tech

Nate Becker3/13/25

Report: Oracle is a leading contender to run TikTok in the US

In a turn of events that will shock some people even though it should shock absolutely no one, Oracle has emerged as a leading contender to help run TikTok as the app seeks to avoid being banned in the US, according to reporting by The Information.

President Trump has said there are four bidders in the process. The Information’s reporting says that ByteDance prefers a deal with Oracle, that Trump has indicated his support for Oracle playing a key role, and that several people familiar with the matter say Oracle is the only serious contender.

Reuters had reported in January that the Trump administration was talking with Oracle and a group of outside investors about effectively taking control of TikTok’s operations.

It’s important to remember that the last time Trump was threatening to ban TikTok, a preliminary deal came together that was led by Oracle. Oracle also has a deep tech infrastructure that other investor groups don’t have. Additionally, Trump has friendly relationships with Oracle founder Larry Ellison and its CEO, Safra Catz.

History may just repeat itself here.

Oracle Is Leading Contender to Help Run TikTok in New Deal

Oracle Is Leading Contender to Help Run TikTok in New Deal

Reuters had reported in January that the Trump administration was talking with Oracle and a group of outside investors about effectively taking control of TikTok’s operations.

It’s important to remember that the last time Trump was threatening to ban TikTok, a preliminary deal came together that was led by Oracle. Oracle also has a deep tech infrastructure that other investor groups don’t have. Additionally, Trump has friendly relationships with Oracle founder Larry Ellison and its CEO, Safra Catz.

History may just repeat itself here.

More Tech

Meta is testing out premium subscriptions on Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp

Ahead of its earnings, expected after the bell today, Meta has announced plans to trial a paid tier on its apps.

Meta Apps - Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Threads

tech

Amazon cuts another 16,000 roles, after laying off 14,000 workers in October

Amazon announced Wednesday that it was cutting 16,000 roles across the company, having laid off 14,000 workers only ~3 months ago.

“As I shared in October, we've been working to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy,” Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology Beth Galetti wrote in a press release. “While many teams finalized their organizational changes in October, other teams did not complete that work until now.”

CEO Andy Jassy previously said that the October layoffs were “about culture” rather than AI-related cost cutting. Galetti says layoffs, now totaling 30,000, won’t become a regular occurrence.

“Some of you might ask if this is the beginning of a new rhythm – where we announce broad reductions every few months. That’s not our plan.”

Update on our organization

Update on our organization

CEO Andy Jassy previously said that the October layoffs were “about culture” rather than AI-related cost cutting. Galetti says layoffs, now totaling 30,000, won’t become a regular occurrence.

“Some of you might ask if this is the beginning of a new rhythm – where we announce broad reductions every few months. That’s not our plan.”

tech

Anthropic reportedly doubles current fundraising round to $20 billion

Anthropic has doubled its current fundraising round to $20 billion on strong investor demand, according reporting from the Financial Times. The new fundraising round would value the company at a staggering $350 billion. That’s up 91% from September, when it raised at a valuation of $183 billion.

The company reportedly received interest totaling 5x to 6x its original $10 billion fundraising goal, and it’s expected to haul in several billion more than that tally before the current round closes.

Anthropic’s success with enterprise customers and the popularity of its Claude Code product are boosting the company’s momentum as it chases the current valuation leader of the AI startup pack: OpenAI.

Anthropic doubles VC fundraising to $20bn on surging investor demand

Anthropic doubles VC fundraising to $20bn on surging investor demand

The company reportedly received interest totaling 5x to 6x its original $10 billion fundraising goal, and it’s expected to haul in several billion more than that tally before the current round closes.

Anthropic’s success with enterprise customers and the popularity of its Claude Code product are boosting the company’s momentum as it chases the current valuation leader of the AI startup pack: OpenAI.

Produce At Whole Foods Market's Flagship Store

Amazon says it’s doubling down on opening Whole Foods stores. That sounds familiar.

The company says it’ll open 100 Whole Foods locations in the next few years. That sounds similar to plans Whole Foods’ CEO laid out in 2024 for opening 30 stores a year. Since then, it appears to have added 14, total.

Incredulous Man

One year after the DeepSeek freak, the AI industry has adjusted and roared back

A look back at how the Chinese startup shattered conventions, changed the way Big Tech thought about AI, and blew a $1 trillion hole in the stock market that got filled right back up... and then soared to new levels.

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