Holding back for more

Good morning. Howard Lutnick puts US chip grants in limbo. Traders are feeling fatigued with all the market volatility. And why the Ivy League is under pressure. Listen to the day’s top stories.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick may withhold Chips Act grants to push companies to expand their US projects, people familiar said. Lutnick aims to generate tens of billions of dollars in additional investment commitments without increasing the size of federal grants. The move comes on the heels of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing’s $100 billion spending pledge. Meanwhile, Donald Trump created a new office to manage the Chips Act’s funds and speed up investments in the US.

As tariffs are set to take effect this week, US automakers made a last-ditch effort to persuade the Trump administration to temper them, contending that levies on the thousands of parts they source abroad may have catastrophic effects on the industry. The fear over a tariff price hike has already prompted car buyers to rush to dealers. One thing’s for sure, the entire focus on Wednesday will be on the White House Rose Garden, where Trump will announce his reciprocal tariff push.

Checking in with markets: global stocks rallied while US futures fell as traders count down to (you guessed it) tariffs to kick in. The Trump administration’s mixed messaging on the levies to be announced tomorrow has caused frustration and fatigue on Wall Street. Not a surprise after the Nasdaq 100’s worst quarter in years.

Big money, big headache. Goldman Sachs’ $80 million retention bonuses for Chief Executive Officer David Solomon and President John Waldron have drawn another prominent critic, with Institutional Shareholder Services urging investors to reject the rewards at an annual meeting. In a separate recommendation late last week, Glass Lewis described the latest bonuses as “excessive.”

Tinder introduced an in-app game that allows users to flirt with artificially intelligent chatbots, aiming to boost user engagement. "The Game Game" uses OpenAI's GPT-4o and GPT-4o mini models to generate romantic comedy scenarios. Still, Tinder isn’t going so far as to introduce an AI companion. Other dating apps such as Grindr have also been testing AI-powered features.

Deep Dive: Ivy League Targeted

Elite American universities are in the spotlight over concerns that the government is suppressing free speech and that funding cuts will damage research and innovation.

Bloomberg Tech: Join top tech decisionmakers and influencers on June 4-5 in San Francisco. Decode technology’s evolving role across business, culture and healthcare as we discuss the advances transforming industries and how they impact society. Learn more.

The Big Take

Trump’s plans to impose sweeping reciprocal tariffs on imports is aimed at addressing perceived unfair trade practices. It’s also sparked fears of a US recession and global slowdown, threatening to dismantle the post-war trading system America helped build.

Subscribe to Stock Movers, your 5-minute podcast on the winners and losers of each trading day.

Opinion

Corporate CEOs don’t have term limits but tech leaders’ unprecedented societal influence does call for some sort of cutoff point, writes Parmy Olson. Companies like Google, OpenAI and Meta are in a category that demands oversight — just as financial firms face their own special regulations.

Before You Go

A volcanic eruption in the southwest corner of Iceland shut down the Blue Lagoon luxury spa and prompted the evacuation of a nearby town. It’s the eighth such event there since late 2023. The capital Reykjavik is about 25 miles away and flights at nearby Keflavik international airport aren’t expected to be affected.

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