1. Momentum Continues from 2024’s Record Year
Last year, 49 AI startups raised $100M+ in funding rounds, with three companies securing multiple mega-rounds and seven raising $1B+ rounds. In 2025, that momentum is continuing, with multiple billion-dollar rounds already closed in Q1. The US AI industry remains a top destination for investment, signaling a strong appetite for AI innovation and expansion.
2. Glean and Anysphere Lead June Rounds
Enterprise search startup Glean secured $150M in a Series F round on June 10, reaching a $7.25B valuation. Meanwhile, Anysphere, the lab behind AI coding tool Cursor, raised $900M in a Series C round led by Thrive Capital, valuing it at nearly $10B. Both rounds demonstrate investor confidence in enterprise AI tools.
3. Major Rounds in May from Snorkel AI and LM Arena
AI data labeling startup Snorkel AI raised $100M in a Series D round, valuing it at $1.3B. LM Arena, a community-driven AI benchmarking tool, secured a $100M seed round with a $600M valuation. Additionally, AI infrastructure company TensorWave raised $100M in a Series A, fueling AI hardware advancements.
4. SandboxAQ and Runway Make Waves in April
SandboxAQ raised $450M in Series E funding, bringing its valuation to $5.7B, with backing from Nvidia and Google. Runway, focused on AI models for media production, raised $308M in a Series D round. The media and quantum AI sectors are emerging as exciting areas of investment in 2025.
5. OpenAI’s Historic $40B Round in March
In March, OpenAI closed a record-breaking $40B funding round, valuing the company at $300B. Led by SoftBank and with participation from Microsoft, this massive round cements OpenAI as the industry’s dominant force. The round’s size dwarfs previous investments and showcases the market’s immense confidence in foundational AI models.
6. Diverse March Rounds Span Multiple Sectors
March also saw Nexthop AI raise $110M in Series A, Insilico Medicine secure $110M for AI-powered drug discovery, and Celestial AI raise $250M for AI infrastructure. Reflection.AI and Turing also raised significant rounds. The variety of sectors shows AI’s growing impact across healthcare, infrastructure, and autonomous systems.
7. Anthropic’s $3.5B Raise Highlights Growing Competition
Anthropic raised $3.5B in a March Series E round, valuing the company at $61.5B. The startup’s focus on safer, more reliable large language models positions it as a key rival to OpenAI. Its funding success reflects increasing demand for ethical and cutting-edge AI models from both investors and enterprise clients.
8. February’s Key Rounds: Together AI, Lambda, Abridge
Together AI raised $305M for open-source generative AI. Lambda secured $480M in Series D funding to advance AI infrastructure. Abridge, an AI transcription tool for healthcare, closed a $250M Series D round. These investments indicate a broader push into open-source, healthcare, and core AI hardware sectors.
9. Legal Tech and Hardware See Major Investments
AI legal tech firms Eudia ($105M) and Harvey ($300M), along with hardware startup EnCharge AI ($100M), raised significant funding in February. These rounds highlight the rising importance of AI in transforming professional services and hardware innovation, demonstrating that AI’s reach extends far beyond traditional software applications.
10. Strong Start to 2025 with January Rounds
January saw ElevenLabs raise $180M for synthetic voice AI, while Hippocratic AI raised $141M for healthcare-focused LLMs. These early-year rounds set the tone for what is shaping up to be another monumental year for US AI startups, as investors continue to pour billions into the sector’s most promising innovators.
