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Loyalty Is Dead in Silicon Valley
Since the middle of last year, there have been at least three major AI “acqui-hires” in Silicon Valley. Meta invested more than $14 billion in Scale AI and brought on its CEO, Alexandr Wang; Google spent a cool $2.4 billion to license Windsurf’s technology and fold its cofounders and research teams into DeepMind; and Nvidia wagered $20 billion on Groq’s…
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After Minneapolis, Tech CEOs Are Struggling to Stay Silent
It was November 12, 2016, four days after Donald Trump won his first presidential election. Aside from a few outliers (looking at you, Peter Thiel), almost everyone in the tech world was shocked and appalled.…
How Deloitte went from behind the scenes to front and center with McLaren
McLaren has been on a hot streak in Formula 1, winning back-to-back Constructor’ Championships and a Drivers’ Championship this year. Through it all, brand partner Deloitte has had a seat in the car.The consultancy’s yearslong…
The Tech Elites in the Epstein Files
“I had very little correspondence with Epstein and declined repeated invitations to go to his island or fly on his ‘Lolita Express,’ but was well aware that some email correspondence with him could be misinterpreted…
‘He Gets Us’ wants to be more than ‘the Super Bowl ad about Jesus’
Every Super Bowl there are a few advertiser wild cards—the ads or brands that make you go, “Huh, why’d they do that?” And then there are the Super Bowl staples—often the beer, beverage, and snack…
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TikTok Data Center Outage Triggers Trust Crisis for New US Owners
TikTok is currently experiencing a widespread service outage in the US, causing disruptions for millions of users only a few…
Behind Instacart’s ‘bananas’ Super Bowl ad
Sometimes the obvious answer is the right answer. Case in point: If you’re making an ad about bananas, that ad…
No Phone, No Social Safety Net: Welcome to the ‘Offline Club’
On cue, the room fell silent. A man seated to my left at a long wooden table began to scratch…
Some ad-tech companies are pivoting amid open web ‘contraction’
Is ad-tech still committed to the open web, or anticipating its so-called demise? It all depends on who you ask.As…
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Moltbot Is Taking Over Silicon Valley
Dan Peguine, a tech entrepreneur and marketing consultant based in Lisbon, lets a precocious, lobster-themed AI assistant called Moltbot run much of his life.Peguine, a self-professed early adopter and trendspotter, discovered Moltbot several weeks ago—back then it was Clawdbot—after discussing a vibe-coding side project with friends on WhatsApp. He installed…
Meta’s ad revenue climbs amid immense AI push
Advertisers just won’t quit Meta.The company’s ad revenue increased 24% year over year to $58.1 billion in the company’s most recent quarter, Meta CFO Susan Li told investors Wednesday during the company’s earnings call.That includes an 18% increase YoY in ad impressions delivered across Meta’s family of apps in Q4,…
Brands are using generative AI to make fun of generative AI
Have your slop and eat it, too. At least, that seems to be the strategy for some brands using generative AI.In recent months, brands like Dollar Shave Club, Almond Breeze, and Equinox have all used AI-generated content while also making fun of AI “slop” in creative campaigns. Almond Breeze and…
China’s Renewable Energy Revolution Is a Huge Mess That Might Save the World
Indeed, the greatest beneficiaries of China’s renewables revolution may, in fact, be consumers, both inside and outside of China. In sun-blessed Australia, where rooftop solar panels sit atop nearly a third of all households, the country’s energy minister, Chris Bowen, proposed a “solar sharer program” to offer three hours of…
How a trade org is using a conservation icon to promote battery recycling
The year is 1971. John Lennon’s “Imagine” was taking over the airwaves and NPR had just started broadcasting when Secretary of Agriculture Clifford Hardin introduced Woodsy Owl, a new conservation mascot aimed at encouraging Americans to curb pollution. Hardin hoped that Woodsy would educate the masses about the consequences of…
Meta Seeks to Bar Mentions of Mental Health—and Zuckerberg’s Harvard Past—From Child Safety Trial
As Meta heads to trial in the state of New Mexico for allegedly failing to protect minors from sexual exploitation, the company is making an aggressive push to have certain information excluded from the court proceedings.The company has petitioned the judge to exclude certain research studies and articles around social…
New York Road Runners rebrands amid a swelling interest in running
New York Road Runners, the nonprofit that puts on the TCS New York City Marathon and dozens of other races every year, is hitting the ground running with a new look.This week, the organization rolled out a new logo and brand platform, its first rebrand in 15 years. The new…
How Claude Code Is Reshaping Software—and Anthropic
Engineers in Silicon Valley have been raving about Anthropic’s AI coding tool, Claude Code, for months. But recently, the buzz feels as if it’s reached a fever pitch.Earlier this week, I sat down with Boris Cherny, head of Claude Code, to try to understand how the company is meeting this…
Netflix crosses 325 million paid subscribers as it closes in on Warner Bros.
Hollywood has been in a frenzy about the potential demise of the theatrical business if Netflix acquires Warner Bros. Discovery, but during the streamer’s Q4 2025 earnings call on Tuesday, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos sought to put some of those fears to rest.“When this deal closes, we will be in…
As Sundance takes its last bow in Utah, marketer interest in the festival continues to grow
Sundance is taking over Park City, Utah, for the last time.The film festival, which kicked off Thursday and runs until Feb. 1, has drawn the film industry and marketers keen on branded entertainment opportunities to the ski destination for years. As the festival prepares to take its last bow in…
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Chinese EV Batteries Are Eating the World
THE symbolism was clear last June when Emmanuel Macron, surrounded by factory workers, held up…
TikTok’s US operations sale is official
After a yearslong saga, TikTok’s US operations are now under new management.The $14 billion deal…
How China’s ‘Crystal Capital’ Cornered the Market on a Western Obsession
Villages looked for niches they could fill in the global market. The town of Xuchang,…
As hockey fandom heats up, Florida Panthers ink deal with hair care brand
Hair has always been a big deal in men’s hockey, if the timeless “hockey flow”…
Elon Musk’s Grok ‘Undressing’ Problem Isn’t Fixed
Elon Musk’s X has introduced new restrictions stopping people from editing and generating images of…