Startup and Venture Capital News for Monday, February 9, 2026: Major Rounds, Venture Fund Activity, AI Startup Growth, Fintech and Biotech, Key Trends in the Global Venture Market.
As of early February 2026, the global venture capital market is confidently recovering from the downturn of recent years. Preliminary estimates indicate that 2025 was almost a record year for startup investments, slightly below the peak years of 2021–2022. Private capital is once again flooding into the tech sector: investors around the world are actively financing promising companies, unprecedented scale deals are being made, and startup plans for IPOs are once again taking center stage. Major players in the venture industry are launching new massive funds and investment programs, while governments and corporations are increasing their support for innovation. As a result, at the beginning of 2026, the venture market is showing positive dynamics, instilling cautious optimism—despite the fact that investors are still selective in evaluating projects and their business models.
The rise in venture activity is global in nature, although it is unevenly distributed. The United States remains the engine of this growth—American startups account for the lion's share of major funding rounds, especially in the field of artificial intelligence. In Europe, investment momentum continued: by the end of 2025, Germany surpassed the UK for the first time in a decade in total venture capital raised, strengthening the positions of European tech hubs. In Asia, the dynamics are mixed: the Indian ecosystem has reached a new level of maturity (with the first unicorns of 2026 emerging in January and major local IPOs resuming), while in China, venture activity remains muted due to regulatory constraints and a shift in focus to domestic priorities. In contrast, the Middle East is experiencing an acceleration: funds from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar are pouring billions into tech companies both in the region and globally, betting on fintech, cloud services, and AI. The startup ecosystems in Russia and neighboring countries are also trying not to lag behind, launching local funds and support programs, although venture investment volumes there are still significantly smaller. Thus, the new venture upturn truly has a global scale, encompassing most regions.
Here are the key trends shaping the venture market agenda for February 9, 2026:
- Return of megafunds and large investors. Leading venture firms are raising record-sized funds and sharply increasing investments, once again saturating the market with capital and igniting risk appetite.
- Record-breaking AI megafunds and a new wave of unicorns. Historically large investments in the field of artificial intelligence are driving startup valuations to unprecedented heights, spawning dozens of new unicorns with billion-dollar valuations.
- Climate technologies and energy are attracting megadeals. The sector of sustainable energy and climate tech is coming to the forefront thanks to multimillion and even billion-dollar funding rounds around the world.
- Fintech consolidation and a wave of M&A. Mature fintech players are becoming targets for multibillion-dollar mergers and acquisitions, while some unicorns are expanding through strategic acquisitions.
- Revival of the IPO market. The initial public offerings of tech companies are back in the spotlight: successful IPOs inspire new candidates to prepare for the stock market, confirming the opening of the long-awaited "window" for exits.
- Focus on defense, space, and cybersecurity startups. Venture funds are reallocating capital to strategic sectors—from defense and space to cybersecurity—responding to new geopolitical challenges.
- Resurgence of biotech and digital health investments. After a prolonged slump, the biotech and medtech sector is once again attracting significant capital, relying on successful deals and scientific breakthroughs in recent months.
Return of Megafunds: Big Money Back in the Market
The largest investment players are triumphantly returning to the venture market, signaling a renewed appetite for risk. Global funds are announcing unprecedented capital raising rounds. For example, American firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has raised over $15 billion across several new funds, bringing its total assets under management to record heights. Japan is not lagging behind: SoftBank has launched its third Vision Fund with approximately $40 billion, while also strengthening its presence in the AI sector (in late 2025, SoftBank invested $22.5 billion in OpenAI—one of the largest single investments in the history of the startup industry). Other major players have also bolstered their "war chests": for instance, Lightspeed Venture Partners closed new funds totaling over $9 billion (a record for the firm in its 25-year history), and Tiger Global, having recovered from recent losses, returned to the market with a $2.2 billion fund, reasserting its ambitions.
The influx of such "big capital" fills the market with liquidity and intensifies competition for the most promising deals. Sovereign funds from Gulf countries and state institutions worldwide are also pouring billions into tech projects, forming new mega-platforms for financing innovation. It is estimated that the total amount of dry powder available to investors is already in the hundreds of billions of dollars and ready to be deployed as market confidence strengthens. The return of such substantial funds confirms the belief in the investment community regarding the continued growth of the tech sector and the desire not to miss the next major technological breakthrough.
AI Startup Boom: Megarounds and New Unicorns
The artificial intelligence sector remains the main driver of the current venture boom, demonstrating record levels of funding. Investors are eager to position themselves at the forefront of the AI revolution and are willing to invest colossal sums in the leaders of the race. In the first weeks of 2026, deals of unprecedented scale have been announced. For instance, Waymo (Alphabet's autonomous division) attracted around $16 billion in new capital at a valuation of approximately $126 billion, becoming one of the most valuable startups in history. Elon Musk’s startup xAI received around $20 billion in investments with strategic involvement from Nvidia—a phenomenal volume of funding for a private tech company. Industry leader OpenAI is reportedly negotiating to raise up to $100 billion at an approximately $800 billion valuation—a private round of such magnitude has never been seen before (participants in the discussions include SoftBank and corporations like Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia, and Middle Eastern funds). OpenAI's competitor, startup Anthropic, is reportedly aiming to raise up to $15 billion at an estimated valuation of around $350 billion.
Riding the wave of excitement, new unicorns are appearing rapidly: in just the last few months, dozens of companies worldwide have surpassed the $1 billion valuation mark. In the U.S., ultra-fast unicorn status is being reached by generative AI projects—ranging from video services to voice assistants. For example, companies Higgsfield and Deepgram became unicorns in less than two years due to successes in generative video and speech. Europe is also witnessing large AI rounds (for instance, German platform Parloa raised approximately $350 million at an estimated valuation of ~$3 billion), confirming the global nature of the AI boom. Investor appetite for AI remains strong, although experts warn of the risks of market overheating and inflated expectations. Notably, venture capitalists are now actively investing not just in applied AI products but also in the infrastructure for them—from powerful chips and data centers to security and monitoring systems. This massive capital influx accelerates progress in the industry but requires market participants to closely monitor the viability of business models to avoid abrupt cooling following the current euphoria.
Climate Technologies and Energy: Megadeals on the Rise
Against the backdrop of the global transition to sustainable energy, substantial capital is flowing into climate technology as well. In 2025, the total amount of funds raised by specialized climate venture funds exceeded $100 billion (mostly amassed by funds in Europe), indicating unprecedented investor interest in "green" innovations. Large private funding rounds in this sector of hundreds of millions of dollars have become commonplace. For example, American startup TerraPower, which develops compact nuclear reactors, received approximately $650 million, while Helion Energy raised $425 million for the creation of the first commercial nuclear fusion reactor. Additionally, in January, Austin-based project Base Power, which is developing networks of home batteries and "virtual power plants," raised about $1 billion (Series C) at a valuation of ~$3 billion, making it one of the largest deals in the history of climate tech.
Venture funds are increasingly betting on solutions capable of accelerating the decarbonization of the economy and meeting the growing global demand for energy. Significant investments are directed toward energy storage, new types of batteries and fuels, electric mobility, carbon capture technologies, and also "climate fintech"—platforms for trading carbon credits and insuring climate risks. Previously, climate and energy projects were considered too risky for VCs (due to long payback periods), but now both private and corporate investors are willing to play the long game, expecting substantial returns from innovations in this space. Sustainable technologies are firmly establishing themselves as priority areas in the venture market, gradually bringing the "green" transition of the global economy closer.
Consolidation and M&A: Industry Players Getting Larger
A new wave of consolidation is unfolding in the fintech sector, signaling the maturation of the fintech market. Major banks and investors are keen to integrate advanced fintech solutions—as a result, several high-profile deals were announced in January 2026:
- Capital One agreed to acquire fintech startup Brex (a corporate expense management platform) for approximately $5.15 billion. This acquisition has become the largest "bank-fintech" merger in history, highlighting the desire of traditional financial giants to innovate.
- European fund Hg Capital is acquiring American financial platform OneStream for around $6.4 billion, purchasing shares from previous investors (including KKR).
- The operator of stock markets Deutsche Börse announced the purchase of investment platform Allfunds for €5.3 billion to strengthen its position in WealthTech.
- American bank US Bancorp is acquiring brokerage firm BTIG for about $1 billion, expanding its presence in the investment services market.
- In addition to acquisitions by corporations, fintech unicorns themselves are also making purchases. For instance, Australian payment service Airwallex, classified as a unicorn, is strengthening its business in Asia by acquiring Korean fintech company Paynuri (deal amount undisclosed).
Moreover, consolidation goes beyond fintech alone: tech giants are also willing to spend tens of billions to keep pace in the race. For example, Google is pursuing a record deal to acquire Israeli cloud cybersecurity startup Wiz for about $32 billion—one of the largest startup acquisitions in history. This increased activity in mergers and acquisitions indicates that as the industry matures, successful startups either fall under the wing of larger players or gain influence through strategic acquisitions. For venture investors, this trend means new opportunities for lucrative exits, and for the market as a whole, it means the consolidation of key players and the emergence of multi-product platforms based on acquired projects.
IPO Market Comes to Life: Startups Head to the Stock Market Again
After a prolonged pause, the global market for initial public offerings of tech companies is confidently reviving. The year 2025 exceeded analysts' expectations in the number of high-profile IPOs: in the U.S. alone, at least 23 companies with valuations over $1 billion went public (compared to just 9 such debuts the previous year), and the total market capitalization of these offerings surpassed $125 billion. Investors are once again ready to welcome profitable and rapidly growing companies to the public market, especially if the startup has a strong narrative connected to AI or other "hot" technologies. At the end of 2025, successful debuts of fintech giant Stripe and neobank Chime (Chime's shares rose about 40% on the first day of trading) returned confidence and essentially opened a new "window of opportunity" for IPOs.
In 2026, this trend is expected to continue: several large startups have already subtly hinted at preparing for public offerings. Among the most anticipated IPO candidates are:
- the largest fintech unicorns: payment platforms Plaid and Revolut;
- leaders in the AI sector: AI model developer OpenAI, big data platform Databricks, and corporate AI startup Cohere;
- other tech giants such as space company SpaceX (if market conditions are favorable).
The successful public exits of these companies could give an additional boost to the market, although experts remind us that volatility could suddenly close the current "IPO window." Nevertheless, the activity of startups in the stock market strengthens the belief that investors are ready to reward companies with strong growth and profitability metrics, while venture funds gain much-anticipated opportunities for sizable exits.
Defense, Space, and Cyber Startups in Focus
Geopolitical tensions and new risks are altering the priorities of venture investors. In the U.S., the trend of American Dynamism is gaining momentum—investments in technologies related to national security. Notably, part of the capital from the aforementioned new megafunds (like those from a16z) is being directed specifically towards defense and deeptech projects. Startups developing solutions for the military, space, and cybersecurity are increasingly attracting nine-figure sums. For instance, California-based Onebrief, which creates software for military planning, recently received about $200 million in investments at a valuation exceeding $2 billion and even acquired a smaller specialized startup to enhance its platform capabilities. At the same time, specialized players are also gaining weight: for example, Belgian startup Aikido Security, which offers a code and cloud services cybersecurity platform, reached a unicorn valuation (~$1 billion) in less than two years.
Such successes reflect the growing market demand for technologies that ensure defense and cybersecurity. Investments are directed towards everything from supply chain protection (for example, British project Cyb3r Operations raised ~$5 million for monitoring cyber risks) to the latest satellite reconnaissance tools. Notably, both private funds and government programs in the U.S., Europe, Israel, and several other countries are strengthening support for defense and space startups, striving to gain a technological advantage. Hence, dual-use technologies related to security are firmly established as a focus of the venture market alongside traditional commercial projects.
Revival of Investments in Biotech and Digital Health
After several tough years of "biotech winter," warming is evident in the Life Sciences sector. Major deals at the end of 2025 restored investor confidence in biotech: pharmaceutical giant Pfizer agreed to acquire company Metsera (developer of obesity treatments) for approximately $10 billion, while AbbVie announced the acquisition of cancer drug developer ImmunoGen for ~$10.1 billion. These acquisitions confirmed that the demand for promising medications remains high. Against this backdrop, venture investors are again ready to finance biotech startups with substantial amounts. In early 2026, the first signs of a revival in funding emerged: American startup Parabilis Medicines, which develops innovative cancer therapies, raised about $305 million—one of the largest rounds for the sector in recent times.
Market experts note that in 2026, the Biotech/MedTech segment may gradually emerge from crisis. Investors are diversifying their investments, focusing not only on traditional areas (oncology, immunology) but also on new niches—gene engineering, drugs for rare diseases, neurotechnology, and medical AI solutions. A rise in mergers and acquisitions in biopharma is expected, as large pharma companies experience a "hunger" for new products ahead of patent expirations. Although the IPO market for biotech has not yet fully recovered, substantial late rounds and strategic deals provide startups in this field with the necessary capital to advance their developments. Thus, biotechnology and healthcare are once again among the attractive areas for venture investments, promising investors significant growth potential—provided the scientific viability of the projects.
Looking Ahead: Cautious Optimism and Sustainable Growth
Despite the rapid rise in venture activity at the beginning of the year, investors maintain a degree of caution, remembering the lessons of the recent market cooling. Capital has indeed started flowing back into the tech sector, but expectations for startups have noticeably tightened: funds expect teams to present clear business models, economic efficiency, and viable paths to profitability. Company valuations are rising again (especially in the AI segment), but investors are increasingly focusing on risk diversification and the long-term sustainability of their portfolios. The returning liquidity—from billion-dollar venture funds to new IPOs—creates opportunities for substantial growth, but simultaneously intensifies competition for outstanding projects.
With a high likelihood, the venture capital industry in 2026 will transition into a phase of more balanced development. Financing for breakthrough areas (AI, climate technologies, biotech, defense, etc.) will continue, but greater emphasis will be placed on the quality of growth, transparency of governance, and compliance of startups with regulatory requirements. Such a more measured approach should help the market avoid overheating and lay the foundation for sustainable innovation development in the long term.
