by investors including Google, SoftBank and ex-Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin’s private equity firm, has hired JPMorgan Chase & Co. to find a buyer, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter. The company considered going public earlier this... Cybereason, a prominent Israeli security software firm valued at $2.5 billion by investors...

Microsoft competition attorney Rima Alaily. Art by Mike Sullivan

How a Microsoft Antitrust Attorney Keeps Its Mega-Acquisitions From Getting Killed

By Aaron Holmes · Oct 21, 2022 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

Microsoft competition attorney Rima Alaily. Art by Mike Sullivan

How a Microsoft Antitrust Attorney Keeps Its Mega-Acquisitions From Getting Killed

By Aaron Holmes · Oct 21, 2022 6:00am PDT · 2 comments

As head of Microsoft’s competition law group, Rima Alaily’s main job is to help close mergers at one of the world’s most acquisitive companies by shepherding them through sometimes sticky antitrust reviews. In early 2021, though, Alaily had a different goal: killing a deal. The team Alaily leads aimed to torpedo Nvidia’s... As head of Microsoft’s competition law group, Rima Alaily’s main job is to help close...

Image of Sam Altman raising money, generated by OpenAI’s Dall·e 2

OpenAI, Valued at Nearly $20 Billion, in Advanced Talks with Microsoft For More Funding

By Aaron Holmes, Kate Clark, Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Oct 20, 2022 1:47pm PDT · 6 comments

OpenAI, whose text- and image-generating artificial intelligence has become a mainstream hit, is in advanced talks to raise more funding from Microsoft, which previously backed the startup with capital that includes credits to use Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing services to develop its technology, according to a person with knowledge of... OpenAI, whose text- and image-generating artificial intelligence has become a mainstream hit, is...

Ali Ghodsi, co-founder and CEO of Databricks. Photo by Bloomberg.

Databricks Is Trimming Its Valuation While Other Startups Are Slashing Theirs

By Maria Heeter and Mark Matousek · Oct 20, 2022 6:00am PDT · 7 comments

Valuations for a crop of high-profile startups have been falling fast, even according to their own internal assessments. But one company has been notably restrained in revising its valuation: cloud-based database software startup Databricks. Databricks trimmed its internal share price this month, which lowered its implied valuation to $31... Valuations for a crop of high-profile startups have been falling fast, even according to their...

An iPhone 14 Plus at an Apple Store in Shanghai last week. Photo by Getty Images

Apple Cuts iPhone 14 Plus Production Less Than Two Weeks After Debut

By Wayne Ma · Oct 18, 2022 11:36am PDT

Apple is cutting production of the iPhone 14 Plus less than two weeks after its debut, according to two people involved in the company’s supply chain. Apple has told at least one manufacturer in China to immediately halt production of iPhone 14 Plus components while its procurement team reevaluates demand for the product, which Apple has... Apple is cutting production of the iPhone 14 Plus less than two weeks after its debut, according...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Facing Threat From Apple, Google Tries New Hardware Playbook

By Jon Victor and Amir Efrati · Oct 18, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

Art by Mike Sullivan

Facing Threat From Apple, Google Tries New Hardware Playbook

By Jon Victor and Amir Efrati · Oct 18, 2022 6:00am PDT · 4 comments

It may be Google’s worst nightmare. Apple’s iPhone is stealing share from Samsung phones powered by Google’s Android software. At the same time, U.S. antitrust regulators are scrutinizing Google’s search deal with Apple, raising the prospect that Google’s search may lose its favored position in the Safari browser on... It may be Google’s worst nightmare. Apple’s iPhone is stealing share from Samsung...

AI-related images generated by DALL·E 2. Art direction by Shane Burke and Mike Sullivan.

Venture FOMO Returns as Investors Chase Artificial Intelligence Deals

By Erin Woo and Amir Efrati · Oct 17, 2022 6:17pm PDT · 3 comments

Venture capitalists are shaking themselves out of a bear market slumber to chase deals in a pocket of artificial intelligence that’s spilled into the mainstream this year: AI that generates art, videos and writing. Jasper AI, which last year started selling an AI-assisted writing tool, raised funding from Insight Partners at a $1.5 billion... Venture capitalists are shaking themselves out of a bear market slumber to chase deals in a...

Elon Musk. Photo by Bloomberg.

Musk Will Have Absolute Control Over Twitter, Documents Show

By Kate Clark, Becky Peterson and Martin Peers · Oct 14, 2022 3:29pm PDT · 5 comments

Elon Musk may be relying on outside investors to help finance his $44 billion purchase of Twitter. But that doesn’t mean he’s giving those investors a say in how the company is run. A shareholders’ agreement prepared by Musk’s lawyers for equity investors shows that Musk will retain absolute authority over key decisions.... Elon Musk may be relying on outside investors to help finance his $44 billion purchase of...

Instacart Cuts Internal Valuation Third Time, to $13 Billion

By Erin Woo · Oct 14, 2022 10:58am PDT · 5 comments

Instacart, the instant delivery company gearing up to go public, has slashed its internal valuation to about $13 billion, according to two people familiar with the matter. It’s the third time the San Francisco startup has reduced its internal valuation this year, in a period when public delivery stocks have continued to shed value. The new... Instacart, the instant delivery company gearing up to go public, has slashed its internal...

Art by Mike Sullivan

Apple’s Mixed Reality Headset to Offer Iris Scanning for Payments, Logging In

By Wayne Ma · Oct 14, 2022 6:00am PDT

Art by Mike Sullivan

Apple’s Mixed Reality Headset to Offer Iris Scanning for Payments, Logging In

By Wayne Ma · Oct 14, 2022 6:00am PDT

By the time Apple introduces its much-anticipated mixed reality headset—planned for sometime next year—Meta Platforms will have had the advantage of selling products in the category to the public for almost seven years. But Apple’s device will also have a few technological tricks up its sleeve that even the latest Meta headset... By the time Apple introduces its much-anticipated mixed reality headset—planned for...

Coatue partner Sri Viswanath. Photo: YouTube.

Coatue, Under Pressure from Late-Stage Bets, Seeks $500 Million for Early-Stage Deals

By Erin Woo · Oct 13, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Coatue Management is raising its third fund to invest in early-stage startups, according to two people with knowledge of the firm’s plans. The fundraising efforts come as the firm’s investments in later-stage startups such as delivery firm Gorillas face steep valuation cuts. The New York–based investment firm, one of the... Coatue Management is raising its third fund to invest in early-stage startups, according to two...

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Photo by Bloomberg

Microsoft Forms New Team to Target ‘Industrial Metaverse’

By Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 12, 2022 5:00am PDT · 2 comments

Microsoft’s plan to use the metaverse to spice up decidedly unglamorous applications in factories and other industrial settings is beginning to take shape. Last week, Microsoft internally announced the formation of a new team, Industrial Metaverse Core, that plans to help customers create immersive new software interfaces for operating the... Microsoft’s plan to use the metaverse to spice up decidedly unglamorous applications in...

Illustration by Jesus Escudero.

Startups Avoid Valuation Cuts With ‘Up Rounds in Name Only’

By Maria Heeter and Erin Woo · Oct 11, 2022 12:07pm PDT · 5 comments

When installment lender Klarna revealed in July it had raised $800 million at a valuation 85% lower than its previous funding round, the deal was seen as the first in a likely wave of dramatic down rounds. Instead, startups including fitness equipment maker Tonal, delivery app Jokr and investing app Acorns are still managing to raise money at... When installment lender Klarna revealed in July it had raised $800 million at a valuation 85%...

Photo of Chris Dixon by Getty Images. Art by Mike Sullivan

Chris Dixon Keeps the Crypto Faith

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 11, 2022 6:00am PDT

Photo of Chris Dixon by Getty Images. Art by Mike Sullivan

Chris Dixon Keeps the Crypto Faith

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 11, 2022 6:00am PDT

This summer, venture capitalist Chris Dixon settled down for a dinner conversation about politics, startup investing and the economy with business and entertainment executive Michael Ovitz at Ovitz’s 28,000-square-foot Beverly Hills mansion. At one point, the conversation shifted to a topic Dixon knows intimately: cryptocurrency. ... This summer, venture capitalist Chris Dixon settled down for a dinner conversation about...

Roelof Botha, partner at Sequoia Capital, and Zhao Changpeng, founder of Binance. Photos by Getty Images and Bloomberg.

Sequoia Capital, Binance Stand By Equity Funding for Musk’s Twitter Takeover

By Erin Woo, Kate Clark and Aidan Ryan · Oct 10, 2022 12:28pm PDT

At least two major equity investors backing Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter plan to go ahead with their funding, as the billionaire moves toward closing the deal after dramatically reversing his position on it. Sequoia Capital, which has committed $800 million to the deal, plans to keep its funding in place, according to a person... At least two major equity investors backing Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter plan to go...

Jack Ma in Paris in 2019. Photo by Getty Images

Jack Ma’s Investment Firm Struggles to Raise Money in China

By Juro Osawa · Oct 10, 2022 6:00am PDT

Jack Ma, China’s most iconic entrepreneur, whose swift fall from grace with government authorities captivated the country and broader business world, has a new problem: Chinese investors are afraid to give him money. Yunfeng Capital, a private equity firm Ma co-founded in 2010, is having difficulty raising capital from domestic investors... Jack Ma, China’s most iconic entrepreneur, whose swift fall from grace with government...

Philippe Laffont. Photo by Bloomberg.

Two More Coatue Partners Have Departed

By Kate Clark · Oct 7, 2022 2:26pm PDT · 2 comments

Coatue Management general partners Luca Schmid and Sebastian Duesterhoeft, who helped lead its private tech investments, have left the New York-based firm, according to a person familiar with the matter. The partners are the latest senior exits from crossover funds, the firms with Wall Street roots that made big bets on startups during the past... Coatue Management general partners Luca Schmid and Sebastian Duesterhoeft, who helped lead its...

Photo of Mark Zuckerberg by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta’s Abandoned Shopping Cart: How Mark Zuckerberg’s Commerce Plans Went Wrong

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Oct 5, 2022 6:00am PDT · 8 comments

Photo of Mark Zuckerberg by Bloomberg. Art by Mike Sullivan

Meta’s Abandoned Shopping Cart: How Mark Zuckerberg’s Commerce Plans Went Wrong

By Sylvia Varnham O'Regan · Oct 5, 2022 6:00am PDT · 8 comments

It was 2020 and Mark Zuckerberg’s focus on his latest project began to intensify. Online shopping was booming, and the CEO of Facebook—now called Meta Platforms—wanted to transform Facebook and Instagram into shopping destinations. Zuckerberg threw himself into the effort, hosting daily meetings and taking a hands-on approach... It was 2020 and Mark Zuckerberg’s focus on his latest project began to intensify. Online...