NVCA Yearbook 2026 (National Venture Capital Association (NVCA))

Summary

• Artificial intelligence captured 65.4 percent of all deal value, driven by 487 mega-deals of $100 million or more that accounted for 67 percent of total value.p.6
• Traditional US venture fundraising fell 34.3 percent to $67 billion across 585 funds, while first-time fund formation collapsed to 101 funds.p.6
• Total industry assets under management reached $1.38 trillion, comprising $1.08 trillion in net asset value and $299.3 billion in dry powder.p.7
• Estimated venture secondary market trading volume reached $106.3 billion in 2025, matching the scale of traditional IPO and M&A channels.p.7
• California led all US states by capturing $191.2 billion, accounting for roughly 60 percent of all US venture capital deployed.p.9

Key insights

1. 1. Mega-deals of $100 million or more represented only 3.2 percent of deal count but claimed 67 percent of total venture deal value in 2025.p.6
2. 2. Capital concentration intensified as the top ten venture funds raised $22 billion, representing 32.9 percent of all VC capital raised.p.6
3. 3. First-time fund formation dropped to 101 funds in 2025, a 77.9 percent decline from the 457 funds launched in 2021.p.6
4. 4. Forty-nine VC-backed IPOs generated $105.2 billion in exit value, led by CoreWeave at $17.1 billion and Figma at $15.7 billion.p.7
5. 5. A growing backlog of 859 active unicorns held an aggregate valuation of $4.34 trillion at year-end 2025.p.7
6. 6. Non-traditional investors participated in deals accounting for 83 percent of all US venture dollars invested in 2025.p.6
7. 7. Life sciences venture funding reached $37.3 billion across 1,908 deals in 2025.p.8
8. 8. Energy venture investment reached $9.6 billion in 2025, hitting its highest annual total in over a decade.p.8