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

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Recent Editions

Elon Musk. Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

SpaceX Makes AI Advances, With a Little Help From Cursor

By Martin Peers · Jul 8, 2026 5:01pm PDT

How about that? SpaceX’s AI unit is rolling out some AI products of value to businesses. On Wednesday, SpaceXAI—as the unit is called—and its soon-to-be subsidiary Cursor jointly introduced Grok 4.5, a model “built for coding, agentic tasks and knowledge work.” A week ago, SpaceX introduced a “Voice Agent Builder” enabling small businesses to... How about that? SpaceX’s AI unit is rolling out some AI products of value to businesses. On...

Outside Samsung's headquarters in Suwon, South Korea. Getty Images.

Samsung’s Memory-Driven Profit Explosion

By Martin Peers · Jul 7, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Samsung, it seems, deserves a little more respect. The electronics conglomerate may be best known in the U.S. for its TV sets and smartphones, which jostle with the iPhone for attention, but it’s also one of the three biggest makers of memory chips globally (along with Micron Technology and SK Hynix). The explosion of that business, thanks to... Samsung, it seems, deserves a little more respect. The electronics conglomerate may be best known...

Asha Sharma, CEO of Xbox. David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images.

Microsoft Begins Gaming Retreat

By Martin Peers · Jul 6, 2026 5:00pm PDT

We’re guessing the July 4 weekend was not too relaxed for some folks at Microsoft. Today we got news that the company is laying off 4,800 people—around 2% of its total workforce—mostly in sales and at its troubled Xbox business. It's also selling at least four, and probably five, small gaming studios. Asha Sharma, Microsoft’s new gaming... We’re guessing the July 4 weekend was not too relaxed for some folks at Microsoft. Today we got...

SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

SK Hynix’s US Listing Will Be a Focal Point This Week

By Martin Peers · Jul 5, 2026 3:00pm PDT

SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

SK Hynix’s US Listing Will Be a Focal Point This Week

By Martin Peers · Jul 5, 2026 3:00pm PDT

Tech IPOs are definitely getting more interesting. On the heels of last week’s debuts by Bending Spoons and Lime, this week we’ve got South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix, which is expected to list on the Nasdaq on Friday, adding to its existing South Korean stock exchange listing. Hynix will raise money as part of the Nasdaq listing, making... Tech IPOs are definitely getting more interesting. On the heels of last week’s debuts by Bending...

Getty Images.

Nvidia and the Neocloud Gold Rush

By Martin Peers · Jul 2, 2026 3:31pm PDT

Hands up if you’ve got a neocloud going up in your backyard! I’m joking, of course, but it almost feels like some people must be putting AI chip servers in their gardens, given the rush of people wanting to start a neocloud business. (That’s the tech world’s term for firms that rent AI servers to others.)SoftBank on Thursday announced the... Hands up if you’ve got a neocloud going up in your backyard! I’m joking, of course, but it almost...

Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Bending Spoons’ Big Pop a Good Sign for IPO Candidates

By Martin Peers · Jul 1, 2026 5:00pm PDT

Could it be that Wall Street has a soft spot for refurbished internet brands? Bending Spoons, the Italian company whose stated mission is buying and overhauling left-for-dead digital businesses—such as AOL, Evernote and Vimeo—got a 40% pop on its first day as a public company on Wednesday. It was a much more impressive debut than the 4% pop... Could it be that Wall Street has a soft spot for refurbished internet brands? Bending Spoons, the...

Getty Images

Stripe and Co. Take On Circle and Tether in Stablecoins

By Yueqi Yang · Jun 30, 2026 5:01pm PDT

A year after the passage of the Genius Act legalized stablecoins, a bunch of big financial players have teamed up to launch a new, impressive-sounding stablecoin. Stripe, Visa, Mastercard, Coinbase, BlackRock and BNY are forming a consortium with over 140 firms to launch Open USD, which will debut later this year. This is a big deal. Open... A year after the passage of the Genius Act legalized stablecoins, a bunch of big financial...

Michael Saylor. Romain Maurice/Getty Images.

Saylor’s Strategy to Sell Some Bitcoin; Comcast Is Splitting in Two, Again

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

Michael Saylor. Romain Maurice/Getty Images.

Saylor’s Strategy to Sell Some Bitcoin; Comcast Is Splitting in Two, Again

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

Do the folks at crypto holding firm Strategy know the old adage that one should buy low and sell high? Strategy revealed today a plan to sell some of its vast stock of bitcoin, even as the cryptocurrency is hovering around its lowest point in two years. The current price of around $60,000 is 20% below the average price Strategy has paid for... Do the folks at crypto holding firm Strategy know the old adage that one should buy low and sell...

Bending Spoons headquarters in Milan. Francesca Volpi/Getty Images.

Bending Spoons IPO Spotlights Scavenger Hunt

By Martin Peers · Jun 28, 2026 3:01pm PDT · 1 comment

The July 4 long weekend is just days away, which means this week should be quiet on the news front. But we can expect more drama coming out of the Washington-AI industry wrangling—with the increasing competitiveness of Chinese AI models raising the stakes. Meanwhile, the trajectory of SpaceX shares will be worth watching. A Friday report on... The July 4 long weekend is just days away, which means this week should be quiet on the news...

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images.

Trump’s Burdensome AI Regulation; Apple’s Price Hike

By Martin Peers · Jun 25, 2026 5:01pm PDT

Remember back to last December, when President Donald Trump issued an executive order designed to “remove barriers to United States AI leadership”? Trump said he was revoking former President Joe Biden’s “attempt to paralyze this industry” and planned a “minimally burdensome national standard” for regulation. It’s a different story now.Today, ... Remember back to last December, when President Donald Trump issued an executive order designed to...

Residents of Saline, Mich. protest the nearby Stargate data center facility in December. Jim West/Getty Images.

The AI and Data Center Image Problem

By Nick Wingfield · Jun 24, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 3 comments

A couple days ago, John Carmack, a videogame pioneer and former virtual reality executive at Meta Platforms, wrote on X that he had begun seeing anti–data center yard signs popping up in his neighborhood. “I am entertaining the idea of paying for a billboard with something like ‘Data centers are awesome, Texas should lead!’” wrote Carmack, who... A couple days ago, John Carmack, a videogame pioneer and former virtual reality executive at Meta...

Mark Zuckerberg wearing Meta's Ray Bans. Getty Images

Meta Looks Good With Glasses On

By Martin Peers · Jun 23, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 2 comments

Mark Zuckerberg wearing Meta's Ray Bans. Getty Images

Meta Looks Good With Glasses On

By Martin Peers · Jun 23, 2026 5:01pm PDT · 2 comments

Here’s a suggestion for Mark Zuckerberg: Maybe you should ditch AI model development and spend even more on smart glasses! Meta Platforms on Tuesday unveiled its latest selection of smart glasses, devised with eyewear giant EssilorLuxottica, and it’s hard not to be impressed with the way they look. Meta would seem to have more chance of... Here’s a suggestion for Mark Zuckerberg: Maybe you should ditch AI model development and spend...

Art by Clark Miller.

Sell SpaceX, Buy Tesla?

By Theo Wayt · Jun 22, 2026 5:05pm PDT

Here’s a question: If you’re an investor who wants exposure to Elon Musk, is SpaceX or Tesla a better bet? Today, the answer seemed to be Tesla, with shares in the electric automaker climbing 1% to $405.05 as SpaceX shares tumbled 16% to $154.60. SpaceX shares are still above their IPO price of $135 per share, but today was their third... Here’s a question: If you’re an investor who wants exposure to Elon Musk, is SpaceX or Tesla a...

Reese Witherspoon at last year's Cannes Lion ad festival. Photo by Marc Piasecki/Getty Images

Cannes Ad Festival Puts OpenAI’s Projections in Spotlight

By Martin Peers · Jun 21, 2026 3:01pm PDT

If you’ve wanted to visit the South of France, this might be the week. The annual Cannes Lion ad festival, a time for ad folks from all quarters to gather, gets underway tomorrow. The impact of AI on advertising and media is sure to be front and center. OpenAI’s chief revenue officer, Denise Dresser, is scheduled to appear onstage twice,... If you’ve wanted to visit the South of France, this might be the week. The annual Cannes Lion ad...

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. AP Images.

Meta’s Microsoft Mobile Moment

By Martin Peers · Jun 18, 2026 5:01pm PDT

No one can rival OpenAI for internal drama. But in recent days, Meta Platforms seems to be trying its best to do so. Earlier this week, Wired reported that Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth told staff Meta had done an “atrocious” job of launching a new AI division. That report followed another one in Wired about the internal... No one can rival OpenAI for internal drama. But in recent days, Meta Platforms seems to be trying...

Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images.

Software Slump Resumes; Snap’s Spectacle

By Martin Peers · Jun 17, 2026 5:00pm PDT

Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images.

Software Slump Resumes; Snap’s Spectacle

By Martin Peers · Jun 17, 2026 5:00pm PDT

This was what you call an ugly day in the markets. Tech stocks sold off across the board, thanks to rising expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates. SpaceX stock fell nearly 5%, dragging it back below Amazon in market capitalization. But SpaceX, at least, is coming off a big rally. Software stocks such as Microsoft,... This was what you call an ugly day in the markets. Tech stocks sold off across the board, thanks...

Ulrich Baumgarten via Getty Images.

AI’s New Risk: Unpredictable Government Policies

By Martin Peers · Jun 16, 2026 5:00pm PDT

Investing in AI really is not for the faint of heart. Leaving aside all the worries about risks of huge investments in data centers and the uncertainties about demand, there’s also the unpredictable government moves that can upend things. Case in point: the Trump administration’s warnings to Anthropic over the weekend that no foreigners,... Investing in AI really is not for the faint of heart. Leaving aside all the worries about risks...

Roku founder and CEO, Anthony Wood. Brenton Ho/Variety via Getty Images.

Roku’s Timely Exit; Salesforce’s Dealmaking Is Revving Up

By Martin Peers · Jun 15, 2026 5:01pm PDT

There’s a lot going on all of a sudden. We’re all still trying to come to grips with the latest Anthropic-Trump administration standoff. SpaceX’s market performance so far has been like a rocket ship: The stock rose 20% on Monday, finishing with a market capitalization of $2.5 trillion. And back on Earth, we got some notable acquisitions on... There’s a lot going on all of a sudden. We’re all still trying to come to grips with the latest...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Ruhani Kaur/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Anthropic’s Contradiction; The Risks of Buying SpaceX Stock Now

By Martin Peers · Jun 14, 2026 3:01pm PDT

What a weekend! Set time aside this coming Thursday for the New York City ticker tape parade celebrating the victorious Knicks. The joy flowing from that game Saturday night tops even the plaudits flowing from SpaceX’s successful IPO (read down for more on that subject.) Still, SpaceX was quickly supplanted in the business limelight ... What a weekend! Set time aside this coming Thursday for the New York City ticker tape parade ...

Microsoft's gaming chief Asha Sharma. Photo by David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images.

Microsoft’s Gaming Glitch

By Martin Peers · Jun 11, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Microsoft's gaming chief Asha Sharma. Photo by David Paul Morris/Bloomberg/Getty Images.

Microsoft’s Gaming Glitch

By Martin Peers · Jun 11, 2026 5:00pm PDT · 1 comment

Sorry. We have no SpaceX news (if you define news as something you don’t already know). The rocket-and-cloud firm on Thursday priced its IPO at the $135 offering number announced last week, as it was widely expected to. Check back tomorrow, when shares start to trade. (Here’s a clue about the possible opening price.) Not to be a wet blanket, but... Sorry. We have no SpaceX news (if you define news as something you don’t already know). The...