Do we like them?

Do we like Pinterest?

Visual discovery and shopping social platform; based in San Francisco, California.

Our score: 6 out of 10. A fairly benign platform with a mixed record: big workplace-bias settlements and the Molly Russell case, but real safety moves since. We'd back it cautiously.

Pinterest was co-founded by Ben Silbermann, who ran it for about 12 years. In 2022 ex-Google and PayPal exec Bill Ready took over as CEO, pushing the site towards shopping, and Silbermann stayed on as executive chairman.

The company's biggest culture scandal came in 2020. Ex-COO Françoise Brougher sued over gender discrimination, and Pinterest agreed to pay her $20 million. It also put $2.5 million into boosting under-represented groups in tech.

Shareholders then alleged leadership fostered a culture of bias. Pinterest settled the case and agreed to spend $50 million on workplace reforms. That included releasing former employees from NDAs so they can talk about mistreatment.

The darkest chapter is the 2022 Molly Russell inquest. The coroner said the 14-year-old died from self-harm while suffering from depression and the negative effects of online content. A Pinterest exec said he deeply regretted what she could see, and the company promised stricter self-harm rules.

More recently, CBS reported Pinterest cut 15% of staff to invest in AI, then fired two engineers who built a layoff tracker. The company said they accessed confidential data without authorization. Overall we'd say a decent, middling 6.