Current News in Startups and Venture Capital Investments for Sunday, 8th February 2026: Major Investment Rounds, Global Venture Fund Activity, AI Growth, and Key Trends in the Global Venture Market.
As of early February 2026, the global venture capital market continues to recover confidently from the downturn of recent years. Preliminary estimates suggest that 2025 was one of the most successful years for startup investments (only second to the record years of 2021-2022), indicating a return of substantial private capital to the technology sector. Investors worldwide are once again actively funding promising companies: record-scale deals are being made, and startups are more frequently considering public offerings. The largest venture funds are returning to the stage with new mega-rounds and investment strategies, while governments and corporations are increasing their support for innovations, aiming to keep pace in the global technological race. As a result, the start of 2026 sees the venture market exhibiting positive dynamics, instilling cautious optimism, despite investors' continued selective approaches to project evaluations and business model sustainability.
In geographically diverse terms, the recovery is global in nature, although it is distributed unevenly. The United States remains the primary locomotive, with American startups accounting for a significant portion of major rounds, particularly in the artificial intelligence sector. In Europe, venture investments continue to grow: by the end of 2025, Germany surpassed the UK in total capital attracted for the first time in a decade, solidifying the positions of European technology 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 a resurgence of notable IPOs), whereas in China, activity remains subdued due to regulatory pressures and a reallocation of resources towards domestic priorities. Meanwhile, the Middle East is accelerating: funds from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar are injecting billions into tech companies both within their regions and globally, betting on fintech, cloud services, and AI. The startup ecosystems in Russia and neighbouring countries are also attempting to keep pace by launching local funds and support programmes, although the volumes of venture investments there remain considerably smaller. Thus, a new venture upswing is covering nearly all continents, forming a more balanced global innovation ecosystem.
Below are the key events and trends shaping the agenda for startups and venture investments on 8th February 2026:
- The Return of Mega Funds and Large Investors. Leading venture firms are raising unprecedented capital for new funds and significantly increasing their investments, once again saturating the market with funding and rekindling appetite for risk.
- Unprecedented AI Mega Rounds and a New Wave of "Unicorns". Historically large investments in the field of artificial intelligence are raising startup valuations to unprecedented heights, resulting in dozens of new "unicorn" companies with billion-dollar valuations.
- Climate Technologies and Energy Attract Mega Deals. The sustainable energy and climate tech sectors are coming to the forefront, thanks to multi-million and even billion-dollar funding rounds worldwide.
- Fintech Consolidation and a Wave of M&A. Mature fintech players are becoming targets for multi-billion dollar mergers and acquisitions, while some unicorns are expanding through strategic acquisitions.
- Revival of the IPO Market. Technology companies are once again in the spotlight for initial public offerings; successful IPOs are inspiring new candidates to prepare for market entry, reaffirming the opening of the long-anticipated "window" for exits.
- Focus on Defence, Space, and Cyber Startups. Venture funds are reallocating capital to strategic sectors, from defence and space to cybersecurity, responding to new geopolitical challenges.
- Revival of Investment in Biotech and Digital Health. After a prolonged downturn, the biotech and medtech sectors are once again attracting significant capital, leveraging successes in recent deals and scientific breakthroughs.
The Return of Mega Funds: Big Money Back in the Market
The largest investment players are making a triumphant return to the venture market, signalling a renewed appetite for risk. Global funds are announcing unprecedented capital raising rounds. American giant Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has secured over $15 billion for new funds, raising its total assets under management to a record $90 billion. Japan is also keeping pace: SoftBank launched its third Vision Fund, approximately $40 billion in size, while simultaneously bolstering its presence in the AI sector. At the end of 2025, SoftBank invested $22.5 billion in OpenAI, recording one of the largest single investments in the history of the startup industry. Other players are also actively filling their "piggy banks": for example, Lightspeed Venture Partners closed new funds totalling more than $9 billion (a record for the firm in its 25-year history), and Tiger Global, having recovered from recent losses, has returned to the market with a $2.2 billion fund, reaffirming its ambitions.
The influx of such "big capital" is filling the market with liquidity and increasing competition for the most promising deals. Sovereign funds from Gulf countries and governmental institutions worldwide are also injecting billions into technology projects, creating new mega-platforms for funding innovations. Estimates suggest that the aggregate amount of dry powder among investors is already in the hundreds of billions of dollars, poised for investment as market confidence strengthens. The return of such large sums underscores the investment community's faith in the continued growth of the technology sector and a desire not to miss the next significant technological breakthrough.
The Boom in AI Startups: Mega Rounds and New "Unicorns"
The artificial intelligence sector remains the main driver of the current venture boom, demonstrating unprecedented levels of funding. Investors are eager to position themselves at the forefront of the AI revolution and are prepared to invest colossal sums in leading competitors. In the early weeks of 2026, deals of unprecedented scale have been announced: for instance, the Waymo project (the autonomous division of Alphabet) secured approximately $16 billion in new funding at a valuation of around $126 billion, becoming one of the most valuable startups in history. Elon Musk’s startup xAI has raised approximately $20 billion with strategic participation from Nvidia—an incredible sum for a private company. Industry leader OpenAI is reportedly negotiating to secure up to $100 billion at a valuation of around $800 billion—a level of private round not seen before (in discussions are SoftBank, as well as Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon, and Middle Eastern funds). Its competitor OpenAI, startup Anthropic, reportedly aims to raise up to $15 billion at a valuation of approximately $350 billion.
On the crest of this excitement, new "unicorns" are rapidly multiplying: just in the past few months, dozens of companies across the globe have exceeded a $1 billion valuation. In the US, projects in generative video and voice AI are achieving unicorn status at supersonic speeds (e.g., Higgsfield, Deepgram, and others). In Europe, major AI rounds (for instance, ~$350 million for the German company Parloa at a valuation of ~$3 billion) confirm the global nature of the AI boom. Investor appetite for the AI sector shows no signs of waning, though experts warn of the risks of overheating and inflated expectations. Notably, venture capitalists are now actively investing not only in applied AI products but also in the infrastructure for them—from powerful chips and data centers to security and control systems. This massive influx of capital accelerates progress in the industry, but it compels the market to carefully monitor the sustainability of business models so that the current euphoria does not shift to a sharp cool-down.
Climate Technologies and Energy: Mega Deals on the Rise
Amid the global transition to sustainable energy, substantial capital is also flowing into climate technology projects. In 2025, the cumulative volume of specifically created climate venture funds exceeded $100 billion (most of these funds were raised in Europe), reflecting an unprecedented interest from investors in "green" innovations. It is no longer surprising to see large private rounds worth hundreds of millions of dollars in this sector. For instance, the American company TerraPower, developing compact nuclear reactors, received around $650 million for the development of its technologies, while startup Helion Energy secured $425 million to create the first commercial nuclear fusion reactor. Earlier in January, the climate project Base Power (Austin, Texas), which is developing a network of home battery systems and "virtual power plants", raised about $1 billion (Series C round) at a valuation of around $3 billion, becoming one of the largest deals in climate tech history.
Venture funds are increasingly betting on solutions capable of accelerating the decarbonisation of the economy and meeting the growing demand for energy. Significant investments are being directed towards energy storage, new types of batteries and fuels, electric vehicle development, carbon capture technologies, and "climate fintech"—platforms for trading carbon credits and insuring against climate risks. Whereas climate and energy projects were previously regarded as risky for VCs due to long payback periods, private and corporate investors are now willing to play the long game, anticipating serious returns from innovations in this area. Sustainable technologies have become a priority for the venture market, gradually pushing forward the "green" transition of the economy.
Fintech Consolidation: Multi-Billion Exits and a Wave of M&A
A new wave of consolidation is unfolding in the fintech sector, signalling the maturation of the fintech market. Major banks and investors are keen to integrate advanced fintech solutions, resulting in several high-profile deals being announced in January 2026:
- Capital One has agreed to acquire the startup Brex (a corporate expense management platform) for approximately $5.15 billion. This purchase represents the largest "bank-fintech" acquisition in history, highlighting traditional financial giants' drive to innovate.
- The European fund Hg Capital is acquiring the American financial platform OneStream for approximately $6.4 billion, purchasing stakes from prior investors (including KKR).
- The operator of exchanges Deutsche Börse has announced the purchase of the investment platform Allfunds for €5.3 billion to enhance its position in the WealthTech space.
- US Bancorp is acquiring the brokerage firm BTIG for approximately $1 billion, expanding its presence in the investment services market.
- In addition to acquisitions by corporations, fintech "unicorns" are also venturing into the acquisition landscape. For instance, the Australian payment service Airwallex, a unicorn, is expanding its business in Asia by acquiring the Korean fintech company Paynuri.
The activation of mergers and acquisitions demonstrates that as the industry matures, successful fintech companies either fall under the umbrella of larger players or expand their influence through strategic acquisitions. For venture investors, this trend signifies new opportunities for lucrative exits, while for the market as a whole, it means consolidation of key players and the emergence of multi-product platforms based on acquired startups.
IPO Market Revitalises: Startups Return to the Stock Exchange
Following a prolonged hiatus, the global market for initial public offerings (IPOs) of technology companies is showing robust revitalisation. 2025 surpassed analysts’ expectations for notable IPOs: in the US alone, no fewer than 23 companies went public with valuations exceeding $1 billion (compared to only 9 such debuts the previous year), with the aggregate capitalisation of these offerings exceeding $125 billion. Investors are ready to welcome profitable and fast-growing companies back to the public markets, particularly if the startup has a compelling narrative related to AI or other "hot" technologies. The successful debuts of fintech giant Stripe and neobank Chime at the end of 2025 (Chime's shares surged approximately 40% on the first day of trading) have reinstated confidence in the opening of an opportunity window for IPOs.
The expectation for 2026 is the continuation of this trend: several major startups are transparently hinting at preparations for public offerings. Among the most anticipated candidates for IPO:
- The Largest Fintech Unicorns: payment platforms Plaid and Revolut.
- Leaders in AI: AI model developer OpenAI, big data platform Databricks, as well as AI startup for business Cohere.
- Other Tech Giants: for instance, the space company SpaceX (if market conditions are favourable).
The successful public offerings of these companies could provide an additional impetus to the market, although experts caution that volatility could suddenly close the current "IPO window." Nevertheless, the renewed activity of startups in the stock exchange strengthens the belief that investors are willing to reward companies with strong growth and profitability metrics, while venture funds receive the long-awaited opportunities for major exits.
Defence, Space, and Cyber Startups in the Spotlight
Geopolitical tensions and new risks are reshaping venture investors' priorities. In the US, the trend of American Dynamism—investments in technologies related to national security—is gaining momentum. It is noteworthy that part of the funds from these new mega-funds (such as the a16z fund) is being directed specifically to defence and deep tech projects. Startups developing solutions for the military, space, and cybersecurity are increasingly attracting nine-digit sums. For example, the California-based company Onebrief, which creates software for military planning, recently secured about $200 million in investments at a valuation exceeding $2 billion and even made a small acquisition of a relevant startup to enhance its platform capabilities. Concurrently, specialized players are rapidly expanding: the Belgian startup Aikido Security, which offers a code and cloud systems cyber protection platform, has reached unicorn status (valuation of ~$1 billion) in less than two years of development.
These successes reflect the growing market demand for technologies that ensure defence and cybersecurity. Investments are being directed towards everything—from supply chain protections (for instance, the British project Cyb3r Operations raised ~$5 million for cyber risk monitoring) to new satellite reconnaissance tools. Moreover, the support for defence and space startups is being strengthened not only by private funds but also by government programmes in the US, Europe, Israel, and other countries striving to gain technological advantages. Thus, "dual-use" technologies linked to security have firmly established themselves in the focus of the venture market alongside commercial projects.
Revival of Investments in Biotech and Digital Health
After several tough years of "biotech winter", signs of warming are emerging in the life sciences sector. Significant late 2025 deals have restored investor confidence in biotech: pharmaceutical giant Pfizer agreed to buy the company Metsera (developer of obesity drugs) for $10 billion, and AbbVie acquired ImmunoGen for about $10.1 billion. These acquisitions confirmed that demand for promising drugs remains high. Against this backdrop, venture investors are once again prepared to fund biotech startups with significant sums. In early 2026, the first signs of a resurgence in funding appeared: the American startup Parabilis Medicines, which develops innovative cancer drugs, secured around $305 million—one of the large rounds for the sector in recent times. Investments in medical technologies and digital health are also on the rise, particularly at the intersection with artificial intelligence.
Market participants anticipate that in 2026, biotech and the medtech segment will gradually emerge from the crisis. Investors are diversifying their allocations, focusing not only on traditional areas (oncology, immunology) but also on new niches—genetic technologies, rare disease treatments, neurotechnologies, and medical AI solutions. An increase in merger and acquisition activity in biopharma is expected as large pharmaceutical companies experience a "hunger" for new products in light of patent expirations. While the IPO market for biotech has not fully recovered, large late-stage rounds and strategic deals are providing startups in this sector with the necessary capital to advance their developments. Thus, biotechnology and healthcare are once again becoming attractive areas for venture investments, promising significant growth potential for investors—provided that the projects are scientifically validated.
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 from the recent market cool-down. While capital has indeed begun to flow back into the technology sector, the requirements for startups have tightened: funds expect teams to have clear business models, economic viability, and understandable pathways to profitability. Company valuations are once again on the rise (especially in the AI segment), yet investors increasingly focus on risk diversification and the long-term sustainability of their portfolios. The returned liquidity—from billion-dollar venture funds to new IPOs—creates opportunities for substantial growth, but simultaneously intensifies competition for standout projects.
It is highly probable that in 2026, the venture capital industry will transition into a phase of more balanced development. Continued funding for "breakthrough" areas (AI, climate technologies, biotech, defence, etc.) will persist, but there will be a greater emphasis on growth quality, management transparency, and compliance with regulatory requirements. This more measured approach should help the market avoid overheating and lay the groundwork for sustainable innovation development in the long term.
