The global venture capital market concluded 2025 at a historic high: in the fourth quarter, the total investment reached $138.1 billion, marking the highest quarterly figure in the last 3.5 years. Overall, for the year 2025, the volume of venture financing exceeded $500 billion, confirming the strong dynamics of the industry despite overall economic uncertainty. This data is presented in the Venture Pulse Q4 2025 report by KPMG.
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Key Trends in the Venture Market in 2025
While the volume of venture investments increased, the number of deals decreased. In the fourth quarter of 2025, there were 7,981 deals amounting to $138.1 billion. In comparison, the third quarter recorded 9,434 deals totaling $125.6 billion. This indicates a trend towards larger rounds, where capital is concentrated in bigger, more mature projects rather than being spread across numerous small startups.
By the end of the year, venture investments exceeded $500 billion, making 2025 one of the three most successful years in the history of the global VC funding market.
Corporate venture capital also significantly increased its activity: CVC investments reached $77 billion, demonstrating the growing involvement of large corporations in supporting innovative startups and technology platforms.
Artificial Intelligence and Regional Features
Artificial intelligence (AI) remains the main driver of venture investments. In the fourth quarter of 2025, eight American AI companies raised over $1 billion each. Among the largest deals were: Anthropic ($15 billion), Project Prometheus ($6.2 billion), Anysphere ($2.3 billion), and Reflection AI ($2 billion). Investment growth in AI was also observed in other countries: in Australia (Firmus Technologies — $541 million), China (Didi Autonomous Driving — $280 million), Japan (Mujin — $235 million), and in Europe (Brevo — $578 million, Black Forest Labs — $300 million, Synthesia — $200 million).
“The year 2025 ended with high volumes of venture investments, large technology rounds, and an increasing role of corporate investors. Investors are becoming more selective, but strongly focused on scalable, profitable, and technologically promising projects.”
America remains the leader in investment volumes: in the US, venture funding in the fourth quarter amounted to $91.15 billion, driven by large investments in the AI sector. The European market maintained stability with a total volume of $21.1 billion and active participation from the UK, Germany, France, and other countries. Asia showed improvement to $21.4 billion in the fourth quarter, but the overall level remains below historical figures due to geopolitical instability and trade disputes.
The exit segment (IPOs and mergers and acquisitions) also demonstrates positive dynamics: in the fourth quarter, the value of exits reached $178 billion, providing increased liquidity in the venture ecosystem.
Analysts predict that in 2026, a further influx of capital into technology sectors is expected — primarily in artificial intelligence, defense technologies, quantum computing, and applied innovations. A gradual opening of opportunities for IPOs of promising companies is also anticipated.