Yep this. The actual nose to the grindstone basic research work is often publicly funded but the VC fundraising bragging is often things like jets and swanky offices. The un-sexy work of doing basic research is not something capitalism handles well at all and we expect the government to subsidize it so the VCs can walk in, claim the work of their own, claim it was done via capitalism and the VC process, and then sell themselves as our saviors by creating media outlets that serve them. This is very dystopian and anti-government.