Global Startup and Venture Investment News for October 18, 2025: The Return of Mega Funds, Record AI Deals, a New Wave of IPOs, and Increased M&A Activity. Analysis of Key Trends in the Global Startup Market.
The global venture market is experiencing a new surge: the return of mega funds, record deals in AI, a new wave of IPOs, global mega deals, and diversification of industry focus.
As of mid-October 2025, the global venture capital industry is displaying strong growth after several years of decline. Investors worldwide are once again actively financing technology startups—record deals are being made, companies are reigniting their IPO plans, and major players are returning to the market with substantial investments. Governments in various countries are intensifying support for innovation and technology. As a result, private capital is gradually returning to the startup ecosystem, providing it with a new impetus for development.
Venture activity is increasing across all regions. The U.S. continues to lead (particularly with a booming AI segment), venture investment has nearly doubled in the Middle East over the past year, Germany has surpassed the UK for the first time in a decade in terms of venture deals in Europe, and Mexico has outpaced Brazil in capital raised in Latin America. India, Southeast Asia, and the Gulf countries are attracting record investment flows against a backdrop of relatively declining activity in China. The startup scenes in Russia and neighboring countries are striving to keep pace despite external limitations. A global venture boom is underway, although investors remain selective and cautious in their actions.
Below are the key events and trends shaping the venture market agenda as of October 18, 2025:
- The return of mega funds and large investors. Leading venture funds are raising record capital and actively investing in startups once again, saturating the market with liquidity and fueling risk appetite.
- Record investments in AI and a new wave of “unicorns.” Extremely large funding rounds are elevating startup valuations to unprecedented heights, particularly in the artificial intelligence sector, while numerous new unicorns are entering the market.
- A revival in the IPO market. Successful public listings by technology companies and new listing applications signal that the long-awaited “window” for exits has reopened.
- Diversification of industry focus. Venture capital is flowing not only into AI but also into fintech, climate technology, biotech, defense projects, and an emerging interest in crypto startups.
- A wave of consolidation and M&A deals. Major mergers, acquisitions, and strategic investments are reshaping the industry landscape, creating new opportunities for exits and accelerated growth for startups.
- Local focus: Russia and the CIS. New funds and initiatives are being launched in the region to develop local startup ecosystems, gradually attracting investor attention despite external constraints.
The Return of Mega Funds: Big Money Back in the Market
The largest investment players are triumphantly returning to the venture arena, signaling a renewed appetite for risk. The Japanese conglomerate SoftBank has launched a new Vision Fund III with approximately $40 billion, focusing on advanced technologies (including AI and robotics). Sovereign funds from Gulf countries are also becoming active, injecting billions into tech projects and launching government mega-programs to support startups, transforming the Middle East into a new tech hub. Simultaneously, dozens of new venture funds are emerging globally, attracting significant institutional capital for investments in high-tech areas.
Renowned Silicon Valley firms are also increasing their presence. In the U.S. venture sector, funds have amassed record reserves of uninvested capital (“dry powder”)—hundreds of billions of dollars ready to be deployed as market confidence returns. The influx of this “big money” is filling the startup market with liquidity, providing a resource for new funding rounds and supporting the growth of promising company valuations. The return of mega funds and large institutional investors not only intensifies competition for the best deals but also instills confidence in the sector regarding future capital inflows.
Record Investments in AI and a New Wave of Unicorns
The artificial intelligence sector remains the primary driver of the current venture upswing, demonstrating record funding levels. Investors are keen to position themselves among AI leaders, directing colossal funds into the most promising projects. For instance, the startup xAI (founded by Elon Musk) raised approximately $10 billion in funding, while OpenAI secured around $8 billion with a valuation of about $300 billion—these rounds significantly exceeded initial projections, highlighting the excitement surrounding AI companies.
Notably, funding is going not only to applied AI applications but also to infrastructure solutions for them. Industry rumors suggest that one AI data storage startup is negotiating a multi-billion-dollar round at a very high valuation—the market is ready to invest even in “shovels and pickaxes” for the new AI ecosystem. The current investment boom has generated a wave of new unicorns (private companies valued over $1 billion), primarily in generative AI, fintech, and advanced technologies. While some experts warn of a potential bubble forming in the private capital market due to rapidly rising valuations, investor appetite for AI startups remains robust.
IPO Market Revives: A Window of Opportunity for Exits
The global IPO market is finally emerging from a prolonged lull and displaying signs of revival. In Asia, Hong Kong is leading a new wave of tech public offerings: several major companies have recently listed on the local exchange, collectively raising billions of dollars. For example, the Chinese battery manufacturer CATL successfully conducted an IPO, raising approximately $5 billion—this debut demonstrated the readiness of investors in the region to actively participate in primary offerings once again.
In the U.S. and Europe, the situation is also improving. American fintech unicorn Chime recently debuted on the stock exchange, with its shares rising approximately 30% on the first trading day. Following it, the design platform Figma conducted its long-awaited IPO, attracting around $1.2 billion with a valuation of about $15–20 billion; its shares also confidently increased in value from the very beginning. In the second half of 2025, other well-known startups, including payment service Stripe and several technology companies with multi-billion valuations, are preparing for public market entries.
Even the crypto industry is attempting to take advantage of improved conditions. The fintech company Circle successfully went public in the summer (its market capitalization significantly increased post-listing), while the cryptocurrency exchange Bullish submitted a listing application in the U.S. with an aimed valuation of around $4 billion. The resurgence of activity in the IPO market is extremely important for the venture ecosystem: successful public exits allow funds to realize profits, return capital to investors, and redirect freed-up funds into new projects.
Diversification of Investments: Not Just AI
In 2025, venture investments are covering an ever-wider array of industries and are no longer limited to just artificial intelligence. Following last year's downturn, fintech is again gaining traction: major funding rounds are occurring not only in the U.S. but also in Europe and emerging markets, driving the growth of new digital financial services. Simultaneously, interest in climate and “green” technologies is rising: renewable energy projects, eco-friendly solutions, and agritech are attracting record investments amid a global sustainability trend.
Appetite for biotechnology is also returning. The emergence of several promising drug and medtech platform developments is drawing capital once again, as the industry gradually exits a period of valuation declines. Furthermore, driven by increased focus on security, investors are more actively financing defense-related startups developing solutions for defense and cybersecurity. Even the cryptocurrency segment has shown signs of slight revival: a partial restoration of market trust has allowed some blockchain startups to again start attracting funding. The broader industry focus is making the entire startup ecosystem more resilient and reducing the risk of overheating in individual market segments.
Consolidation and M&A: Mega Deals Reshaping the Landscape
High valuations of startups and fierce competition are pushing the industry toward consolidation. Major mergers and acquisitions are returning to the forefront, redistributing power in the market. For instance, Google has agreed to acquire the Israeli cybersecurity startup Wiz for about $32 billion—this record-sized deal showcases the tech giants' desire to acquire key technologies and talent. There is also a noticeable increase in strategic purchases: in the first half of 2025, the volume of startup acquisitions exceeded $100 billion (an increase of 155% compared to the previous year), as large companies are willing to write large checks for promising assets, especially in AI and enterprise technology.
Consolidation is also occurring within the venture sector itself. For example, investment bank Goldman Sachs has announced the acquisition of venture firm Industry Ventures for nearly $1 billion, underlining the growing interconnection between traditional finance and the startup world. Overall, the surge in M&A activity and a series of mega deals indicate market maturation. Mature startups are merging with one another or becoming acquisition targets for corporations, providing venture investors with long-awaited profitable exits and accelerating the scaling of innovations.
Russia and the CIS: Local Initiatives Amid Global Trends
Despite external constraints, there is a revival of startup activity in Russia and neighboring countries. The announcement of several new venture funds with a total volume of around 10–12 billion rubles aimed at supporting early-stage tech projects is in progress. Local startups are beginning to attract more serious capital: for instance, the Krasnodar-based foodtech startup Qummy recently raised about 440 million rubles in investment at a valuation of approximately 2.4 billion rubles. Additionally, foreign investors are once again permitted to finance local projects in Russia, which is gradually rekindling interest from foreign capital in the region.
While the volumes of venture investments in Russia and the CIS remain modest compared to the global figures, they are steadily growing. Some large companies are considering taking their tech divisions public as market conditions improve—for example, the holding company VK has hinted at a potential IPO for its subsidiary VK Tech in the foreseeable future. New government support measures and corporate initiatives are designed to provide an additional boost to local startup ecosystems and integrate them into global trends.
Cautious Optimism and Quality Growth
By October 2025, moderately optimistic sentiments have settled in the venture sector: successful IPOs and major deals indicate that the period of decline is behind us. However, investors are still selectively approaching new projects, preferring startups with sustainable business models and realistic growth plans. Strong capital influxes into AI and other advanced sectors instill confidence, yet funds are striving to diversify investments and more strictly control risks to prevent the new upswing from turning into overheating. The industry is entering a new phase of development focused on quality, balanced growth of innovations and capital.
