AI Startups Dominate Global VC Funding in Q1 2025: Pitchbook

Artificial intelligence startups captured the majority of global venture capital funding in the first quarter of 2025.

According to a new report from Pitchbook, AI and machine learning companies received 57.9% of all VC funding worldwide in Q1, more than double the 28% share seen in the same period last year.

The momentum was even more concentrated in North America, where 70% of all venture capital flowed into AI-focused startups.

In total, the global AI sector raised $73 billion in the first quarter—already more than half of the total deal value AI startups secured in all of 2024.

A major portion of that funding came from OpenAI, which closed a record-breaking $40 billion round led by SoftBank on March 31.

Other significant raises included Anthropic’s $3.5 billion Series E round, underscoring the appetite for foundational AI infrastructure and applications.

Investors appear to be betting heavily on early market leaders as competition in the space intensifies.

“Investors still have an AI FOMO problem,” Pitchbook stated, suggesting that fear of missing out is fueling the continued surge in capital.

Maria Palma, general partner at Freestyle Capital, noted that the technological progress in AI is advancing so quickly that many investors feel pressured to move fast.

“The fear of somebody else winning your market has never been higher than it is now,” she said.

However, not all voices in the industry are equally optimistic. Nnamdi Okike, co-founder of 645 Ventures, warned that the rapid funding pace could lead to unsustainable valuations.

“A lot of VC funds are just kind of saying, ‘Hey, this can only go up.’ And that’s usually a recipe for failure,” he said.

In comparison, crypto and blockchain startups attracted just $4.8 billion in funding during the same period, according to CryptoRank.

While still modest compared to AI, this marks a notable rebound from the $1.1 billion raised in Q4 2024 and represents the strongest quarter for crypto VC deals since Q3 2022.

The crypto sector appears to be regaining investor interest, particularly in the U.S., where regulatory attitudes have softened.

~$154 million in venture funding this week.

Q1 closing with $7.3B+ raised across more than 550 rounds. https://t.co/aPQcrAdnG6

Galaxy Ventures, led by Mike Novogratz, is expected to close a $180 million raise by June, signaling renewed confidence in blockchain innovation.

The fund focuses on early-stage crypto and blockchain startups, particularly in payments and stablecoins, according to an April 17 Bloomberg report citing unnamed sources.

In another major fundraising, Venture capital firm Haun Ventures is reportedly aiming to raise $1 billion across two new cryptocurrency investment funds within the next three months.

Half of the funds—$500 million—are expected to be dedicated to early-stage crypto startups, while the remaining $500 million will be allocated to late-stage investments in the digital asset space.

As reported, Kaito AI has ranked Paradigm as the top-performing crypto VC firm over the past 12 months, posting an 11.80% performance metric.

The firm leads ahead of Alliance (10.64%), Dragonfly (8.32%), a16z (6.94%), and Multicoin Capital (5.86%), which round out the top five.

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