Global Startup and Venture Capital News as of September 17, 2025: Mega Rounds in AI, New Unicorns, IPO Revival, M&A Deals, Crypto Industry Renaissance, and Growth in Defense and Space Investments.
By mid-September 2025, the global venture capital market is firmly recovering after several years of decline. Investors worldwide have re-energized funding for tech companies at all stages of development, from early seed rounds to preparing startups for IPOs. In the first six months of 2025, startups in North America raised approximately $145 billion, which is about 43% higher than the previous year and marked the highest half-year since 2021. An improved macroeconomic environment and increased interest in innovation are strengthening confidence in the venture market: deals are becoming larger and encompass a broad range of industries—from artificial intelligence and fintech to biotechnology and defense.
The venture boom is noted across all regions. The United States continues to lead the way, accounting for about two-thirds of the global investment volume (especially dominating in AI). In the Middle East, startup funding volumes nearly doubled over the year due to multi-billion-dollar tech initiatives from Gulf countries. Structural shifts are occurring in Europe: Germany has overtaken the UK in total venture deal volume for the first time in a decade, although Europe’s share of global VC has declined. Investment booms are persisting in India and Southeast Asia, fueled by foreign funds, while activity in China remains subdued due to internal restrictions. Gradually, other emerging markets are reviving, attracting increasing capital beyond traditional tech hubs.
Russian startups and those in the CIS countries are also striving to keep pace with global trends: despite external constraints, new funds and technological business support programs are emerging in the region.
Below are the key events and trends shaping the venture market agenda as of September 17, 2025:
- The Return of Mega Funds and Major Investors. Leading venture players are raising record-sized funds and increasing investments, replenishing the market with capital and reigniting the appetite for risk.
- Record Funding Rounds and a New Wave of Unicorns. Exceptionally large deals are pushing startup valuations to unprecedented heights, particularly in the segments of artificial intelligence and robotics.
- Revival of the IPO Market. A series of successful public debuts by tech companies signals an opening "window" for exits and a return of liquidity to the venture market.
- A Surge in M&A Activity. Major mergers, acquisitions, and strategic investments are reshaping the industry landscape, creating new opportunities for exits and accelerated growth of companies.
- A Renaissance of the Crypto Industry. A rally in the digital asset market has rekindled investor interest in blockchain projects, triggering new large funding rounds and even public listings in the crypto sector.
- Growth in Defense and Space Investments. Geopolitical factors are fueling capital inflows into defense-tech and space projects, making these areas a new priority for venture funds.
- Local Initiatives in Russia and the CIS. New funds and legislative measures to support startups are being launched in the region, while local projects are beginning to attract foreign capital, integrating into global trends.
The Return of Mega Funds: Big Capital Back in the Market
The largest investment structures are making a comeback in the venture arena, signalling a new surge in risk appetite. The Japanese conglomerate SoftBank has announced the launch of its third Vision Fund, with a size of ~$40 billion, focused on advanced technologies (with an emphasis on AI and robotics) after a long hiatus. Sovereign funds from Gulf countries have also become active: oil revenues are being directed towards tech initiatives and national mega-projects, establishing their own tech hubs in the Middle East. At the same time, dozens of new venture funds are being established worldwide, attracting significant institutional capital for high-tech investments.
- Veritas Capital Fund IX — $14.4 billion. An American fund specializing in technology and defense closed its new fund at a record sum, demonstrating high trust from large institutional investors.
Remarkably, the venture firm Andreessen Horowitz is also targeting its own mega fund of up to $20 billion, fully dedicated to investments in the field of artificial intelligence—if successful, this will become the largest fund in the firm's history. The massive influx of capital from such "mega funds" is leading to an increase in the volume of uninvested capital ("dry powder") in the market. The surplus of capital intensifies competition for the best startups and supports high valuations for promising companies. The very presence of large institutional players reinforces confidence that the influx of funds into the industry will continue.
Mega Rounds in AI and a New Wave of Unicorns
The field of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies remains the primary driver of the venture boom, demonstrating record funding volumes. Investors are eager to secure positions among the leaders of the new technology cycle, channeling colossal amounts into the most promising projects. In recent weeks, two record funding rounds have confirmed this trend:
- OpenAI (USA) — $8.3 billion. The developer of advanced AI technologies attracted one of the largest rounds in history, raising its valuation to approximately $300 billion. Alongside Microsoft, the company is setting aside a separate business unit and preparing for an IPO to accelerate the commercialization of its products.
- Mistral AI (France) — €1.7 billion. The generative AI startup received the largest funding for Europe, increasing its valuation to €11.7 billion. The leading investor was the Dutch corporation ASML, highlighting Europe's aim to develop its own AI infrastructure.
These mega rounds are forming a generation of new unicorns and bringing closer the emergence of future technology leaders. Despite warnings regarding a potential market overheating, investors remain undeterred in their interest for the most advanced projects. Funding is being provided not only for applied AI products but also for infrastructure solutions—from specialized chips to cloud platforms and data storage systems necessary for scaling the AI ecosystem.
IPO Market Revives: An Opening for Exits
After the downturn of 2022-2023, the IPO market is showing signs of life once again. The successful public offerings of several tech companies have demonstrated that investors are willing to buy shares of rapidly growing startups at high valuations. This new wave of stock market debuts is reinforcing venture funds' confidence in potential profitable exits.
- Chime. A major American fintech unicorn (neobank) debuted on Nasdaq in June; its share price rose by 30% on the first day of trading, confirming high demand for promising fintech companies.
- Klarna. The Swedish fintech giant successfully debuted on the New York Stock Exchange, becoming one of the first European unicorns to list in the US after an extended pause. Klarna's shares were sold above the initial range.
The success of these IPOs indicates a return of liquidity to the venture market. Following these first "harbingers," other large startups are preparing for an IPO—ranging from the American payment service Stripe (which, according to reports, has already filed confidentially for an IPO) to highly valued AI companies like Databricks. The revival of IPO activity is crucial for the entire ecosystem: successful exits allow investors to realize profits and redirect freed-up resources into new projects, fueling the next growth cycle.
A Wave of Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)
High valuations of startups and intense competition for markets are provoking a new wave of consolidation. Major tech corporations are willing to spend billions on strategic acquisitions to strengthen their positions and gain access to cutting-edge developments. A number of high-profile M&A deals in recent months confirm this trend:
- Google → Wiz — ~$32 billion. Alphabet's corporation acquires the Israeli cloud cybersecurity startup in a bid to strengthen its data protection and cloud services.
- SoftBank → Ampere — ~$6.5 billion. The Japanese investment holding buys the American developer of Arm processors, Ampere Computing, to become a leader in the segment of chips for cloud and enterprise data centers.
The activation of acquisitions is reshaping power dynamics in the industry. Mature startups are either merging with one another or becoming targets for corporations. For venture investors, this opens up opportunities for long-awaited exits through sales of portfolio companies to strategic players. Simultaneously, consolidation eliminates excess participants from the market and allows resources to be focused on the most promising directions.
A Renaissance of the Crypto Industry
In the second half of 2025, the market for digital assets is experiencing a new boom, reigniting venture capital interest in crypto startups. Bitcoin has already surpassed the historic threshold of $120,000, setting an all-time high. Just a year ago, the blockchain sector faced a crisis of trust and significant regulatory pressure, but the current rally has radically changed investor sentiments.
Large funds, which had previously paused investments in crypto projects, are now re-entering this market. Massive funding rounds are emerging, and some players are even going public. For example:
- Circle. A fintech company behind one of the leading stablecoins successfully conducted an IPO and became one of the first major "crypto-friendly" firms to go public.
- BlackRock. The investment giant launched an exchange-traded fund (ETF) linked to bitcoin, which is an important signal of institutional recognition of crypto assets.
All these events indicate that the blockchain industry is once again being perceived by investors as a promising growth sector.
Defense Technologies and Space in the Spotlight
The geopolitical tension of recent years has led to an unprecedented increase in investments in the defense and aerospace sectors. It is estimated that in Europe, the volume of venture investments in startups focused on security and defense reached record levels (about $5.2 billion in 2024) and continues to grow in 2025 against the backdrop of increasing military budgets. Venture investors are actively funding developments in drones, cybersecurity, military AI systems, as well as new space programs and satellite platforms.
The defense and space sectors are quickly becoming new priorities for venture funds. For example, the American developer of autonomous systems Anduril raised about $2.5 billion, and the company Apex received $200 million in a Series D funding round—these deals demonstrate the market's readiness to support projects from "powerful" sectors. Overall, investments in such projects promise not only commercial returns but also strategic advantages, making them appealing even to relatively conservative investors.
Russia and the CIS: Local Trends Against a Global Market Background
Despite external constraints, the startup scene in Russia and neighboring countries is developing in parallel with global trends. In 2025, new sources of capital and initiatives to support technological entrepreneurship are emerging in the region:
- New Funds. In Russia, a private fund Nova VC (with a capital volume of approximately 10 billion rubles) for investments in technology companies has been launched.
- International Success. Despite sanction barriers, teams from the CIS continue to attract funding abroad. For example, the voice technology service Vocal Image, a startup from Belarus based in Estonia, raised ~$3.6 million from a French venture fund. This case proved that promising projects from the region can find support on the global stage.
Although the combined venture investment volumes in Russia and the CIS still lag behind the global leaders, all necessary ecosystem elements are forming in the region: local funds, accelerators, governmental programs, and international partnerships. These efforts are creating a foundation for the emergence of competitive startups even under challenging external conditions.
