AI frenzy leads US venture capital to biggest splurge in three years

The startups in the United States collect more cash at any time since 2021 thanks to the investor’s Bullishness about artificial intelligence, but the investment capital market has been sharply inclined to finance a handful of huge private technology companies.

More than $ 30 billion has been invested in the already emerging groups in this quarter, according to Pitchbook data. There is an additional amount of $ 50 billion in the railback collection, as investment capital owners work on a series of major deals that include Openai, Safe Superintelligence and Defeense Tech Start-UP-THER Staril.

He pushed enthusiasm for artificial intelligence to investors to spend their fastest rate since its peak on the market in 2021, the period in which 358 billion dollars was immersed to technical groups, which led to unrealistic evaluation.

But VC groups believe that this investment cycle will be different. “Artificial intelligence is a transformative power that makes these companies better,” said Hymanet Taniga, CEO of General Kumalst, one of the largest project companies in Silicon Valley.

“The way to think about it is” Can these companies grow 10x in terms of they? “The answer to all of these is yes, so it is reasonably priced.”

After the recession for two years, the American donation collection jumped to about 80 billion dollars in the last quarter of 2024, according to Pitchbook data. This represents the fourth quarter since 2021. But only six large deals – included Openai, Xai, Databricks and others – representing 40 percent of this total.

He added: “It is a group of very elite companies that lead the VC investment.”

On the basis of already closed deals and those who expect to do this in the coming weeks, the first quarter of this year is scheduled to see similar levels of investment – which makes it the best first quarter of donations since 2022.

In the past two weeks alone, Fintech Companies Stripe and RAMP have announced funding rounds of 91.5 billion dollars and $ 13 billion, respectively, and AI, anthropologist and shields of artificial intelligence have dug deals worth $ 61.5 billion and $ 5.3 billion, respectively.

VCS also works on a series of huge investments. Openai is holding talks with Softbank to raise $ 40 billion with a rating of $ 260 billion, which will be the largest financing round ever, exceeding the investment of $ 10 billion in Databricks at late last year.

Anduril, founded by Palmer Loki, is taking places to raise at least $ 2 billion with a value of $ 30 billion, more than twice the evaluation it achieved in a financing round last summer, according to two people aware of the issue. Andoril refused to comment.

These firmly firm companies have annual revenues of hundreds of millions or billions of dollars and grow quickly. This makes it relatively safe stakes, according to Taneja from General Kumalst, who supported Andrill, anthropor, slope and tape.

He said: “It is a very mysterious thing as the money will be made in artificial intelligence, so that a lot of capital ends with a focus on those companies that are the leaders of the categories with the base of a customer and large markets.”

But the excitement of artificial intelligence also strengthened the younger companies without revenues, and in some cases, there is no product.

Last year, the co -founder and chief former scientist in Openai, with a value of $ 1 billion, rated $ 5 billion in 2024, was in talks to raise a new capital with a value of $ 30 billion or more, according to two direct knowledge of the deal. It has not yet announced a product. SSI refused to comment.

The huge financing rounds that are implemented are a significant departure from the traditional investment capitalism, which targets and is governed by the “Energy Law”, which provides for the best start in a portfolio more than paying the losses from the rest that fails.

“We have always thought [a venture fund’s] Stanford of Pitchbook said:

In a largely tested experience, this logic is now applied to companies that are more sized and more advanced orders by a new strain than what Pseudo-VCS calls.

This includes Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital, General Catalyst and Lightspeed Venture Partners, which all invested in more than one large round in recent weeks. All three companies are registered investment consultants, allowing them to invest in a wide range of asset classes and complicated companies after their publication.

Stanford said that each of the three groups also raised money worth $ 5 billion, which gave them “a sufficient measure to invest in startups with a value of one billion dollars and a 15 -year formulation of 15 billion dollars, and invested in multiple ways along the road.”

According to Sibititian Malabi, author of the book ” PowerThe conviction is that even the most emerging start -up companies can still expand 10 times, “which enables the fund managers to rush with great enthusiasm to expel the names and says,” Who cares about what I pay? I am a genius in this name. “

Although the chances of the company’s firm failure are lower, Malabi is cautious, as well as the possibilities that will increase its evaluation ten times or a hundred times. “The habits that have worked well in investing in the early stage must be adapted to much larger tours.”

Stanford said the large financing rounds in the discussion today represent a “completely different pattern from the project ever.”

The peak of VC was marked in 2021 with an increasing wave of round sizes and evaluation: there were about 854 deals worth $ 100 million or larger that year, according to Kotk. This year, the total investment tracks approximately 2021 levels, but the market is increasingly unbalanced.

“If you are Openai or Anduril-which is high-growth, its name is the brand-you are in a very good position. Money there is for you. Stanford said:” If you are on the other side, as most companies do, the money is not present. ”

“It may end up at $ 80 billion [raised this quarter]But $ 40 billion of this is just one tour. . . Even extremist values ​​in 2021 were small compared to that. “

Additional reports by Christina Credl in San Francisco