Current News on Startups and Venture Investments as of 18 January 2026: Record Rounds in AI, The Return of Mega Funds, The Revival of IPOs, and Key Trends in the Global Venture Market.
At the beginning of 2026, the global venture capital market is showing resilient growth, having conclusively overcome the aftermath of the downturn in recent years. According to the latest data, venture investment volume reached its peak in the fourth quarter of 2025, nearing the record levels of the booming year 2021. The upward trend only intensified in autumn; in November alone, startups worldwide raised approximately $40 billion in funding (28% more than the previous year). The prolonged "venture winter" of 2022-2023 is now behind us, and private capital is rapidly returning to the tech sector. Major funds are resuming large-scale investments, governments are launching initiatives to support innovation, and investors are once more willing to take risks. Despite ongoing selectivity in approaches, the sector is confidently entering a new phase of rising venture investments.
Venture activity is increasing across all regions of the world. The USA continues to lead (primarily due to colossal investments in AI); in the Middle East, deal volumes have surged thanks to generous financing from sovereign funds; and in Europe, Germany has for the first time in a decade surpassed the UK in total capital raised. Asia is witnessing a shift in growth from China to India and Southeast Asia, compensating for the relative cooling of the Chinese market. Startup ecosystems in the CIS countries are also striving to keep pace despite external constraints. A global venture boom is forming at the early stage, although investors are still acting selectively and cautiously.
Below are key events and trends shaping the venture market agenda as of 18 January 2026:
- The return of mega funds and large investors. Leading venture funds are raising record-sized funds once again and saturating the market with capital, reigniting the appetite for risk.
- Record rounds in AI and new "unicorns". Unprecedented investments in artificial intelligence are elevating startup valuations to unprecedented heights and spawning a wave of new "unicorn" companies.
- The revival of the IPO market. Successful public offerings of tech companies and an increase in listing applications confirm that the long-awaited "window of opportunity" for exits has reopened.
- Diversification of industry focus. Venture capital is being directed not only towards AI but also towards fintech, climate projects, biotech, defence technologies, and other sectors, broadening market horizons.
- A wave of consolidation and M&A deals. Major mergers, acquisitions, and strategic partnerships are reshaping the industry landscape, creating new opportunities for exits and accelerated growth of companies.
- A revival of interest in crypto startups. Following a prolonged "crypto winter", blockchain projects are once again receiving significant funding in the wake of the growing digital assets market and a relaxation of regulations.
- Global expansion of venture capital. The investment boom is reaching new regions—from the Persian Gulf and South Asia to Africa and Latin America—creating local tech hubs around the globe.
- Local focus: Russia and the CIS. New funds and initiatives to develop local startup ecosystems are emerging in the region, gradually increasing investor interest in local projects.
The Return of Mega Funds: Big Money Back in the Market
The largest investment players are triumphantly returning to the venture arena, marking a new surge in the appetite for risk. After several years of stagnation, leading funds have resumed raising record capital and are launching mega funds, demonstrating confidence in market potential. For instance, the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank is forming its third Vision Fund of approximately $40 billion, targeting cutting-edge technologies (primarily projects in artificial intelligence and robotics). Even investment firms that had previously taken a pause are making comebacks: the Tiger Global fund, after a period of caution, announced a new fund of approximately $2.2 billion—smaller than its previous giant funds but with a more selective strategy. An older venture player in Silicon Valley, Lightspeed, recently raised a record $9 billion in new funds to invest in large-scale projects (primarily in AI).
Sovereign funds in the Middle East are also becoming active: governments in oil-producing countries are pouring billions of dollars into innovation programmes, creating powerful regional tech hubs. Moreover, numerous new venture funds are emerging worldwide, attracting significant institutional capital to invest in high-tech companies. The largest funds in Silicon Valley and Wall Street have accumulated unprecedented reserves of uninvested capital ("dry powder")—hundreds of billions of dollars are ready to be deployed as the market revival gathers pace. The influx of "big money" is already palpable: the market is becoming liquidity-rich, competition for the best deals is intensifying, and the industry is receiving the much-needed boost of confidence for further inflows of capital. Government initiatives are also noteworthy: for example, the German government in Europe has launched the €30 billion Deutschlandfonds fund to attract private capital to technology and modernise the economy, underscoring the authorities' efforts to support the venture market.
Record Investments in AI: A New Wave of "Unicorns"
The artificial intelligence sector remains the primary driver of the current venture upturn, showcasing record funding volumes. Investors worldwide are vying to secure positions among AI market leaders, directing enormous resources to the most promising projects. In recent months, several AI startups have attracted unprecedentedly large rounds. For instance, the AI model developer Anthropic received approximately $13 billion, Elon Musk’s xAI project around $20 billion, and a lesser-known AI infrastructure startup raised over $2 billion, boosting its valuation to approximately $30 billion. Special attention has been drawn to OpenAI: a series of megadeals has raised its valuation to an astronomical ~$500 billion, making OpenAI the most valuable private startup in history. SoftBank previously led a funding round of ~$40 billion (valuing the company at around $300 billion), and now, according to reports, Amazon is finalising a deal to invest up to $10 billion, further solidifying OpenAI's position at the top of the market.
Such colossal rounds (often with multiple oversubscriptions) confirm the excitement surrounding AI technologies and raise company valuations to unprecedented heights, spawning dozens of new "unicorns". Moreover, venture investments are being directed not only toward applied AI services but also toward critical infrastructure for them. "Smart money" is even flowing into the "shovels and picks" of the digital gold rush—from the production of specialised chips and cloud platforms to tools for optimising the energy consumption of data centres. The market is ready to actively fund even such infrastructure projects that support the AI ecosystem. Despite certain concerns about overheating, investor appetite for AI startups remains extraordinarily high—everyone is eager to secure their share in the artificial intelligence revolution.
The IPO Market is Reviving: An Opportunity for Exits
The global market for initial public offerings (IPOs) is emerging from a lull and gaining momentum. In Asia, Hong Kong has initiated a new wave of IPOs: in recent weeks, several large tech companies have gone public, collectively raising billions of dollars. For example, the Chinese battery giant CATL successfully placed shares worth ~$5 billion, demonstrating that investors in the region are once again ready to actively participate in IPOs. In January 2026, one of China's leading generative AI startups, MiniMax, debuted on the Hong Kong stock exchange—its shares soared by 78% on the first day of trading, and its market capitalisation surpassed 90 billion HKD (approximately $11.7 billion). The strong demand for MiniMax shares highlighted investors' willingness to pay for "home champions" in AI, particularly with support from Beijing.
The situation is also improving in the USA and Europe: the American fintech "unicorn" Chime recently made its market debut—its shares rose by about 30% on the first day of trading. Soon after, the design platform Figma conducted an IPO, raising approximately $1.2 billion at a valuation of around $15-20 billion, and its share prices also rose steadily in the initial days of trading. In the second half of 2025, several other well-known startups are preparing to go public—among them, the payment service Stripe and a number of other highly valued companies.
Even the crypto industry is attempting to leverage the revival: for instance, the fintech company Circle successfully went public last summer (its shares subsequently surged), while the cryptocurrency exchange Bullish has filed for a listing in the USA with a target valuation of approximately $4 billion. The resurgence of activity in the IPO market is crucial for the venture ecosystem: successful public exits allow funds to realise profits and redirect the freed-up capital into new projects.
Diversification of Investments: Not Just AI
In 2025, venture investments are covering an increasingly broad range of industries and are no longer limited to AI alone. Following last year's downturn, fintech is reviving: substantial funding rounds are taking place not only in the USA but also in Europe and developing markets, supporting the growth of promising financial services. Simultaneously, interest in climate technologies, "green" energy, and agrotech is intensifying—these sectors are attracting record investments in line with the global sustainability trend.
The appetite for biotech is also returning: the emergence of new medical developments and online platforms is once again attracting capital as the sector emerges from a period of declining valuations. Furthermore, amidst increased focus on security, investors have started to support defence technology projects, while a partial recovery in trust in the cryptocurrency market has enabled some blockchain startups to secure funding once again. Ultimately, the broadening of industry focus is making the entire startup ecosystem more resilient and reducing the risk of overheating in specific segments.
Consolidation and M&A Deals: The Consolidation of Players
Inflated startup valuations and fierce market competition are pushing the industry toward consolidation. Major mergers and acquisitions are coming back to the forefront, reshaping the balance of power. For instance, Google has agreed to acquire the Israeli cybersecurity startup Wiz for approximately $32 billion—a record sum for the Israeli tech sector.
Such megadeals signify the tech giants' aspiration to acquire key technologies and talent. Overall, the current activity in the realm of acquisitions and large venture deals indicates the maturation of the market. Mature startups are merging with each other or becoming targets for acquisition by corporations, while venture investors are finally gaining opportunities for long-awaited profitable exits.
Russia and the CIS: Local Initiatives Amid Global Trends
Despite external sanctions pressure, there is a gradual revitalisation of startup activity in Russia and neighbouring countries. In 2025, several new venture funds have been announced, with a total volume of approximately 10-12 billion RUB, aimed at supporting early-stage technological projects. Local startups are beginning to attract significant capital: for example, the Krasnodar-based foodtech project Qummy raised approximately 440 million RUB at a valuation of about 2.4 billion RUB. Additionally, foreign investors are once again allowed to invest in local projects in Russia, gradually restoring foreign capital interest.
Although the volumes of venture investments in the region remain modest compared to global figures, they are progressively increasing. Some large companies are seriously considering taking their tech divisions public as the market conditions improve; for instance, the management of VK Tech (a subsidiary of VK) recently publicly expressed the possibility of an IPO in the foreseeable future. New government support measures and corporate initiatives are designed to provide an additional boost to the local startup ecosystem and align its development with global trends.
Conclusion: Cautious Optimism at the Start of 2026
By the beginning of 2026, moderately optimistic sentiments have taken root in the venture industry. Record funding rounds and successful IPOs have convincingly shown that the phase of decline is behind us. Nevertheless, market participants are still maintaining a degree of caution. Investors are now placing greater emphasis on the quality of projects and the sustainability of business models, striving to avoid unwarranted hype. The focus of the new venture upturn is not on a race for inflated valuations, but on the search for genuinely promising ideas capable of delivering profit and transforming industries.
Even the largest funds are calling for a measured approach. Some investors note that the valuations of several startups remain extremely high and are not always supported by strong business metrics. Recognising the risk of overheating (especially in the AI sector), the venture community intends to proceed prudently, combining bold investments with thorough "homework" on market and product analysis.
