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

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The Briefing

By Martin Peers, Jessica 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

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What Threads Could Mean for Meta…and Twitter

By Martin Peers · Jul 5, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

If there’s a tech billionaire the news media hates more than Mark Zuckerberg, it's Elon Musk. That's why you're seeing an unusual deluge of positive coverage for Meta Platforms' Twitter rival app, Threads, which formally launched a short time ago. The positivity won’t last, to be sure. Before too long—give it a week—someone in the media will... If there’s a tech billionaire the news media hates more than Mark Zuckerberg, it's Elon Musk....

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman. Photo by Getty

Reddit Battle Spotlights Existential Question

By Martin Peers · Jul 3, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

It’s that point of the early summer when many in tech and business take a well-deserved break. Aside from the nonstop machinations of Elon Musk—whose only purpose in life, apart from transforming cars and rockets, seems to be keeping journalists employed—the most interesting tech news story of recent days centers on Reddit. The site’s volunteer... It’s that point of the early summer when many in tech and business take a well-deserved break....

The U.S. Supreme Court. Photo by Getty.

What Supreme Court Ruling Means for Tech Hiring

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 29, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 3 comments

For any folks in Silicon Valley who don’t often pay attention to what is happening in Washington, today is a day they should.As the country digests the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of race-based admissions in colleges, my mind turned to what the ruling could mean for companies’ efforts to diversify their ranks. After talking to about half a... For any folks in Silicon Valley who don’t often pay attention to what is happening in Washington,...

President Joe Biden holds a microchip. Photo by Getty.

The Risks of Cutting Off China

By Martin Peers · Jun 28, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 3 comments

President Joe Biden holds a microchip. Photo by Getty.

The Risks of Cutting Off China

By Martin Peers · Jun 28, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 3 comments

The Great Wall dividing the U.S. from China is about to get higher. A Wall Street Journal report that the Biden administration is considering further tightening exports of artificial intelligence chips to China triggered a sell-off in chip stocks on Wednesday. Shares of Nvidia, the dominant provider of chips for generative AI, fell 1.8%. To be... The Great Wall dividing the U.S. from China is about to get higher. A Wall Street Journal report...

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Musk v. Zuckerberg and Silicon Valley’s Dangerous Road

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 27, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

I’ll just say it: Things are starting to look ridiculous in Silicon Valley again. Two of our most at times admired, at times reviled tech leaders are getting ready to fight each other in a mixed martial arts cage match. And, as The Wall Street Journal reported today, boards and businesses across tech are dealing with a new problem: workplace... I’ll just say it: Things are starting to look ridiculous in Silicon Valley again. Two of our most...

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Deal Monday Returns With Spate of AI and Enterprise Acquisitions

By Martin Peers · Jun 26, 2023 5:00pm PDT

The deal market lives. For the second time this month, we woke up Monday morning to a big enterprise software acquisition. This time, it was IBM (remember that company?) buying data management firm Apptio for $4.6 billion from Vista Equity Partners. People with long memories of obscure enterprise software firms (you know who you are) will recall... The deal market lives. For the second time this month, we woke up Monday morning to a big...

Zenia Mucha. Photo by Getty. Art by Shane Burke.

Can a Hollywood Operator Help TikTok? That Didn’t Go So Well the First Time

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 22, 2023 5:17pm PDT · 1 comment

“Terrifying.”That was the word from a longtime Hollywood hand when I asked for the person’s reaction to Disney’s former communications czar, Zenia Mucha, joining TikTok to lead brand marketing and communications. For a little context, Mucha is known as one of the toughest and best communications leaders in the land. For two decades, she ran... “Terrifying.”That was the word from a longtime Hollywood hand when I asked for the person’s...

Photo by Getty.

What the FTC Misses With Amazon Lawsuit

By Martin Peers · Jun 21, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

Photo by Getty.

What the FTC Misses With Amazon Lawsuit

By Martin Peers · Jun 21, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 4 comments

In its war on big tech, the Federal Trade Commission has opened a new front. In a lawsuit filed against Amazon today, the FTC accused the e-commerce giant of duping millions of consumers into “unknowingly” enrolling in its Amazon Prime service and then making it really difficult for them to cancel. So this is what Amazon founder Jeff Bezos meant... In its war on big tech, the Federal Trade Commission has opened a new front. In a lawsuit filed...

The Alibaba offices in Beijing. Photo by Bloomberg.

Investors Miss The Big Picture On Alibaba Shakeup

By Martin Peers · Jun 20, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Talk about falling out of favor. Alibaba’s news today that its chair and CEO Daniel Zhang would step down so he can focus on the spinoff of Alibaba’s cloud unit—which he will continue to run—sent the company’s shares down 4.5%. That makes little sense on a number of levels. For one thing, as we wrote last year, there have long been questions... Talk about falling out of favor. Alibaba’s news today that its chair and CEO Daniel Zhang would...

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Cava Is No Cure for IPO Indigestion

By Cory Weinberg · Jun 15, 2023 5:02pm PDT

Fast-casual Mediterranean chain Cava, celebrating its public debut, handed out spicy falafel outside the New York Stock Exchange earlier today. Investors must like feta. The company’s stock finished the day up 99% from its initial public offering selling price. That’s a positive sign for the dormant IPO market, no doubt. But those venture... Fast-casual Mediterranean chain Cava, celebrating its public debut, handed out spicy falafel...

Margrethe Vestager via Getty

Why the European Antitrust Case Against Google Might or Might Not Matter

By Martin Peers · Jun 14, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Margrethe Vestager must have been getting a little antsy. The European Commission antitrust boss has been relatively quiet lately even as her British counterpart has been throwing punches at big tech companies, including by forcing Meta Platforms to divest Giphy and then blocking Microsoft’s purchase of Activision. In contrast, the Europeans... Margrethe Vestager must have been getting a little antsy. The European Commission antitrust boss...

Photo by Getty

New Revelations About Shopify’s Deliverr Sale Spotlights CEO

By Martin Peers · Jun 13, 2023 5:00pm PDT

Photo by Getty

New Revelations About Shopify’s Deliverr Sale Spotlights CEO

By Martin Peers · Jun 13, 2023 5:00pm PDT

When business historians look back at what happened in tech between 2020 and 2022, one subject they’ll likely explore is the mass suspension of disbelief that led venture capitalists, startup founders and big companies to go wild spending money on all sorts of crazy stuff. We’re now living through the retreat from those moves, which we at The... When business historians look back at what happened in tech between 2020 and 2022, one subject...

Photo by Getty

Thoma Bravo Hits Home Run With Adenza Deal

By Martin Peers · Jun 12, 2023 5:00pm PDT

The pace of tech news is picking up—and not just because antitrust regulators in both Europe and the U.S. are busy filing new lawsuits against big tech companies. And it has little to do with the fact that Twitter is once again communicating with the news media using something other than a poop emoji. No, today’s significant tech news... The pace of tech news is picking up—and not just because antitrust regulators in both Europe and...

New York City this week. Photo by Getty.

Why the Return to the Office Is Inevitable

By Martin Peers · Jun 8, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 33 comments

For proponents of a return to working in the office, it’s two steps forward and one step back. The haze of Canadian smoke that hung over New York City and other parts of the East Coast this week gave people a reason to stay inside. Some schools shuttered their doors. People on the streets have been wearing masks. Yes, it has felt a bit like... For proponents of a return to working in the office, it’s two steps forward and one step back....

Chris Licht. Photo by Getty.

The Real CNN Drama is Cable News' Growing Irrelevance

By Martin Peers · Jun 7, 2023 5:00pm PDT

To paraphrase Tolstoy, each unhappy TV channel is unhappy in its own way. And as illustrated by the leadup to the Wednesday exit of CNN’s CEO, Chris Licht, the cable news channel hasn’t been a happy place lately. That’s not likely to change now that Licht is gone. Beyond the gossipy drama behind his departure is the reality that CNN and its... To paraphrase Tolstoy, each unhappy TV channel is unhappy in its own way. And as illustrated by...

Roelof Botha. Photo by Getty.

What Sequoia Should Have Said

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 6, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Roelof Botha. Photo by Getty.

What Sequoia Should Have Said

By Jessica E. Lessin · Jun 6, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

I remember my jaw dropping last year when The Information’s Juro Osawa reported that Sequoia China was in talks to raise more than $8 billion in new funding from U.S. investors and others.I was baffled. I just couldn’t imagine that Sequoia, which had picked a slew of winners in the U.S. and China ranging from Google to Meituan, was going to... I remember my jaw dropping last year when The Information’s Juro Osawa reported that Sequoia...

The Apple Vision Pro Headset. Photo by Getty.

Apple’s New Headset Makes Meta Look Like AR’s BlackBerry

By Martin Peers · Jun 5, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Apple may have just BlackBerried Meta Platforms’ Quest devices. Apple’s presentation of its mixed-reality headset, the Vision Pro, on Monday seems likely to spell the beginning of the end for Meta’s ambitions in augmented reality and virtual reality. Remarkably, given the endless amounts of media coverage devoted to this device over the past... Apple may have just BlackBerried Meta Platforms’ Quest devices. Apple’s presentation of its...

A screenshot from the Meta Quest 3 launch video.

Let The Mixed-Reality Headset Games Begin

By Scott Thurm · Jun 1, 2023 5:00pm PDT

You don’t need special glasses to see why Meta Platforms announced its latest mixed-reality headset, the Quest 3, on Thursday, just days before Apple is expected to unveil its own entry to the field. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has literally bet the company, and its name, on the metaverse, but the results so far have been disappointing. It’s been... You don’t need special glasses to see why Meta Platforms announced its latest mixed-reality...

Photo by Bloomberg

How Activists Proved to be Salesforce’s ‘Superpower’

By Martin Peers · May 31, 2023 5:00pm PDT

These corporate efficiency initiatives really work! Salesforce’s April-quarter earnings report Wednesday showed an operating profit of $412 million, a 5% margin, compared with $20 million a year earlier, which equated to a margin of 0.27%. The reason was lower expenses—research and development costs fell 8.4% while marketing expenses dropped... These corporate efficiency initiatives really work! Salesforce’s April-quarter earnings report...

Sam Altman. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why AI Scientists Are Freaking Us Out

By Martin Peers · May 30, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Sam Altman. Photo by Bloomberg.

Why AI Scientists Are Freaking Us Out

By Martin Peers · May 30, 2023 5:00pm PDT · 2 comments

Well that’s one way to get attention. According to a statement issued today by a bunch of leading names in AI, “mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority.” Right. It’s hard to imagine anyone out there disagrees—who but the most extreme misanthrope wants to extinguish the human race? The question, then, is why the very... Well that’s one way to get attention. According to a statement issued today by a bunch of leading...