Startup and Venture Investment News as of January 1, 2026: Record Rounds in AI, Venture Fund Activity, Key Deals, and Global Investment Trends for Venture Investors.
Global Records in AI Startup Financing
The year 2025 has been record-breaking for the financing of AI startups: according to industry analysts, leading American companies in the field of artificial intelligence attracted approximately $150 billion in venture capital - significantly higher than the previous record of $92 billion set in 2021. This growth is attributed to the booming interest from investors in AI solutions. Experts recommend that startups build financial "buffers" in case of a potential downturn in activity in the new year.
- SoftBank has increased its total investment in OpenAI to $41 billion, deploying the remaining $22.5 billion at the end of the year. The Japanese corporation now owns about 11% of the American startup's shares.
- Anthropic, a leader in developing AI models, raised $13 billion in September 2025.
- Scale AI, a startup focused on data preparation for training neural networks, received over $14 billion in investments from Meta: this funding includes not just financial support but also the transition of some qualified specialists into the project.
- Other promising AI projects (such as Anysphere with the Cursor app, Perplexity, Thinking Machines Lab, etc.) have also repeatedly attracted capital. For instance, Anysphere increased its valuation from $2.6 billion to $27 billion, while its revenue grew twentyfold over the year.
Such deals reflect a trend: amidst the continued hype around AI solutions, startups are seeking to accumulate maximum resources on their balance sheets, supported by the strategies of the largest venture players.
Major Venture Deals
The last weeks of 2025 brought several of the largest transactions in the global venture market, further solidifying the leading role of AI and related technologies.
- SoftBank completed its promised investment in OpenAI: an additional $22.5 billion has officially been directed, bringing the total investment to $41 billion.
- Nvidia is investing $2 billion in Elon Musk's startup xAI. The funds will be used to purchase graphic chips for data center Colossus 2 (Tennessee); xAI aims to raise approximately $20 billion in financing.
- Nvidia has signed a strategic agreement with Groq (AI chips) worth $20 billion: the company has obtained a license for all of Groq's technologies (excluding the GroqCloud platform) and key assets, while the founder of Groq and part of the team will transition to Nvidia.
- xAI is also backed by other large investors, including Apollo Global Management and Diameter Capital funds.
- The Mexican fintech startup Plata (founded by former managers of Tinkoff) raised $250 million in investments, boosting its valuation to $3.1 billion. The project issues cashback credit cards and already serves over 2 million customers.
These transactions underscore that the largest capital continues to be concentrated among the leaders of the technology sector, especially within companies connected to artificial intelligence.
New Funds and Government Support
Government bodies and leading funds have announced large-scale initiatives to support technology startups:
- China has launched a national venture fund (¥100 billion, approximately $14.3 billion) and three large regional funds (each over ¥50 billion). These funds are aimed at supporting domestic technology startups, primarily with valuations up to ¥500 million.
- Three specialized funds of $7.14 billion each have also been established in China for investments in "hardware" technologies: from chips and quantum computing to biotech and aerospace developments.
- Nikolai and Marina Davidov launched a new $75 million fund for early-stage AI startups (Davidovs Venture Collective): $40 million has already been raised from private sources.
- The Russian company Yandex announced a support program for small and medium-sized businesses amounting to 500 million rubles: it offers a threefold increase in advertising budgets across its services (Yandex.Direct, etc.) and preferential conditions for startups and SMEs.
Such initiatives indicate that major investors and governments actively influence the development of the technological ecosystem by directing capital towards priority areas.
Breakthrough Startups and Unicorns
Against the backdrop of capital inflow, several new projects have made significant leaps:
- The recruiting platform Mercor (founded by Brendan Fudi and others) has become a "unicorn" with a valuation in the tens of billions of dollars: its creators have entered the ranks of new billionaires.
- Chinese company DeepSeek (an AI search engine, founded by Liang Wenfeng) has also emerged as a notable "unicorn" with a valuation of approximately $11.5 billion.
- Fintech and SaaS continue to lead the way. Revolut (Nikolai Storonsky) is expanding its business through acquisitions (having purchased startup Swifty in autumn 2025), while the aforementioned Plata has become a significant new player in credit services.
- In general, many of the largest tech startups, especially those linked to AI and automation, are achieving "unicorn" status and setting the market tone.
This confirms that the greatest potential for massive growth today is seen in IT startups, particularly in the fintech, SaaS, and artificial intelligence sectors. These are the ones generating new successful cases and creating significant wealth for their founders.
Venture Market Trends
- According to Forbes, investments in AI startups exceeded $202 billion in 2025 (a ~75% increase from 2024), surpassing all other sectors.
- AI breakthroughs created around 50 new billionaires in 2025. Elon Musk's capital nearly doubled to $645 billion, while Jensen Huang's (Nvidia) wealth reached $159 billion; the founders of Google and Amazon also significantly enriched their fortunes.
- Venture investors indicate a record concentration of capital: most funds were directed towards several major projects, while many "secondary" startups are left with depleted financial resources.
- Analysts recommend that startups build a "fortified" balance: meaning to accumulate reserves and focus on long-term development considering potential market corrections.
- The Russian startup market is moving in the opposite direction: according to Kommersant, the number of deals has decreased by 30%, and investment volume has fallen by 10% (to approximately 7.2 billion rubles).
All these factors indicate a market division: global capital is concentrating in "hot" sectors (AI and digital services), while activity in traditional industries remains low.
Outlook for 2026
The beginning of 2026 opens a new chapter: experts note that market growth may slow down, so investors and startup founders should exercise "cautious optimism" and select projects with sustainable business models.
Congratulations from Open Oil Market
The company Open Oil Market congratulates all readers on the arrival of the New Year 2026! May it bring new successful startup ideas, large-scale investment projects, and steady growth for innovative companies.
