Exclusive: Ex-Netflix communication chief joins AI startup Sierra
Rachel Whetstone has joined Sierra, the AI startup founded by former Salesforce CEO and current OpenAI chair Bret Taylor and former Google executive Clay Bavor, Axios exclusively reports.
Why it matters: Whetstone previously led communications for four of the fastest growing companies of the past 40 years. She will be tasked with positioning Sierra to disrupt the customer service space.
Catch up quick: Whetstone most recently served as chief communications officer at Netflix, but exited late last year following an organizational restructuring.
Before joining Netflix in 2018, Whetstone oversaw communications for then-Facebook's WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger products. She also oversaw policy and communications at Uber and Google.
Whetstone started her career in British politics.
Details: Whetstone joined the the startup on March 3 and will oversee all communications.
Sierra, which builds custom AI agents for enterprise customer service, recently raised $175 million at a $4.5 billion valuation.
What she's saying:"I've been fascinated by AI since first hearing Larry Page talk about it at Google nearly 20 years ago," Whetstone told Axios.
"In my conversations with Bret and Clay, I've been inspired by their intensity and integrity, appreciated their sense of humor and excited about helping brands create great experiences their customers love — versus the 'oh god' feeling most of us have today when interacting with companies."
Between the lines: This is Whetstone's first time working for a startup and as a team of one.
"It's about how comms can help create a strong brand for a new company in a busy space, generate interest and excitement from potential customers and future employees, and build momentum for the business," she said.
Then it's about finding "new and interesting ways to repeat that message over and over again," she added."Repetition never spoils the prayer."
What she's watching: How companies, brands and founders are navigating the fragmented media landscape.
"There's a lot of debate about going direct vs via "traditional" media and I think you have to do both well. Otherwise, you'll miss out on opportunities to drive conversation about your brand and shape the debate," Whetstone said.
What's next: Sierra recently introduced "supervisor agents"that would oversee the primary AI agent and ensure it's providing factual information aligned with company policy, the co-founders told Ina Fried at Axios' AI+ Summit in San Francisco.
Whetstone will be tasked with explaining how more AI agents can support and safeguard against other AI agents.
More on Axios:
Sierra, co-founded by OpenAI chair Bret Taylor, raises $175 million
Exclusive: These tech executives want to support AI agents with more AI
Workplace chat's future: more AI agents, fewer humans
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNBC
19 minutes ago
- CNBC
OpenAI taps Google in unprecedented cloud deal despite AI rivalry, sources say: Reuters
OpenAI plans to add Alphabet'sGoogle cloud service to meet its growing needs for computing capacity, three sources told Reuters, marking a surprising collaboration between two prominent competitors in the artificial intelligence sector. The deal, which has been under discussion for a few months, was finalized in May, one of the sources added. It underscores how massive computing demands to train and deploy AI models are reshaping the competitive dynamics in AI, and marks OpenAI's latest move to diversify its compute sources beyond its major supporter Microsoft, including its high-profile Stargate data center project. It is a win for Google's cloud unit, which will supply additional computing capacity to OpenAI's existing infrastructure for training and running its AI models, sources said, who requested anonymity to discuss private matters. The move also comes as OpenAI's ChatGPT poses the biggest threat to Google's dominant search business in years, with Google executives recently saying that the AI race may not be winner-take-all. OpenAI, Google and Microsoft declined to comment. Alphabet's stock was up 2.1% on Tuesday afternoon following the news, while Microsoft shares were down 0.6%. Scotiabank analysts called the development "somewhat surprising" in a note on Tuesday, highlighting the growth opportunities for Google's Cloud unit, while expressing caution regarding competition from ChatGPT. "The deal ... underscores the fact that the two are willing to overlook heavy competition between them to meet the massive computing demands. Ultimately, we view this as a big win for Google's cloud unit, but ... there are continued worries that ChatGPT is becoming an incrementally larger threat to Google's search dominance," the analysts wrote. Since ChatGPT burst onto the scene in late 2022, OpenAI has dealt with increasing demand for computing capacity - known in the industry as compute - for training large language models, as well as for running inference, which involves processing information so people can use these models. OpenAI said on Monday that its annualized revenue run rate surged to $10 billion as of June, positioning the company to hit its full-year target amid booming adoption of AI. Earlier this year, OpenAI partnered with SoftBank and Oracle on the $500 billion Stargate infrastructure program, and signed deals worth billions with CoreWeave for more compute. It is on track this year to finalize the design of its first in-house chip that could reduce its dependency on external hardware providers, Reuters reported in February. The partnership with Google is the latest of several maneuvers made by OpenAI to reduce its dependency on Microsoft, whose Azure cloud service had served as the ChatGPT maker's exclusive data center infrastructure provider until January. Google and OpenAI discussed an arrangement for months but were previously blocked from signing a deal due to OpenAI's lock-in with Microsoft, a source told Reuters. Microsoft and OpenAI are also in negotiations to revise the terms of their multibillion-dollar investment, including the future equity stake Microsoft will hold in OpenAI. For Google, the deal comes as the tech giant is expanding external availability of its in-house chip known as tensor processing units, or TPUs, which were historically reserved for internal use. That helped Google win customers including Big Tech player Apple as well as startups like Anthropic and Safe Superintelligence, two OpenAI competitors launched by former OpenAI leaders. Google's addition of OpenAI to its customer list shows how the tech giant has capitalized on its in-house AI technology from hardware to software to accelerate the growth of its cloud business. Google Cloud, whose $43 billion in sales comprised 12% of Alphabet's 2024 revenue, has positioned itself as a neutral arbiter of computing resources in an effort to outflank Amazon and Microsoft as the cloud provider of choice for a rising legion of AI startups whose heavy infrastructure demands generate costly bills. Alphabet faces market pressure to demonstrate financial returns on its AI-related capital expenditures, which are expected to hit $75 billion this year, while maintaining its bottom line against the threat of competing AI offerings, as well as antitrust enforcement. Google's DeepMind AI unit also competes directly with OpenAI and Anthropic in a race to develop the best models and integrate those advances into consumer applications. Selling computing power reduces Google's own supply of chips while bolstering capacity-constrained rivals. The OpenAI deal will further complicate how Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai allocates the capacity between the competing interests of Google's enterprise and consumer business segments. Google already lacked sufficient capacity to meet its cloud customers' demands as of the last quarter, Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi told analysts in April. Although ChatGPT holds a large lead over Google's competing chatbot in terms of monthly users and analysts have predicted it could reduce Google's dominant search market share, Pichai has brushed aside concerns that OpenAI will usurp Google's business dominance.
Yahoo
25 minutes ago
- Yahoo
As Google AI Takes Over Search, News Sites Lose Clicks and Cut Jobs
Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is drawing criticism from media executives who say its growing use of artificial intelligence is reducing traffic to news outlets, forcing them to rethink their digital strategies and slash jobs. According to a Wall Street Journal report Tuesday, publishers are reporting major declines in referral traffic as Google's AI Overviews and chatbot features increasingly serve answers directly to users eliminating the need to click on search results. The shift from a search engine to an answer engine is real, said The Atlantic's CEO Nicholas Thompson, who added that media companies now have to explore new approaches to stay relevant. Data from analytics firm Similarweb, cited in the report, shows steep drops in organic search traffic across major publishers: HuffPost's desktop and mobile traffic more than halved in the past three years. The Washington Post saw nearly the same level of decline. Business Insider reported a 55% drop and recently laid off 21% of its workforce. The New York Times saw its share of organic search traffic shrink to 36.5% in April 2025, down from almost 44% in 2022. Although The Wall Street Journal's search traffic rose in raw numbers, its share of total traffic dipped to 24% from 29% over the same period. WaPo CEO William Lewis warned that click-free search answers represent a serious threat to journalism. Beyond news, Google's AI tools have also dented traffic to travel guides, health information, and product review pages. The report notes that Google's upcoming AI Mode could hit even harder. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
BP Takeover Appears Unlikely Due to Size and Complexity
BP plc's BP potential takeover appears highly unlikely at present, according to senior bankers at Moelis & Co., who cite the British oil major's vast size and operational complexity as major barriers to acquisition, per a Bloomberg report. Speaking to Bloomberg, Stephen Trauber, Moelis Chairman and Global Head of Energy and Clean Technology, indicated that there is no obvious buyer for BP at present, especially not from the United States. He added that even on a global scale, few potential acquirers see BP's assets as essential. Shell Plc SHEL is seen as the most compatible acquirer in terms of asset synergies and regulatory feasibility, according to Trauber. However, Shell's earlier shift toward traditional oil and gas, and its current stronger market positioning make a deal less attractive from its side. That said, Trauber acknowledged that there is a good chance of a tie-up in the future, particularly if BP's valuation remains subdued and Shell continues to strengthen its balance sheet. In such a scenario, strategic alternatives may need to be reassessed. BP's $20 billion divestment plan is encountering headwinds, with its lubricants unit, Castrol, standing out as a particularly difficult asset to offload. According to Moelis, the business has a narrow pool of potential buyers, making a successful sale uncertain, even under competitive conditions. The company may also consider selling its high-quality oil assets in the United States that may attract strong interest. However, such a move could trigger broader concerns about BP's future strategy, as highlighted by Moelis Managing Director Muhammad Laghari. For now, the consensus among energy dealmakers is that a BP takeover remains a distant prospect. While strategic realignments and market dynamics could change the picture in the future, BP's scale, asset mix and valuation challenges make any near-term acquisition highly improbable. BP currently carries a Zack Rank #5 (Strong Sell). Investors interested in the energy sector may look at a couple of better-ranked stocks like Subsea 7 S.A. SUBCY and Energy Transfer LP ET. Subsea 7 presently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), while Energy Transfer and RPC carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) each. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Subsea 7 helps build underwater oil and gas fields. It is a top player in the Oil and Gas Equipment and Services market, which is expected to grow as oil and gas production moves further offshore. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for SUBCY's 2025 EPS is pegged at $1.31. The company has a Value Score of A. Energy Transfer is poised to benefit from long-term fee-based commitments. It is also focused on expanding operations through organic and inorganic initiatives. The firm is looking for solutions to meet growing energy demands from additional demand centers through its pipeline network. Energy Transfer's systematic investments should boost its total fractionation capacity at Mont Belvieu and raise its top line. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ET's 2025 EPS is pegged at $1.44. The company has a Value Score of A. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BP p.l.c. (BP) : Free Stock Analysis Report Energy Transfer LP (ET) : Free Stock Analysis Report Subsea 7 SA (SUBCY) : Free Stock Analysis Report Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (SHEL) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research ( Zacks Investment Research
