Business Insider has appointed Merrick Musolf as Senior Vice President to lead its Big Tech sales team. Musolf returns to the company after previously driving West Coast advertising revenue growth from 2019 to 2023. Before joining Business Insider, Musolf worked on the agency side, managing media investments for technology brands including Microsoft and Dell. He also practised law as a prosecutor before transitioning to advertising. During his earlier stint at Business Insider, he played a key role in securing Google's business. "He is a thoughtful leader, a strategic partner, and someone who genuinely enjoys building high-performing teams," said Anthony DeMaio, SVP, Global Head of Brand Partnerships. Musolf will be based in San Francisco.

Axel Springer has appointed Christian Baesler as permanent CEO of Business Insider, the outlet confirmed. Baesler, who joined as interim chief in June, plans to reinvent the nearly 20-year-old publication for a post-search and social media era. The company is expanding beyond web traffic, with audiences across newsletters, events, YouTube (over 10 million subscribers), and recently launched streaming platforms. Business Insider will focus on direct sales and subscriptions through four verticals: Markets Insider, AI Insider, Small Business Insider, and CMO Insider. Axel Springer acquired Business Insider in 2015 for $442 million. The German media giant, which also owns Politico and Morning Brew in the US, says it remains committed to the publication's long-term success despite recent struggles.

Business Insider has hired Katie Roof as Editor at Large to cover venture capital and tech finance. Roof joins from The Information, where she served as Deputy Bureau Chief, and will also become part of the Axel Springer Global Reporters Network as a Global Reporter. Roof has built a reputation for breaking news on venture deals and moves at companies including SpaceX, OpenAI, Waymo and Anthropic. She previously worked at Bloomberg and won an LA Press Club award for her team's SpaceX reporting. Based in Business Insider's San Francisco office, Roof will report to Tech Executive Editor Leena Rao and work alongside Tech Executive Editor Ben Bergman. The hire reflects Business Insider's continued investment in exclusive reporting and deep sourcing across business and technology coverage.