Sam Altman's big bet, a bipartisan push to rein in Big Tech, and Fido is probably older than you think

Hello! Two quick things:

Do you like crypto, Sequoia Capital, and D2C founders? Then the newest episode of StrictlyVC Download is for you. It has a light sprinkling of all of these things, plus a chat with Greg Poulin, a SaaS entrepreneur who is facing what could be a breakout year (if all goes as planned).

Giant thanks to TechCrunch for sponsoring this week's episode. Note that TechCrunch Sessions Space, a two-day virtual event, is coming up on December 14th and 15th, featuring the startups, researchers, investors and technologists who are turning science fiction into reality. TC is inviting the first 20 StrictlyVC listeners to register for free at TechCrunch.com/space using promo code StrictlyVC. 

Speaking of events, we were told earlier tonight by one dismayed reader that our pre-holiday event next Thursday night is sold out. To give some of you laggards a chance, we're making one last handful of tickets available. More Monday.:)

* The House passed a $1 trillion bill tonight to rebuild the country’s aging public works system, fund new climate resilience initiatives and expand access to high-speed internet service, giving final approval to a central plank of President Biden’s economic agenda after a daylong drama that pitted moderate Democrats against progressives, reports the New York Times.

* Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) today introduced legislation that would make it easier for regulators to block large tech companies from buying up rivals or nascent competitors, the latest display of the bipartisan push in Congress to rein in the tech industry. The Platform Competition and Opportunity Act takes aim at large tech giants’ strategy of gaining dominance through buying other companies. The Washington Post has more here.

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Earlier this week, Thirteen Lune, a direct-to-consumer beauty platform that was launched last year in L.A. with $1 million in seed funding from Diddy, Gwyneth Paltrow and Beautycounter founder Gregg Renfrew, announced $3 million in additional seed funding. We might not normally pause on this kind of development, especially in a market where dozens of startups are announcing funding every day, but this deal stood out for a few reasons beyond its celebrity backing.

First, its co-founder is Nyakio Grieco, a veteran of the cosmetics industry who earlier launched a skin-care brand that she sold to Sundial Brands, which is now part of Unilever. Her new e-commerce platform sells products from 100 different brands, 90% of which were founded by Black, Indigenous, and people of color. And the outfit leading the financing is Fearless Fund, a venture firm that was founded by women of color and is making its mark by focusing exclusively on backing women of color.

Also very interesting: a tie-up with JCPenney that immediately gives Thirteen Lune the kind of reach that most nascent startups can only dream about. JCPenney long partnered with Sephora, but Sephora’s contract with JCPenney is expiring in 2023, and it chose not to renew, leaving the retailer — which last year survived going bankrupt — with space to fill. Going into those spots right now are in-store “JCPenney Beauty” shops, and Thirteen Lune is a featured part of that offering, with 10 locations already up and running and plans for 600 more locations by the end of 2023.

Put together, the pieces add up to what Thirteen Lune is characterizing, persuasively, as among one of the first truly inclusive beauty platforms. Grieco told us a bit more this week, though she declined to answer questions about the financial mechanics of the JCPenney deal, citing a confidentiality agreement with the outfit.

More here.

* Helion Energy, an 11-year-old, Seattle-based clean energy company committed to creating a new era of plentiful, zero-carbon electricity from fusion, has raised $500 million in Series E funding led by Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, and an earlier backer of the company (and its chairman). Altman reportedly poured a whopping $375 million into the round -- his largest investment in a startup ever. Other earlier backers also participated, include Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz, Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital and notable sustainable tech investor Capricorn Investment Group. The funding includes commitments of an additional $1.7 billion dollars tied to Helion reaching key performance milestones. TechCrunch has more here.

* Lime, the nearly five-year-old, San Francisco-based shared electric micro mobility company, has closed on $523 million in convertible debt and term loan financing, money that Lime CEO Wayne Ting tells TechCrunch is the next step on the company’s path to going public next year. Of that total, $418 million is made up of convertible debt led by Abu Dhabi Growth Fund, Fidelity Management & Research Company, Uber and certain funds managed by Highbridge Capital Management. That debt will convert into shares automatically when Lime goes public. The remaining $105 million comes in as a senior secured term loan facility from the private credit group UBS O’Connor. Lime would not reveal the terms of the loan. Fidelity and Uber are among Lime’s largest previous investors. More here.

* Reltio, a 10-year-old, Redwood City, Ca.-based master data management platform, has raised $120 million in funding led by Brighton Park Capital, with participation from earlier backers Crosslink Capital, NewView Capital, RPS Ventures, Sapphire Ventures, and .406 Ventures. The company has now raised $237 million in total funding and says it is valued at roughly $1.7 billion.
VentureBeat has more here.

* GlycoEra, an 11-month-old, Zurich, Switzerland-based glycoengineering platform, has raised $49 million in Series A funding co-led by 5AM Ventures, Roche Venture Fund and Sofinnova Partners. FierceBiotech has more here.

* GeoWealth, an 11-year-old, Chicago-based asset management program for advisers, has raised $19 million in Series B funding. Kayne Partners led the round, joined by earlier backer JPMorgan Asset Management. More here.

* VNTANA, a nine-year-old, L.A.-based company whose content management system helps e-commerce retailers show off products in 3D, has raised $12.5 million in Series A funding. Investors in the round include Mark Cuban, Anorak Ventures, Flexport and Oculus cofounder Brandon Iribe. TechCrunch has more here.

* AKUA, a 4.5-year-old, New York-based startup that makes kelp burgers, jerky, and pasta, has raised $3.2 million in seed funding led by Vibrant Ventures. TechCrunch has more here.

* Guardians Collective, a young, San Francisco-based startup that brings together small groups of families and pairs them with an early childhood educator, has raised $3.5 million in seed funding led by Reach Capital, with participation from Impact America Fund and Gary Philanthropies. TechCrunch has more here.

* MilkRun, a three-year-old, Portland, Ore.-based grocery staples subscription service, has raised $6 million in Series A funding. Spark Capital led the round, joined by Rise of the Rest, Social Impact Capital and Congruent VC. TechCrunch has more here.

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March Capital, the seven-year-old, L.A.-based, enterprise-focused venture firm, is already looking to $600 million for a fourth fund, shows an SEC filing. The firm, which counts former investment banker Jamie Montgomery among its cofounders, announced in January of this year that it had closed its third fund with $450 million in capital commitments. More here.

Security-software company McAfee is nearing a deal to sell itself to a group including private-equity firms Advent International Corp. and Permira for more than $10 billion, says the WSJ.

* One day after a former female executive at Rivian revealed her gender discrimination lawsuit against the company, the electric automaker has raised the expected IPO price of its shares, revealing in a new securities filing plans to offer 135 million shares priced between $72 and $74, up from $57 to $62. At the top end of that current range, and assuming underwriters exercise an option to purchase 20.25 million additional shares, Rivian would be worth more than $65 billion, says CNBC. More here.

* Bird, the nearly five-year-old, Santa Monica, Ca.-based firm that makes and rents electric scooters, ended its first full day as a publicly traded company with its stock price up by a fraction of a percent at $8.40 per share. By merging with Switchback II, a special purpose acquisition company, Bird skipped the traditional IPO process to list on the New York Stock Exchange. Now closed, the deal put a combined $414 million in cash and credit at the scooter company's disposal — minus fees related to the merger, Bird said today. Dot.LA has more here.

Michael Rubin's big shot.

* NFT.NYC, a gathering for nonfungible token enthusiasts, offers a taste of a crypto-filled future. “I met so many people online in the past year, and they’re all here,” a Chicago-based advertising executive who moonlights as a NFT collector, tells the New York Times. “I’m with my people, and I don’t have to hold back or translate.”

* Meta (formerly Facebook) has discussed opening physical retail stores to showcase its augmented and virtual reality products.

* What happens to used electric car batteries.

* How a concussion can affect the brain's ability to understand sound.

* The secret lives of cells, as never seen before.

* This is how old your dog really is in human years.

A sweatshirt collection with vintage vibes.

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