Venture investment in Q3 2026 hits $159B despite quarterly drop
Startups pulled in $159 billion in venture funding in Q3 2026, Crunchbase reports. That's down sharply from Q2, but still up 53% over last year—and the highest third quarter since 2022. Billion-dollar rounds hit a record, with 27 companies raising at least $1 billion each, led by Databricks and Safe Superintelligence at $5 billion. AI-related startups alone snagged $102 billion of total investment.
- Q3 funding down 25% from Q2, up 53% year-over-year
- 27 startups closed $1B+ rounds, an all-time record
- AI startups claimed 64% of global venture capital
- San Francisco Bay Area drew 24% of global investment
- Late-stage rounds dominated, with $105 billion invested
Sources covering this
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