Canada has scrapped its tax targeting Big Tech companies in the US after President Donald Trump threatened to cut off trade talks in response to the fee. On Sunday, the Canadian government announced that it will no longer implement the Digital Services Tax as it works to reach a trade deal with the US by […]
Today, I’m talking with Matt Mullenweg, the founder and CEO of Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com, Tumblr, and a whole host of other products like the new cross-platform messaging service Beeper. This is Matt’s third time on Decoder; back in 2022, we had him on twice, first to talk about Automattic and WordPress broadly […]
Intel is shutting down its business dedicated to making processors for cars. In a memo seen by The Oregonian, Intel tells workers that it plans to lay off “most” employees in the division, citing plans to shift focus to its “core client and data center portfolio.” “As part of this work, we have decided to […]
Today, I’m talking with Hinge founder and CEO Justin McLeod. Hinge is one of the biggest dating apps in the United States — it’s rivaled only by Tinder, and both are owned by the massive conglomerate Match Group, which has consolidated a huge chunk of the online dating ecosystem. A fair warning here: I’ve never […]
Klarna, the buy-now-pay-later service, is launching a mobile phone service. The $40 per month phone plan is launching in the US in the “coming weeks,” offering unlimited 5G data, calls, and texts on AT&T’s network — making it yet another MVNO in an increasingly crowded space. MNVOs, or mobile virtual network operators, are companies that […]
Starling Bank, one of the UK’s digital challenger banks, has launched a new AI-powered tool that will answer questions about your spending habits. You can now easily find out how much you’ve spent at Amazon in a particular month, how much money you’ve wasted on fast food outlets over the past year, or how much […]
Today, I’m talking with Taskrabbit CEO Ania Smith. Taskrabbit is one of the original gig worker platforms that’s really focused on work you might need done in your home; it’s been around for nearly 20 years, and you might be surprised to know that the core product has not changed all that much. Taskers can […]
Warner Bros. Discovery has announced plans to split itself into two companies, separating its streaming and studios divisions from its linear television businesses. The split is expected to be completed by mid-2026 and is supposed to help “maximize the potential” of its portfolio of brands, according to the company. Warner Bros. Television, Warner Bros. Motion […]
Today, I’m talking with Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. This is Brian’s fourth time on the show, and he’s one of my favorite guests because he’s so clearly obsessed with things like company structure, design, and decision-making. You know, Decoder stuff. We had Brian on the show last fall to talk about “founder mode,” a buzzy […]
Two years after Sam Altman pitched Congress on AI guardrails, he’s back in Washington with a new message: To beat China, invest in OpenAI.