Howard Lutnick wants the U.S. government to get a cut of university patent revenue, or even commercial revenue derived from those patents, he tells Axios' Mike Allen on tomorrow's premier episode of "The Axios Show."

Why it matters: This could disrupt the startup ecosystem, particularly in biotech.

What Lutnick said: "I think universities, who are getting all this money. The scientists get the patents, the universities get the patents and the funder of $50 billion, the U.S. government, you know what we get? Zero."

• "The U.S. government gives someone $50 million and let's say they invent a drug, a patent, the drug, and it's worth $50 million," he continued. "Why did they make the 50 and we lost 50? We should get our money back and participate."
• "Then what'll happen is our Social Security system will be paid for and we won't be a broke country running $2 trillion deficits."
• Lutnick adds that he sent Harvard a letter to this effect last week, but the school didn't respond to Axios' request for comment. He also plans to send letters to "the California system" this week.

What to know: Lots of VC-backed startups have their roots in government-funded academic research, and sometimes pay universities to license patents.

• But the amounts tend to be relatively small (i.e., not nearly enough to solve Social Security's solvency issues).
• For example, Harvard University received just $54 million in commercialization revenue for fiscal 2024, down from $107 million during fiscal 2024. And that's for all of its labs, not just those receiving grants from the NIH or other federal sources.
• Moreover, Harvard and other schools tend to reinvest that money into research.

Zoom in: The Commerce Department isn't clarifying if Lutnick meant that the U.S. government should receive actual equity stakes in startups, or other companies commercializing such patents.

• If so, it would change the math for venture capitalists whose money is required to move those ideas from the lab to the market. A possible chilling effect.

The bottom line: Every White House wants a return on its investments. Usually, however, it's in the form of improving national health or national security — taxpayer dollars benefiting taxpayers.

• For Lutnick and others in Trump 2.0, it's more about the actual dollars.

Klarna, a Swedish buy-now-pay-later company, raised $1.37 billion in its IPO that priced above its anticipated range.

Why it's the BFD: We're in the midst of what's expected to be the busiest week for U.S. IPOs since 2021, and Klarna is by far the largest offering.

By the numbers: Klarna priced 34.3 million shares (85% secondary) at $40 per share, after having set a $35-$37 range. Its initial valuation is around $15.2 billion.

• It had been valued at more than $46 billion by VCs in 2021, but one year later raised at just $6.7 billion.

Cap table: The company had raised over $4b from firms like Sequoia Capital, Heartland, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Silver Lake, GIC, HMI Capital, Mubadala, UBS, Skandia, Atomico, Ant Group, Harvest Growth Capital, and IVP.

The bottom line: Klarna began life as a pure-play BNPL, but is seeking to become more of a full-service digital bank.

• PsiQuantum, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based developer of quantum computers, raised $1b in Series E funding at a $7b valuation. BlackRock, Temasek, and Baillie Gifford led, joined by Macquarie Capital, Ribbit Capital, NVentures, Adage Capital Management, Qatar Investment Authority, Type One Ventures, Counterpoint Global (Morgan Stanley), 1789 Capital, S Ventures and insiders Blackbird, Third Point Ventures, and T. Rowe Price. axios.link/4me2fNo

🚑 Strive Health, a Denver-based kidney care startup, raised $300m in Series D equity funding. NEA led, joined by CVS Health Ventures, CapitalG, Echo Health Ventures, and Town Hall Ventures. axios.link/4gnu4Sa

🚑 Harbor Health, an Austin, Texas-based clinic group and insurer, raised $130m from General Catalyst, 8VC, Alta Partners, and DFO Management. axios.link/4m1fyAt

• Aven, a provider of home equity–backed credit cards, raised $110m in Series E funding at a $2.2b post-money valuation. Khosla Ventures led, joined by insiders General Catalyst, Caffeinated Capital, GIC, Electric Capital, and Founders Fund. axios.link/48eKJF8

• CuspAP, a developer of AI models for chemistry, raised over $100m in Series A funding. NEA and Temasek led, joined by NVentures, Samsung Ventures, Hyundai Motor Group, Basis Set Ventures, FJ Labs, Giant Ventures, LocalGlobe, Northzone, Prosus Ventures, Tiferes Ventures, and Touring Capital. axios.link/3JVCjZh

🚑 Cutiss, a Swiss developer of regenerative skin therapies, raised €57.9m in Series C funding led by the family office of Giammaria Giuliani and a U.S. family represented by Shiloh Advisors. axios.link/46eHfzQ

🚑 ProteanTecs, an Israeli chip monitoring platform for health electronics, raised $51m in Series D funding. IAG Capital Partners led, joined by Samsung Catalyst Fund, Arm and Siemens. axios.link/4mSSzc1

• Higgsfield.ai, an SF-based video reasoning engine, raised $50m in Series A funding. GFT Ventures led, joined by BroadLight Capital, NextEquity Partners, AI Capital Partners, Menlo Ventures, and Alpha Square Group. axios.link/47BLOa2

🚑 Predoc, a New York-based health information management company, raised $30m. Base10 Partners led, joined by Northzone, Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator, and Eniac Ventures. axios.link/41O9x2V

🚑 Ridge Biotechnologies, a Palo Alto-based antibody conjugates developer, raised $25m in seed funding. Sutter Hill Ventures led, joined by Overlap Holdings. axios.link/4mVFGy7

🚑 Tern Group, a British workforce platform for health care, raised $24m in Series A funding. Notion Capital led, joined by LocalGlobe, EQ2 Ventures, Leo Capita, and PreSight Capital. axios.link/4gi57HG

🚑 Teton.ai, a Danish eldercare company, raised $20m in Series A funding. Plural led, joined by Bertelsmann Investments, Antler Elevate, Nebular, and PSV Tech. axios.link/467j9IR

⚡ ️Sapphire Technologies, a Cyprus, Calif.-based power generation startup, raised an $18m Series C from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, alongside existing investors Equinor Ventures, Cooper and Company, and Energy Capital Ventures. axios.link/4pi8u5u

• Red Access, an enterprise browser security startup, raised $17m in Series A funding. Norwest Venture Partners led, joined by Ten Eleven Ventures, SentinelOne's S Ventures, Elron Ventures, and Singtel Innov8 Ventures. axios.link/4mUq3qu

⚡ Proxima Fusion, a German nuclear fusion startup, raised €15m in Series A extension funding from CDP Venture Capital, the European Innovation Council Fund, and Brevan Howard Macro Venture Fund. axios.link/3JVi51R

⚡ ️LeydenJar, a Dutch developer of silicon anode for lithium-ion batteries, raised €13m in equity funding led by Extantia and Invest-NL. axios.link/45XwN0V

🚑 Lightspun, a Boston-based dental insurance administration startup, raised $13m in Series A funding, per Axios Pro. Brewer Lane led, joined by Virtue, Cambrian, and Industry Ventures. axios.link/488eNSU

• Adaptive Security, a New York-based cybersecurity startup focused on deepfake and phishing attacks, raised $12m in Series A extension funding from OpenAI Startup Fund. axios.link/4gguQ3f

• Standard Fleet, a fleet management platform for connected-vehicles, raised $13m in Series A funding led by Nova Threshold. standardfleet.com

⚡ Nuclearn, a Phoenix-based AI platform for nuclear professionals and critical infrastructure operators, raised $10.5m in Series A funding. Blue Bear Capital led, joined by SJF Ventures, AZ-VC, and Nucleation Capital. axios.link/3VbTSXw

• Metal, an operating system for private market investors, raised $5m led by Base10 Partners. metal.ai

• Mazlo, a banking platform specifically for nonprofit finance, raised $4.6m from Westbound Equity Partners, super{set}, Social Good Fund, a16z, and Charles Oppenheimer. mazlo.com

• Aurva, an access monitoring and AI observability platform, raised $2.2m in seed funding. Nexus Venture Partners led, joined by DeVC. axios.link/46lAOeK

• Mercor, the data-labeling company currently in a legal dispute with Scale AI, is in talks to raise Series C funding at a $10b valuation, per TechCrunch. axios.link/3JWHrwi

• Reflection AI, a superintelligence startup led by a pair of ex-DeepMind researchers, is in talks to raise around $1b at a $5.5b valuation, per the FT. NVentures is expected to lead, joined by Lightspeed, Sequoia Capital, and DST Global. axios.link/41OZRp0

• Anaplan, a Miami-based portfolio company of Thoma Bravo, acquired Syrup Tech, an inventory forecasting platform for brands that had raised $25m from firms like Accel, Gradient Ventures, and Flybridge Capital Partners. anaplan.com

• Bansk agreed to acquire a majority stake in skin-care brand Byoma from Yellow Wood Partners. Axios Pro flashback

• Chamberlain Group, backed by Blackstone, completed its acquisition of Arrow Tru-Line, a maker of overhead garage door hardware components, from MiddleGround Capital. chamberlaingroup.com

🚑 DeepIntent, a New York-based health-care advertising platform, raised $637m from Vitruvian Partners. axios.link/48f7lFw

⚡ EnCap Flatrock invested to help form Aspen Midstream, focused on natural gas transmission and last-mile solutions in North America. aspenmidstream.com

• Leaf Home, a Gridiron Capital portfolio company, acquired rival residential services provider Erie Home. axios.link/41JPgLU

• PAI Partners agreed to acquire Orion, an Italian provider of environmental monitoring services, from Xenon Private Equity. axios.link/4peR2P5

• Polycorp, an engineered elastomer manufacturer owned by Arsenal Capital Partners, acquired Burke Industries, a San Jose, Calif.-based supplier of custom elastomeric products, from Mannington Mills. poly-corp.com

• Rhône acquired Copperweld, a Brentwood, Tenn.-based maker of bimetallic wiring products, from Kinderhook Industries. axios.link/4mVzAh2

• Shenandoah, an underground infrastructure company owned by GenNx360 Capital Partners, acquired Nu-Pipe, a Mt. Pleasant, S.C.-based provider of pipe rehabilitation services. shenandoahus.com

• Bain Capital GSS Investment, a SPAC formed by Bain Capital, filed for a $400m IPO. axios.link/4pi9eaM

• Gemini, a crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, increased IPO terms to 16.7m shares at $24-$26. It would have a $3.1b fully diluted valuation, were it to price in the middle, and also will receive a $50m concurrent investment from Nasdaq. Backers include Morgan Creek Digital. axios.link/4me0nUS

• Figure, a consumer lending platform led by Mike Cagney (ex-SoFi), increased its IPO terms to 31.5m shares at $20-$22. Original terms were 26.3m shares at $18-$20. It plans to list on the Nasdaq (FIGR) and has raised around $425m, most recently in 2021 at a $3.2b valuation, from backers like DST Global Partners, Ribbit Capital, DCM, and Morgan Creek Digital. axios.link/4pgK8sN

• Pattern Group, a Lehi, Utah-based online reseller for consumer brands, set IPO terms to 21.4m shares at $13-$15. It would have a $2.46b market cap, were it to price in the middle, and plans to list on the Nasdaq (PTRN). The company has raised over $270m from firms like KSV and Knox Lane. axios.link/4nscfUg

⚡ Talon Capital, an energy SPAC formed by CSL Capital founder Charles Leykum, raised $225m in its IPO. axios.link/4oEiVA3

• Bain Capital agreed to sell its China data centers business to a unit of HEC-Group for around $4b. axios.link/4nkql9X

🚑 Centurium Capital is weighing a sale of Chinese drugmaker Taibang Biologic, which could be valued at around $6b, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4mdZQSS

🚑 HCI Equity Partners agreed to sell health-care logistics provider SDS Rx to DHL Supply Chain. sds-rx.com

• Levine Leichtman Capital Partners is seeking to sell its stake in London-based debt administrator GLAS, per Reuters. axios.link/4phsDZe

• Red Dog Equity sold Superior Waste Industries, a Shawnee, Okla.-based environmental services firm, to GFL Environmental (NYSE: GFL). axios.link/46cH4Fr

• Robert W. Baird agreed to acquire a minority stake in Canadian alternative asset manager Sagard. axios.link/41JMGWn

• Bending Spoons, owner of Evernote, Meetup and Brightcove, agreed to acquire video hoster Vimeo (Nasdaq: VMEA) for around $1.38b in cash. axios.link/4ma4dOH

⚡ Cenovus Energy (TSX: CVE) sold its 50% stake in a U.S. refinery unit to JV partner Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) for $1.4b. axios.link/464XShm

• Coinbase (Nasdaq: COIN) acqui-hired the founders of consumer DeFi startup Sensible. axios.link/469e6Gj

⚡ Engie (Paris: ENGI) hired Morgan Stanley to sell a minority stake in its Brazilian power lines business, per Bloomberg. axios.link/47CxRbN

• FGS Global, a corp comms firm, acquired Tarplin, Downs & Young, a Washington, D.C.-based health-care policy and advocacy firm. fgsglobal.com

• Magnite (Nasdaq: MGNI) acquired Streamr.ai, a provider of connected TV advertising tools. axios.link/4geSVY5

• Gemini Investors, a lower midmarket PE firm, is raising $75m for its eighth fund, per an SEC filing. gemini-investors.com

• Summit Peak Ventures of Ft. Worth, Texas, is raising $150m for its fourth fund, per an SEC filing. axios.link/47C4FSq

• Yachad Capital Partners, a VC firm focused on Israeli startups seeking to access U.S. markets, held a first close on its $25m-targeted debut fund. yachad.co

• Osama Al-Adhamy joined 17Capital as a managing director focused on MENA. He previously was with JPMorgan Asset Management. axios.link/3V4Qhup

• Serena Dayal (ex-SoftBank Vision Fund) and Avi Golan (ex-CEO of Sygnia) joined Athena Capital as investment partners. axios.link/4nfTOBS

• Thomas Dundon joined Eden Global Partners. He previously was a managing director in BofA's private capital and family office group. axios.link/3V5sASJ

• Regan Gilbride joined Eagle Point Credit Management as managing director of client and partner solutions. She previously as with HPS Investment Partners. axios.link/3VKFG7W

• JPMorgan named three new chairs of global investment banking: Howard Chen, Charlie Dupree, and Fred Turpin. axios.link/4m4l2dN

• Chris Miller (ex-Palladium Capital) and Rahul Sawhney (Capital Z) joined Aterian Investment Partners as managing directors. aterianpartners.com

• Kate Simpson joined outsourced CIO firm GEM as a managing director and head of venture capital. She previously was a partner with TrueBridge Capital Partners. axios.link/3IfRz2C

• JT Taylor joined Accrual Equity Partners as managing partner. He previously led auto retail investment banking at Truist Securities. axios.link/4pdaGLu

Unilever's ice cream unit spinoff is moving forward, but the founders of Ben & Jerry's are hoping to scoop out their namesake brand.

• Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, who no longer control or run the Vermont-based business, are asking that Ben & Jerry's be spun out into an independent company owned by investors who share its "founding values" in areas like social justice.
• They write in a public letter: "The strength of Ben & Jerry's has always been its authenticity, and moves to strip that away risk destroying the very value that you are buying into."
• Magnum's CEO, however, doesn't seem interested.