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

Former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon during a New York City Council hearing on the threat of AI. Photo by Michael Nagle/Getty Images

AI Whistleblowers Say Researchers Are Checking AI Less Frequently

By Stephanie Palazzolo · Oct 6, 2026 7:00am PDT

It won’t be any surprise to people with human intelligence that Monday’s New York City Council hearing on the risks of AI was as theatrical as a Broadway show. What was more surprising was what the AI researchers testified about how AI research is evolving, and what that means for their job.For those who missed it, the city council heard... It won’t be any surprise to people with human intelligence that Monday’s New York City Council...

Bing Guan/Getty Images.

Why the SaaSpocalypse Isn’t Over For Workday

By Laura Bratton and Anita Ramaswamy · Oct 6, 2026 6:00am PDT

AI doesn’t seem likely to completely replace enterprise apps like Workday, which companies use to store key information about employees and financial transactions. But it is putting potential constraints on their growth. Already, some Workday customers are using so-called AI agents from Anthropic, Microsoft and other providers to pull data from... AI doesn’t seem likely to completely replace enterprise apps like Workday, which companies use to...

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 · 1 comment

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...

Aligning AI With Human Goals Might Be Impossible, Says AI Prof. Stuart Russell

By Rocket Drew · Oct 5, 2026 2:53pm PDT

Aligning AI With Human Goals Might Be Impossible, Says AI Prof. Stuart Russell

By Rocket Drew · Oct 5, 2026 2:53pm PDT

Last week, OpenAI scrapped the model it had slated to release as GPT-6.1 Astra due to test results showing that it was deceptive and otherwise misaligned. “I think it’s about time,” said Stuart Russell, the computer science professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who co-authored the leading textbook on AI. Last week, OpenAI scrapped the model it had slated to release as GPT-6.1 Astra due to test...

Art by Clark Miller; Getty Images.

Microsoft Slashes Internal Claude Spending by a Third

By Aaron Holmes, Jyoti Mann and Kevin McLaughlin · Oct 5, 2026 11:14am PDT · 3 comments

Meta Platforms and Microsoft, two of Anthropic’s biggest corporate customers, are working to cut their employees’ use of Claude, a challenge for the AI firm’s efforts to sustain its explosive growth. Microsoft executives earlier this year projected that the company was on track to spend at least $1 billion on its own internal use of Anthropic’s... Meta Platforms and Microsoft, two of Anthropic’s biggest corporate customers, are working to cut...

The booth of Chinese optical equipment maker ZTT at the Data Centre World Asia last week. Credit: CloserStill Media

AI Infrastructure

Why Google, Amazon and Microsoft Need Chinese Data Center Suppliers

By Claudia Chong · Oct 5, 2026 8:00am PDT

U.S. data center operators’ reliance on Chinese manufacturers for batteries, cooling systems, optical transceivers and other equipment has come under scrutiny over national security concerns.But Chinese equipment makers have an edge over their American counterparts, which have been criticised for long lead times amid supply chain shortages. So... U.S. data center operators’ reliance on Chinese manufacturers for batteries, cooling systems,...

Marius Hobbhahn, CEO of Apollo Research. Photo by Tom Williams/Getty Images

What’s Wrong With AI Safety Testing, and How to Fix It

By Rocket Drew · Oct 5, 2026 7:00am PDT · 1 comment

The idea that Anthropic, OpenAI and other AI companies could “embed” researchers from outside safety groups into their operations has been all the rage in recent weeks. But the devil is in the details.AI safety researchers worry that embedded evaluators won’t have the access they need to provide meaningful oversight.“I've become very cynical... The idea that Anthropic, OpenAI and other AI companies could “embed” researchers from outside...

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang via Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan.

How Jensen Huang’s Son-in-Law Became One of His Most Trusted Executives

By Phoebe Liu · Oct 5, 2026 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang via Getty. Art by Mike Sullivan.

How Jensen Huang’s Son-in-Law Became One of His Most Trusted Executives

By Phoebe Liu · Oct 5, 2026 6:00am PDT · 1 comment

A little over a week ago, Madison Huang, a rising star at Nvidia and the daughter of its CEO, celebrated her wedding in Hawaii. Her husband? Nico Caprez, a former pro ski racer whom Madison helped recruit to Nvidia two and a half years ago. And he’s not just any employee. Caprez, 35, has quickly become one of its most important executives and... A little over a week ago, Madison Huang, a rising star at Nvidia and the daughter of its CEO,...

In Caminus' Indianapolis, Indiana factory. Photo: Courtesy Caminus

Exclusive: Amprius in a Deal to Accelerate U.S. Drone Battery Production

By Steve LeVine · Oct 5, 2026 3:00am PDT

Amprius Technologies, the U.S.’s leading next-generation battery component maker, has awarded Caminus, a small Indiana battery startup, a contract to produce hundreds of thousands of drone batteries next year. Amprius Technologies, the U.S.’s leading next-generation battery component maker, has awarded...

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,...

Harbinger will produce the chassis for 2,000 FedEx vans. Photo: Courtesy Harbinger

An Unexpected Gusher of Cash Has Hit the Electric Vehicle Industry

By Steve LeVine · Oct 4, 2026 2:00pm PDT

U.S. electric vehicle makers are starting to rake in the big dough. And it’s not only Tesla that’s doing so. The big money is flowing in places few were looking. U.S. electric vehicle makers are starting to rake in the big dough. And it’s not only Tesla that’...

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Getty Images.

Anthropic’s Big Charity Bill for Shareholders

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 4, 2026 8:00am PDT · 3 comments

Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Getty Images.

Sunday Insights

Anthropic’s Big Charity Bill for Shareholders

By Cory Weinberg · Oct 4, 2026 8:00am PDT · 3 comments

When Anthropic shared financial figures recently with prospective investors in its planned initial public offering, it included a surprising glimpse of the enormous riches about to hit nonprofits and philanthropies—and the cost to shareholders. The company reported a non-cash expense of more than $660 million for stock used to... When Anthropic shared financial figures recently with prospective investors in its planned...

Art: Clark Miller (photo: Getty Images)

Who Had Power At That Trump AI Summit?

By Abram Brown · Oct 3, 2026 8:01am PDT

• The Big Read: Why a legal blitz over AI hacks is inevitable• Sean Parker’s quiet resurrection job• Plus, Recommendations—our weekly pop culture picks: “The Permanent Questions,” “This Cursed Beautiful Land” and “East of Eden”The AI titans probably all fly private. But if any of them did travel commercial regularly, they’d’ve long ago earned... • The Big Read: Why a legal blitz over AI hacks is inevitable• Sean Parker’s quiet resurrection...

Art: Clark Miller

AI Agents Are Going Rogue. Novel Legal Battles Are Next

By Leo Schwartz · Oct 3, 2026 7:51am PDT · 1 comment

Once just an element of science fiction, revelations of AIs gone rogue are increasingly everyday occurrences. As a result, Silicon Valley founders and executives are girding themselves for what they see as the inevitable: a cascade of legal action. One of those people is Paul Grewal, chief legal and global affairs officer at Cognition, a top AI... Once just an element of science fiction, revelations of AIs gone rogue are increasingly everyday...

Art by Mike Sullivan.

OpenAI Hires Top Trump AI Official to Work on National Security

By Leo Schwartz · Oct 2, 2026 12:00pm PDT

OpenAI is continuing to fill out its leadership bench with former Trump administration officials. Thomas Lind, who previously led AI policy at the Office of the National Cyber Director, joined OpenAI this week, an OpenAI spokesperson confirmed. ONCD is a key office within the White House that played a leading role in putting together a June... OpenAI is continuing to fill out its leadership bench with former Trump administration officials....

Stability AI Executive Chairman Sean Parker (left) and CEO Prem Akkaraju. (Art: Clark Miller; photos: Getty Images)

Sean Parker Spreads the Gospel of AI Music

By Abram Brown · Oct 2, 2026 9:54am PDT

Stability AI Executive Chairman Sean Parker (left) and CEO Prem Akkaraju. (Art: Clark Miller; photos: Getty Images)

Sean Parker Spreads the Gospel of AI Music

By Abram Brown · Oct 2, 2026 9:54am PDT

To the music industry, Sean Parker has been many things. As co-founder of Napster, he was first an “outlaw renegade,” as he himself puts it. After his time at Facebook, his next act was as an early Spotify investor—putting in money while at Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund—and as a longtime Spotify board member. Parker today hungers to be... To the music industry, Sean Parker has been many things. As co-founder of Napster, he was first...

Getty Images.

The Information Finance

AI Data Center Debt Is Showing Up Everywhere

By Meredith Mazzilli · Oct 2, 2026 9:33am PDT

Debt financing for data centers and related infrastructure has grown rapidly enough that it’s become its own category these days—credit analysts are breaking out AI versus non–AI-linked debt across markets to analyze new issuance and performance. Several asset managers in recent months have filed to create exchange-traded funds focused on AI or... Debt financing for data centers and related infrastructure has grown rapidly enough that it’s...

Art by Mike Sullivan

How China’s Token Resellers Create an Anthropic Gray Market

By Jing Yang, Juro Osawa and Qianer Liu · Oct 2, 2026 6:00am PDT

In Beijing’s Haidian District, a bustling hub for local universities and tech companies, six out of the roughly 30 tenants in one run-of-the-mill office building are all in the same business, according to one occupant of the building: selling Chinese customers access to Anthropic’s Claude and other models from U.S. AI companies. They’re not... In Beijing’s Haidian District, a bustling hub for local universities and tech companies, six out...

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...

Koray Kavukcuoglu, head of Google DeepMind, at The Information’s AI Agenda Live. Photo by Erin Beach.

In Robotics, Google Goes Android to Tesla’s Apple

By Jessica E. Lessin · Oct 1, 2026 2:50pm PDT

Koray Kavukcuoglu, head of Google DeepMind, at The Information’s AI Agenda Live. Photo by Erin Beach.

In Robotics, Google Goes Android to Tesla’s Apple

By Jessica E. Lessin · Oct 1, 2026 2:50pm PDT

While interviewing Google’s Koray Kavukcuoglu last week, I had a flash of deja vu. In his first sit-down since taking over as CEO of Google DeepMind, Kavukcuoglu offered some of his most detailed comments yet on where the company's robotics ambitions are headed and how they differ from the rest of the industry. While interviewing Google’s Koray Kavukcuoglu last week, I had a flash of deja vu. In his...