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☆ Informatica says it's not for sale, following Salesforce's reported interest in $10 billion deal
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Enterprise data management company Informatica is not currently in talks to be acquired, the company said Monday, after earlier reports suggested that Salesforce was interested in a roughly $10 billion deal. Informatica shares slumped more than 7% on the news, while Salesforce shares rose around 1%. The acquisition would have been Salesforce's largest since the 2021 deal to purchase Slack. Salesforce's investors also reacted negatively to the idea of the deal, sending shares down more than 7% when news of the potential purchase first broke. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff's voracious appetite for mergers and acquisitions was one of the factors that drew a flurry of activists in 2023 seeking to rein in the company's spending.

Persons: Salesforce, Slack, Amit Walia, Marc Benioff's Organizations: Informatica, Street

☆ Here are the top AI picks for 2024 from Baird
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

To try and offer up some alternate names, Baird released an updated 2024 edition of its stock picks targeting top ideas in artificial intelligence and machine learning in a 34-page report out Tuesday. "While the implications of AI vary across sectors, we collectively believe the AI tidal wave is still in the early innings," a team of analysts led by Tristan Gerra wrote. Another name Baird recommended was cloud cybersecurity firm Cloudflare , which surged last month after topping analyst expectations in its fourth quarter. "Though AI's impact on NET's revenue is still unfolding, the company is strategically positioning itself for the shift from AI training to inference," wrote Baird analyst Shrenik Kothari. "Cloudflare's focus on connectivity for AI applications and the optimization of its network for diverse AI use cases showcases its commitment to facilitating AI adoption and exploring new monetization avenues as the AI landscape evolves."

Persons: Baird, Tristan Gerra, Pinterest, Colin Sebastian, BofA, Shrenik Kothari, Marc Benioff's, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Kash Rangan, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Nasdaq, Nvidia, Micro Computer, Apple, Bank of America, Wall Street, TAM

☆ Salesforce is the latest tech company to cut jobs with 700 layoffs, report says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Beatrice Nolan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The cuts will affect around 700 employees, The Wall Street Journal reported. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. The layoffs are the latest in a wave of cuts sweeping the tech industry this month. More than 20,000 tech workers across 80 companies have been affected by job cuts in the first month of the year, according to tracker Layoffs.fyi . January is historically a common month for layoffs as companies adjust budgets and plans for the new year.

Persons: Salesforce, —, Marc Benioff's, Sundar Pichai Organizations: Street Journal, Service, Business, Industry, Google, Tech

☆ Marc Benioff says he gets around 8 hours of sleep a night and starts every morning the same way
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Haley Tenore | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Benioff says he sleeps eight hours a night and meditates for up to an hour a day. Benioff said that he averages about eight hours of sleep a night. Though some business leaders swear they can survive on half the amount of sleep, Benioff isn't one of them. Asked about the entrepreneurs who say they get only four hours of sleep a night, Benioff quickly batted the idea down. Benioff also has a strict meditation routine that he's been dedicated to since 1992, according to GQ.

Persons: Marc Benioff's, Benioff, —, Marc Benioff, Jack Dorsey, Indra Nooyi, Jeff Immelt, Barack Obama, Donald Trump Organizations: GQ, Service, Pepsico, General, SFGate, San Locations: San Francisco, Plum Village, France

☆ OpenAI employees reportedly celebrated Sam Altman's return with a smoke machine-filled party that triggered the fire alarm and 2 fire trucks
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Grace Kay | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

OpenAI staff reportedly celebrated Sam Altman's return with a party on Tuesday night. Dozens of OpenAI employees also took to social media to celebrate Altman's return. AdvertisementOpenAI employees celebrated Sam Altman's return on Tuesday night — and apparently some fire trucks even got involved. Altman's return comes after a five-day saga in which OpenAI ousted Altman with little public explanation and went through two more CEOs. "It's not just that we're so back," one X user @yonashav, who claims to work for OpenAI wrote.

Persons: Sam Altman's, —, OpenAI, Altman, Greg Brockman, " Brockman, YcKwkqdNs5 — Greg Brockman, Altman's, It's, I've, @clarkcr, Marc Benioff's, @stevenheidel, 57Vum0mSxM — Steven Heidel, Mira Murati, Emmett Shear, Shear Organizations: Service, Staff, Twitter, OpenAI Locations: San Francisco, OpenAI

☆ Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says AI models have 'stolen' copyrighted content from media companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-15 | by ( Ellen Thomas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff's message to companies interested in generative AI is clear: the technology can't be trusted yet. Benioff spent much of the conference issuing ominous warnings about the perils of generative AI while simultaneously touting his own company's new technology as ethical and secure. "We're not scraping the Internet with our models, if that's your question," Benioff told me Wednesday afternoon. Salesforce has "an open philosophy" regarding the development of large language models (LLMs), Benioff said, building some on top of pre-existing models and building others from scratch. Baxter said that Salesforce only uses customer data with consent and performs legal reviews before using any open-source data for AI model training.

Persons: Marc Benioff's, Benioff, Sam Altman —, else's, Salesforce, it's, Kathy Baxter, Baxter Organizations: Yerba Buena Center, Arts, Apex, Time Magazine, Media Locations: San Francisco

☆ Salesforce raises prices for the first time in 7 years. What it means for the stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Salesforce (CRM) on Tuesday took another step to deliver profitable growth — a welcome development for investors, like us, which sent its stock price higher. Investors appeared upbeat around the list price increases, which Salesforce said are the first in seven years. "I don't expect it to impact churn much," said Berg, who has a buy rating and $230-per-share price target on Salesforce stock. It's worth noting, large customers will usually negotiate with Salesforce to secure a discount to a product's list price. Previously, a customer who bought 100 licenses at a 20% discount to the old list price would've generated $24,000.

Persons: Salesforce, Needham, Scott Berg, Berg, Mizuho, Marc Benioff's, Benioff, He's, Jim Cramer's, Jim Cramer, Jim, Marc Benioff, Salesforce.com, David Paul Morris Organizations: Service, Industries, Nasdaq, Nvidia, Palo Alto Networks, Devices, CNBC, Salesforce, Mizuho Securities, Bloomberg, Getty Locations: Palo, San Francisco

☆ Marc Benioff says he has a successor. A leaked Salesforce org chart identifies the likely candidates.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Ashley Stewart | Ellen Thomas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Marc Benioff's succession plan appeared to fall apart when co-CEO Bret Taylor resigned on Nov. 30. "I always have a succession plan," Benioff told Insider. A leaked Salesforce organizational chart identifies the likely candidates who are next in line. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says he has a successor in mind and a leaked Salesforce organizational chart identifies the likely candidates who are next in line. "I always have a succession plan," Benioff told Insider in an interview.

☆ Here's what market forces and company innovations Club members care about most
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Jim Cramer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

I spent the day last weekend with CNBC Investing Club members in New York City. We own Meta, Amazon and Alphabet for my Charitable Trust, which we use as our Club portfolio. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB.

☆ Tesla bulls and bears are duking it out and one strategist now thinks Elon Musk's car company is "boring"
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The presentation did, however, lay out broad plans aimed at making Tesla the largest car company in the world. The announcements were tepid enough that strategists at Vanda Research wrote in a note to clients that this month could see a sell-off for Tesla stock. That said, Zacks Investment Research forecasts 30% upside for Tesla, and that climb could happen in 2023. While Tesla has long been touted as innovative and futuristic over the last decade, Bespoke Investment Group concluded that the company is now actually a normal, boring car maker. The stock market is getting the jitters with a key bearish signal flashing red again.

☆ Salesforce stock has 26% upside as Marc Benioff's company shows resolve on 'disciplined growth,' Bank of America says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Bank of America adjusted its price target for Salesforce stock from $200 to $235 on Thursday. Shares of Salesforce jumped more than 11% Thursday to $186, and BofA's adjustment to its price target represents a roughly 26% upside for the stock. The company, Benioff explained, has scrapped its goal of hitting $50 billion of annual revenue in 2026, and also disbanded its mergers-and-acquisitions committee. In BofA's view, Salesforce looks poised to continue expanding its margins. "Reiterate Buy and view Salesforce as a top pick and emerging quality GARP stock," the bank said, referring to the acronym for growth at a reasonable price.

☆ Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says that this is a 'New Day' for Salesforce, focusing on profitability above its famous 'Ohana' mantra
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

As Salesforce faces activist investor pressure, profitability is now CEO Marc Benioff's key focus. Benioff is now touting a strategy called "New Day," focused solely on profitability and efficiency. Instead, those execs hammered on that "New Day" strategy, which emphasizes profitability and efficiency over all else. The company's recent layoffs, as well as Benioff's comments that employees haven't been as productive since the start of the pandemic, have weighed on employee morale. Former co-CEO Bret Taylor and other top execs like Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield have also departed Salesforce in recent months.

☆ Leaked document lays out Salesforce's plan to hit over 30% margins, directing the company to 'run lean and mean' and stop 'using culture as an excuse'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Ashley Stewart | Ellen Thomas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

An internal Salesforce business plan details how the company plans to get profit margins over 30%. One obstacle toward reaching the margin is "using culture as an excuse," the plan states. A draft of Salesforce's annual planning document details how the company plans to exceed 30% profit margins, including significant cost cutting and new releases for Slack, Mulesoft, and Tableau. Insider obtained a full draft of Salesforce's V2MOM document, which stands for Vision, Values, Methods, Obstacles, and Measurements. Arjun Bhatia, an analyst at William Blair, recently noted that Salesforce's current sales and marketing spending is much higher than peers.

☆ Exclusive: Alphabet spinoff Sandbox AQ raises $500 mln for cyber security, other work
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 14 (Reuters) - Sandbox AQ, a startup spun off from Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) last year, said on Tuesday it raised $500 million as it helps customers prepare for a quantum computing future. Former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt is the startup's chairman as well as an investor. Other investors include Breyer Capital, T. Rowe Price funds and Salesforce.com Inc founder Marc Benioff's TIME Ventures. Reporting By Jane Lanhee Lee; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Exclusive: Alphabet spinoff Sandbox AQ raises $500 mln for cyber security, other quantum work
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Jane Lanhee Lee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

OAKLAND, Calif., Feb 14 (Reuters) - Sandbox AQ, a startup spun off from Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) last year, said on Tuesday it raised $500 million as it helps customers prepare for a quantum computing future. Quantum computers, whose processors run based on quantum physics, could one day carry out certain calculations millions of times quicker than today's fastest super computers, yet they remain years away from making a big change, such as breaking encryption. The simulation does not currently need quantum computers to work, said Hidary. When quantum computers are ready, that work would speed up even further. Sandbox AQ is also using existing types of sensors based on quantum physics.

☆ Layoffs at Google, Microsoft, Salesforce Teaching Tech Employees a Harsh Lesson
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Avery Hartmans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Tech workers are using all sorts of emotional phrases to describe the layoff wave that has gripped the industry and become the talk of the business world. "I'm shocked and hurt and still processing," Katie Olaskiewicz, a former human-truths strategist at Google, wrote on LinkedIn last week shortly after 12,000 Google employees were let go. Over the past two weeks, a total of 40,000 employees have been laid off from Amazon, Microsoft, and Google, a nightmare come true for tech workers. The tech layoffs have been starkly different from Wall Street, which has in recent months instituted its own rounds of job cuts. Wall Street realitiesIn many ways, tech workers are waking up to a reality that their peers in other high-flying industries have always known.

Many major companies are requiring employees to return to the office full or part time. Here's a list, in alphabetical order, of major companies requiring employees to return to offices. AppleIn August, senior leaders told workers they had to return to the office at least three days a week. Read more: Elon Musk tells Twitter employees to return to the office or their resignations will be accepted10. Read more: Uber CEO's internal memo mandates employees return to the office in April.

☆ Inside Salesforce's week from hell: Angry employees describe chaos, confusion and 'tone deaf' leaders as they fight for their jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-07 | by ( Ashley Stewart | Ellen Thomas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

"We can't sleep at night," one employee told Insider. Senior vice presidents who were not themselves impacted were invited to a mandatory meeting, Salesforce said. "Can execs commit to never referring to Salesforce employees as 'family' again? "Ohana is far gone," one employee told Insider. Are you a Salesforce employee or do you have insight to share?

☆ Slack is cutting 10% of its product and engineering org 18 months after Salesforce spent $27.7 billion to acquire it
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Ellen Thomas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Salesforce has targeted Slack's product and engineering organization for layoffs, sources tell Insider. Slack is laying off 10% of its product and engineering organization, according to two people familiar with the matter. Yet some Salesforce managers, even senior managers and senior vice presidents, were blindsided yesterday as they had no forewarning when the layoffs would commence, Salesforce employees told Insider. In five Slack exchanges viewed by Insider, managers told direct reports they had learned of the layoffs from Benioff's company-wide email. Insider confirmed that roughly 1,000 Salesforce employees were notified on Wednesday of their terminations.

☆ Salesforce managers were blindsided by news of layoffs, insiders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Ellen Thomas | Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some senior managers learned of the cuts at the same time as rank-and-file staffers. Some Salesforce managers, even those with senior titles, were blindsided by the company's layoff plans when they commenced on Wednesday, according to internal Slack messages viewed by Insider. Slack messages viewed by Insider were sent by managers ranging from senior manager to vice president level. Salesforce laid off around 1,000 employees this week in an initial round of job cuts, insiders say. Insider reported in December that some Salesforce managers were being asked to identify their bottom 10% of performers.

☆ Salesforce asked some managers to rank their lowest 10% of employees, insider says, as Benioff tells employees to expect 'changes' in a leaked all-hands meeting
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Some managers were asked to rank their bottom 10% of employees, one person familiar told Insider. Some Salesforce managers were asked as recently as last week to rank employees to identify their bottom 10%, one person familiar with the instructions told Insider. Salesforce declined to comment on additional layoffs, cost cutting and directives to managers to rank employees. Benioff tried to downplay the question, saying in the all-hands that questions about personnel changes come up on every meeting with employees. Employees recently told Insider about what they see as a shift in how the company treats them.

☆ Here's what Charles Schwab's Liz Ann Sonders has to say about the economy, her favorite book, and investing in a recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Today's newsletter features my conversation with Liz Ann Sonders of Charles Schwab, and why she thinks the economy's already in a recession. Charles SchwabLiz Ann Sonders is the chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab. Phil Rosen: Can you explain your "rolling recession" assessment of the US economy? Liz Ann Sonders: Typically when you go into a recession, everything's sort of hit all at once. Read the full interview with Liz Ann Sonders here.

☆ Salesforce employees are bracing for more layoffs amid the company's major executive exodus
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Salesforce employees told Insider they're bracing for another round of layoffs. "People are afraid it could come at any point," one employee told Insider. "People are afraid it could come at any point," one employee told Insider. A person familiar with the matter told Insider the firm has pushed for cost-cutting measures since first approaching the company this summer. Are you a Salesforce employee or do you have insight to share?

☆ Salesforce has a succession crisis. Cofounder Marc Benioff is taking increasing control over the company — alienating his top lieutenants and dialing up pressure on employees.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Ashley Stewart | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Salesforce insiders attribute these departures to Marc Benioff's response to recent economic headwinds. Last week, Salesforce revealed heir apparent Bret Taylor's plans to leave the company — exactly one year after taking over as co-CEO alongside Benioff. Lately, employees said, Benioff has turned those meetings into a tribunal for his sales executives. While the pandemic was a boon for the company, Salesforce has since trimmed its annual revenue projections to roughly $30 billion down from the roughly $31 billion in May. Salesforce's co-CEO model has failedAs Benioff puts pressure on sales executives, people close to him said he's exerting increasing control over C-Suite executives.

☆ Big Tech workers who've been laid off finally get a vacation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Jordan Parker Erb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

For some laid-off tech workers, that thought isn't confined to just daydreams — some employees told us that since they've been laid off, they've taken the opportunity to finally go on vacation. In Big Tech, getting laid off can mean taking a fancy vacation. While the typical US worker receives little to no severance pay when they get laid off, firms like Facebook, Snap, and Twitter have been relatively generous. Some laid-off tech workers have racked up few years of sky-high pay, frequent bonuses, generous stock awards, and now, decent severance — so some are thinking, "why not travel?" See where other "freed" tech workers are headed.

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