The Saturday Morning Newsletter #85
Artemis II Splash Down!, Killing America’s Golden Goose, and Plastic Ice Rinks
This Week I’m Tracking: 11 developments across the sectors shaping our future
Reading Time: 5 minutes of curated insights
Your weekly pulse check: The most important events in venture capital, energy, space, economics, intellectual property, philosophy, and more. I distill the most important developments across sectors I track, saving you hours of research while keeping you ahead of the curve.
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Let’s dive in.
#1: Patlytics
Description: Patlytics is an AI platform for patent law.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Patlytics recently raised $40M in venture capital funding. Patlytics is a company I’ve been following for a couple of years. Their software helps lawyers draft patent applications, pursue legal actions, and file claims more easily. In an era of intellectual property appreciation, this model is increasingly valuable and is likely to grow rapidly.
Description: Portal Space Systems is a developer of solar thermal propulsion systems.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Portal Space Systems recently raised $50M in venture capital funding. How do we move things in space? Initially, we relied on the traditional method of burning fossil fuels, which only works as long as you have enough on board. Portal Space is proposing a new technology powered by solar thermal energy, creating a renewable energy source capable of easily moving objects in orbit.
#3: TerraSpark
Description: TerraSpark is a producer of space-based energy systems.
Why Is This Company Interesting? TerraSpark recently raised $5M in venture capital funding. I would estimate this is the fourth or fifth space-based solar power beamed to Earth startup I’ve written about in as many weeks. Given the vast energy needs on Earth, many are looking for solutions on and above Earth. Space-based solar offers many efficiencies; the only downside is the distance from Earth, but significant advances have helped reduce inefficiencies in this gap.
#4: Starcloud
Description: Starcloud aims to build solar-powered data centers in space.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Starcloud recently raised $170M in venture capital funding. As data center demand continues to increase, the cost to build decreases, and energy costs increase, the economics for space-based data centers make more and more sense. Starcloud is creating the initial infrastructure for these projects, striving to be first to market to prove out the technology.
#5: Standing Ovation
Description: Standing Ovation is a precision fermentation startup.
Why Is This Company Interesting? Standing Ovation recently raised $25M in venture capital funding. Standing Ovation is a developer of alternative proteins using a proprietary fermentation process. They create non-meat proteins, including dairy- and vegan-based options, for use in other food products to bolster their protein content.
Gizmodo: Should We Be Hyped Or Freaked Out About Nuclear Microreactors?
Nuclear microreactors are a newer, widespread innovation in the nuclear sphere, as commercial and government entities wish to provide flexible, movable energy to areas. Each reactor can power towns and cities, just as larger reactors do. These reactors pose a greater risk because they aren’t always fixed in place, which can encourage nuclear proliferation.
The New York Times: Enthusiasts Turn to Plastic Instead of Ice
For places with outdoor ice rinks, a newly proposed solution is to install new rinks made of high-density polyethylene, rather than resorting to expensive ice maintenance and upkeep. This material is more durable, easy to assemble, cheap to maintain, and performs almost exactly like ice. It’s an interesting concept for curbing climate change that I hadn’t considered.
The New York Times: Artemis Astronauts Splash Down
On Friday, the four astronauts aboard the Artemis II rocket splashed down off the coast of California. This ended their 10-day mission to circle the Moon and back, proving the technology’s capabilities for a future Moon landing. This is arguably one of the biggest space milestones in over 50 years, a monumental feat.
The Wall Street Journal: Artemis Astronauts Go Farther Than Any Human
Mid-flight, the four Artemis astronauts traveled to a new record distance from Earth: 248,655 miles. That surpassed the milestone set by Apollo 13. “‘We, most importantly, choose this moment to challenge this generation and the next to make sure this record is not long-lived,’ said Jeremy Hansen, the Artemis astronaut representing the Canadian Space Agency, after the crew set the new distance milestone.”
Fortune: Risk Killing America’s Golden Goose By Taxing University Research
Many lobbyists are promoting the idea of taxing the income universities earn from licensing their intellectual property. However, opponents argue that this is contrary to universities’ goals: creating and fostering intelligence and intellectual curiosity. It’s unclear at this point if any laws will be enacted, but this is a highly contentious issue in the intellectual property sector.
ZME Science: Japan Just Switched on Asia’s First Osmotic Power Plant
If you’re a cool new technology nerd like I am, you’ll enjoy this one quite a lot. Japan has recently gone live with its new power plant powered by osmosis.
This plant generates electricity in a unique way, by mixing fresh water with salt water. This is only the second plant of its kind in the world, capable of powering a nearby desalination plant and supplying power to around 200 homes.
It works by putting fresh water on one side of the membrane. On the other side is seawater. The difference in saltiness pulls the fresh water across the membrane, increasing the pressure on the saltwater side. This pressure is used to turn a turbine, generating electricity.
Isn’t that an interesting use of a technology you learned about in biology class?
I love it when humans find unique solutions to problems that affect the entire population in an interesting yet simple way.
That’s a wrap on this week’s roundup.
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Drew Jackson
Founder & Writer
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Next Deep Dive: Opponents: Is Venture Capital the Best Asset Class? - April 15th, 2026
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