AI Venture Capital
Tracking the unprecedented capital flows into artificial intelligence
$200B+
Total AI funding 2025
Crunchbase, PitchBook
+62%
Year-over-year growth
vs 2024
12
Mega-deals ($1B+)
2025
35%
Share of all VC
Global VC market
The Big Picture
2025 marked the largest year for AI investment in history. Capital concentrated at the top — foundation model companies and infrastructure players captured the lion's share, while vertical AI and applications saw more measured growth.
AI Funding Trajectory (Global)
2023
$67B
2024
$125B
2025
$200B+
The Concentration Effect: The top 10 deals accounted for over 40% of total funding. AI investing has become a barbell — massive bets on potential winners at the top, smaller bets on vertical applications at the bottom, with the middle getting squeezed.
Mega-Deals ($1B+ Rounds)
The billion-dollar rounds that defined 2025's AI funding landscape.
| Company | Amount | Lead Investors | Valuation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Databricks | $10B | Thrive Capital, a]6z | $62B |
| OpenAI | $6.6B | Thrive, Microsoft | $157B |
| xAI | $6B | Valor, a16z, Sequoia | $50B |
| Anthropic | $4B | Amazon, Google | $60B |
| CoreWeave | $1.1B | Coatue, Magnetar | $19B |
| Figure AI | $675M | Microsoft, NVIDIA, Bezos | $2.6B |
| Scale AI | $1B | Accel | $14B |
| Anduril | $1.5B | Founders Fund | $14B |
Valuation Reality Check: Many of these valuations assume continued exponential growth. If AI revenue growth slows or costs don't decrease as expected, down rounds are possible in 2026-2027.
Top AI Investors
The firms and strategics leading AI investment.
a16z
47
AI deals in 2025
Microsoft
$13B+
Total AI investments
Sequoia
38
AI deals in 2025
NVIDIA
$500M+
Strategic investments
Thrive Capital
2
$10B+ leads
Amazon
$4B+
Anthropic investment
Geographic Distribution
AI Funding by Region (2025)
2026 Outlook
What to expect in the year ahead.
Bull Case ($250B+): AI proves enterprise ROI, robotics takes off, infrastructure demand continues, multiple IPOs validate valuations.
Bear Case ($150B): Enterprise adoption slower than expected, efficiency gains reduce compute needs, down rounds shake confidence, regulatory friction increases.
✓ Key Takeaways
✓ 2025 AI funding exceeded $200B — largest year ever
✓ Capital concentrated in top 10 deals (40%+ of total)
✓ US dominates with 65% of global AI funding
✓ Foundation models and infrastructure captured most capital
✓ Strategics (Microsoft, Amazon, NVIDIA) are major players
✓ 2026 outlook depends on enterprise ROI validation