10 things in tech you need to know today
Happy Monday, folks. Today we're diving into Twitter's decision to replace CEO Jack Dorsey, and the Tesla Cybertruck's wild features.
Shall we?
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1. Behind the scenes of Jack Dorsey's resignation. Activist investor Elliott Management set out to oust Dorsey in 2020, and finally got its way. Now, the success of its campaign will be measured by new CEO Parag Agrawal's decisions.
- The decision to elevate Agrawal to the top spot at Twitter was secretly made last year, due to his deliberate style and the respect he commanded from many employees, insiders told us.
- While Dorsey was "paralyzed by choice," the board believes Agrawal will be different — and on Friday he bolstered that belief by swiftly announcing a leadership reorganization.
- Still, the new CEO's relative obscurity has Wall Street concerned about whether he can bring about the change that Twitter needs, or Elliott demands.
Here's what else we know about Twitter's decision to replace Dorsey.
In other news:
2. Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri will testify before Congress for the first time. Per The New York Times, Mosseri will appear before Congress this week to answer lawmakers' questions about child safety on the app. Here's what you need to know about his upcoming testimony.
3. Inside three years of change at Google Cloud. With CEO Thomas Kurian's contract about to end, we spoke with employees who told us what has — and hasn't — worked under his leadership, including his aggressive sales strategy that's sown internal dissent. See what else employees said.
4. Elizabeth Holmes trial Week 13 recap. Last week, the Theranos founder took the stand, testifying that her ex and former COO abused her. She also described her attempt to block an exposé, as well as regrets she has about not listening to a whistleblower. Here's what you might have missed.
5. Crypto.com's CEO turned a string of brash bets and lucky timing into the biggest stadium deal ever. In November, Crypto.com paid a reported $700 million to put its name on the LA venue formerly called the Staples Center. We sat down with the company's CEO to understand how the once-obscure startup landed a marquee deal. Here's how it all happened.
6. Amazon is confident it can deliver your holiday packages on time. Bloomberg reported the company has spent $4 billion to combat shipping delays, chartering its own ships and using half-empty trucks to get packages delivered before the holidays. Everything Amazon's doing to deliver goods.
7. AWS's new CEO just faced the public for the first time. Amazon Web Services CEO Adam Selipsky made his debut keynote at its re:Invent conference last week, and insiders said his "workmanlike" performance shows that Andy Jassy will be a tough act to follow. More on Selipsky's debut performance.
8. A former Netflix software engineer was sentenced to prison for an insider trading scheme. The employee and his friend used private Netflix subscriber data to make more than $3 million. Get the full rundown here.
9. Elon Musk says the first Tesla Cybertrucks will be able to "drive diagonally like a crab." In a series of tweets about the much-anticipated Cybertrucks, the Tesla CEO also said it will come with four motors and will be able to turn like a tank. Here's what else Musk revealed.
10. The Hyundai Santa Cruz is a truck that feels like an SUV — making it the perfect adventure vehicle. The company's first pickup for the US market, the Santa Cruz marries the utility of a pickup with the familiar form and feel of an SUV. Take a look at the quirky truck.
What we're watching today:
- NASA is scheduled to announce its 2021 astronaut candidates.
- BuzzFeed, Inc shares are expected to commence trading on NASDAQ.
Curated by Jordan Parker Erb in New York. (Feedback or tips? Email jerb@insider.com or tweet @jordanparkererb.) Edited by Michael Cogley in London.