The Briefing by Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica E. Lessin and the team at The Information

Get smarter about the day’s news in tech, media and finance by following Silicon Valley’s most-read executive newsletter.

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Recent Editions

Apple CEO John Ternus. Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty Images.

At Apple, Pigs Are About to Fly

By Nick Wingfield · Oct 19, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Apple sure takes its own sweet time. On Monday, the company sent out invitations to a product announcement happening next Wednesday, which the company’s marketing chief teased in a message on X: “Can’t wait to pro and tell next week.” That’s likely a reference to a new MacBook Pro from the company, which Bloomberg has reported will be Apple’s... Apple sure takes its own sweet time. On Monday, the company sent out invitations to a product...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Getty Images.

Meta, Tesla and Netflix Q3 Updates Coming This Week

By Martin Peers · Oct 18, 2026 3:00pm PDT

Tech earnings season is back (yes, I know it feels like it never ends). This time, we’ve got a slight twist: Meta Platforms has broken with the pack and is reporting its September-quarter earnings on Wednesday, a week ahead of its big tech counterparts, Google, Microsoft and Amazon. (Apple is even later, on Nov. 2.) By reporting earlier than the... Tech earnings season is back (yes, I know it feels like it never ends). This time, we’ve got a...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty.

Did Anthropic Miss Its Peak IPO Moment?

By Martin Peers · Oct 15, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 1 comment

It’s beginning to look like Anthropic waited too late to go public. Third-quarter revenue numbers disclosed to investors on Wednesday implied that its growth has slowed from the second quarter, which we reported is likely to put a ceiling on its IPO valuation. Anthropic might have been better off going public in June, when its growth was still... It’s beginning to look like Anthropic waited too late to go public. Third-quarter revenue numbers...

CoreWeave CEO Michael Intrator. Getty Images.

CoreWeave Co-Founders’ Stock Sales Aren’t Helping Investor Confidence

By Martin Peers · Oct 14, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 1 comment

CoreWeave CEO Michael Intrator. Getty Images.

CoreWeave Co-Founders’ Stock Sales Aren’t Helping Investor Confidence

By Martin Peers · Oct 14, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 1 comment

This was not the day to be a publicly traded neocloud (as young AI data center firms are known). As the market sold off on bad inflation data—reinforcing certainty of another interest rate hike—neoclouds tanked. These companies typically are borrowing a lot to finance expansion. The worst hit in the stock sell-off was CoreWeave, whose stock fell... This was not the day to be a publicly traded neocloud (as young AI data center firms are known)....

Signs promoting Bumble's IPO in 2021. Getty Images

OpenAI’s Bug and Bumble’s AI-Powered Exit

By Martin Peers · Oct 13, 2026 5:00pm PDT

When is someone going to make a TV show set at OpenAI? It’s got swarms of rogue AI agents causing havoc across the internet, not to mention periodic corporate drama. And today we learned that an OpenAI engineer allegedly planted a “sophisticated recording device” inside a company conference room.The Justice Department identified the engineer—who... When is someone going to make a TV show set at OpenAI? It’s got swarms of rogue AI agents causing...

Alexandr Wang, Chief AI Officer of Meta. Getty Images.

Meta Reaches AI’s Crowded Frontier—Will Users Care?

By Martin Peers · Oct 12, 2026 5:00pm PDT

If it’s Monday, it must be time for another AI model release. This time, it was Meta Platforms’ turn, unveiling Muse Wonder, which it claims can “deliver state-of-the-art performance” on certain tasks. It was a triumphant moment for the company, whose AI efforts previously went through a slump that prompted a massive hiring binge over the past... If it’s Monday, it must be time for another AI model release. This time, it was Meta Platforms’...

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy. Getty Images.

Amazon’s Bargains Include Its Stock

By Martin Peers · Oct 11, 2026 3:01pm PDT

It’s the quiet before the storm of earnings season, which starts in a week or two. While we wait for the third-quarter updates, here’s a thought: Investor enthusiasm for semiconductor stocks and blue-sky vision companies like SpaceX appears to have sucked money out of stocks of long-established tech companies. Some are now trading at... It’s the quiet before the storm of earnings season, which starts in a week or two. While we wait...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Getty Images.

OpenAI ARR Snafu Highlights Flawed Metric

By Martin Peers · Oct 8, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Getty Images.

OpenAI ARR Snafu Highlights Flawed Metric

By Martin Peers · Oct 8, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

Here’s a news flash: The quasi-revenue numbers for OpenAI that got wide circulation last week were off— way off. Instead of $70 billion in annualized revenue, as we and others reported, OpenAI is generating closer to $50 billion in annualized revenue (sometimes shortened to ARR). A Financial Times report of the lower number on Thursday... Here’s a news flash: The quasi-revenue numbers for OpenAI that got wide circulation last week...

Art by Mike Sullivan

AI's Simmering Question: "Where the F--- Is All the Automation?"

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 7, 2026 5:20pm PDT · 1 comment

A new age of discovery and automation is here. Can you feel it? The leading AI companies certainly can. But you may not.The rare slow news day gave us more time to marinate on the significance of OpenAI’s late-breaking announcement on Tuesday that its unreleased AI model had solved or made major progress on hundreds of significant problems in... A new age of discovery and automation is here. Can you feel it? The leading AI companies...

Getty Images.

Uber's M&A Blitz

By Martin Peers · Oct 6, 2026 5:01pm PDT

We’re well into the growth-through-acquisition era in the food-delivery industry. Uber’s $2.3 billion purchase of business catering firm ezCater, unveiled on Tuesday, comes just a few weeks after DoorDash snapped up a college campus meal-delivery business for $300 million from Wonder. Neither of these acquisitions will excite many investors, but... We’re well into the growth-through-acquisition era in the food-delivery industry. Uber’s $2.3...

Jacob Coxon at today’s New York City Council hearing on the threat of artificial intelligence. Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Why OpenAI's Regulatory Nightmare Is Only Getting Started

By Martin Peers · Oct 5, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Imagine working in the OpenAI department responsible for dealing with politicians and regulators right now—things must be so intense you could almost be working for Elon Musk. Every politician worth their salt, in countries around the world, is jumping into the AI safety fray. Case in point: On Monday, the New York City Council, that bastion of... Imagine working in the OpenAI department responsible for dealing with politicians and regulators...

Larry and David Ellison. Getty Images.

The Ellisons’ Hollywood Adventure Is About to Scale Up

By Martin Peers · Oct 4, 2026 3:00pm PDT

Larry and David Ellison. Getty Images.

The Ellisons’ Hollywood Adventure Is About to Scale Up

By Martin Peers · Oct 4, 2026 3:00pm PDT

This is a big week for Larry Ellison. His family’s yearlong pursuit of Warner Bros. Discovery, owner of one of Hollywood’s most iconic film studios, comes to a conclusion on Tuesday when the Ellison-controlled Paramount Skydance is scheduled to complete the $110 billion purchase of WBD. It’s been barely a year since the Ellisons got control of... This is a big week for Larry Ellison. His family’s yearlong pursuit of Warner Bros. Discovery,...

Ryan Roslansky. Getty Images.

Microsoft’s Executive Exodus Foreshadows Business Transition

By Martin Peers · Oct 1, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Is there a fire alarm going off at Microsoft’s headquarters? A slew of Microsoft executives have bolted for the exits in recent weeks, most recently Ryan Roslansky, executive vice president of Office apps, who said Thursday he would leave at the end of this year. A day earlier it was Microsoft Science President Peter Lee’s turn. Both follow a... Is there a fire alarm going off at Microsoft’s headquarters? A slew of Microsoft executives have...

DoorDash co-founder Andy Fang. Getty Images.

Why DoorDash Needs Its Own AI Assistant

By Martin Peers · Sep 30, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Tech companies may have already perfected the art of separating consumers from their money—but AI promises to take that capability to a whole new level. The latest demonstration of that is DoorDash’s Wednesday announcement that customers will soon be able to order restaurant meals and groceries by text. The new service is a result of DoorDash... Tech companies may have already perfected the art of separating consumers from their money—but AI...

Art by Clark Miller; Courtesy of Oura

Oura’s IPO Delay Signals Broader Market Stall

By Martin Peers · Sep 29, 2026 5:01pm PDT

The IPO market appears to have stalled, which could be a problem for Anthropic. Fitness ring maker Oura’s postponement of its IPO on Tuesday, citing “uncertainty in the IPO market,” followed similar moves by metals producer Amaero last week and Holtec Nuclear Corp. the week before that. Then there’s SB Energy, the SoftBank-controlled power... The IPO market appears to have stalled, which could be a problem for Anthropic. Fitness ring...

CJ Desai. Screenshot via YouTube/Sequoia Capital.

Meta’s MongoDB CEO Poach

By Martin Peers · Sep 28, 2026 5:01pm PDT

CJ Desai. Screenshot via YouTube/Sequoia Capital.

Meta’s MongoDB CEO Poach

By Martin Peers · Sep 28, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Mark Zuckerberg is on a roll. Fresh off his triumphant rollout of the Muse personal agent, he signaled his commitment to selling AI to companies by announcing the poaching of CJ Desai, MongoDB’s CEO, as head of a newly created Meta Enterprise Platform business. Desai has had a long career in enterprise software, at companies including ServiceNow... Mark Zuckerberg is on a roll. Fresh off his triumphant rollout of the Muse personal agent, he...

Oura CEO, Tom Hale. Getty Images.

Why Oura May Not Be the Healthiest IPO

By Martin Peers · Sep 27, 2026 3:01pm PDT

So much is going on in the broadly defined AI world that it’s easy to overlook other stuff that’s happening. This week, for instance, fitness ring maker Oura is expected to go public, which is an event worth watching. It won’t be as earth shattering as Anthropic’s anticipated IPO, to be sure. But it will be a treat for anyone curious to see how... So much is going on in the broadly defined AI world that it’s easy to overlook other stuff that’s...

Meta’s Alexandr Wang at Meta Connect on Wednesday. Getty Images.

Why Meta’s Moment in the AI Sun Won’t Last

By Martin Peers · Sep 24, 2026 5:00pm PDT

If Meta Platforms wants to raise money by selling equity, now is the time. Meta shares have gone on an incredible run lately, jumping 27% since Sept. 8, when the company released its Muse personal AI agent. Meta stock is now up 18% so far this year, a bigger gain than that for Alphabet, Amazon or Microsoft—quite the turnaround for a company that... If Meta Platforms wants to raise money by selling equity, now is the time. Meta shares have gone...

Getty Images.

Amazon’s New AI Offer Reflects Discounting Surge

By Martin Peers · Sep 23, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Have we gone full circle on AI pricing? A bunch of tech firms are throwing around discounts and free offers for AI products, with Amazon on Wednesday announcing that merchants selling on its shopping site will get a year’s free use of its Quick Plus AI assistant product. Microsoft, meanwhile, is discounting Copilot AI subscriptions heavily, we ... Have we gone full circle on AI pricing? A bunch of tech firms are throwing around discounts and...

President Trump at the United Nations today. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

AI, the UN, Xi and Trump

By Martin Peers · Sep 22, 2026 5:01pm PDT

President Trump at the United Nations today. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.

AI, the UN, Xi and Trump

By Martin Peers · Sep 22, 2026 5:01pm PDT

It’s a big week for global leaders talking about AI. We’ve got a bunch of presidents and prime ministers at the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York—motorcades are creating chaos in Midtown Manhattan right now—and Chinese president Xi Jinping is due to arrive in Washington tomorrow. The top executives from most big tech firms will... It’s a big week for global leaders talking about AI. We’ve got a bunch of presidents and prime...