Recent Startup and Venture Capital News for December 3, 2025: Record AI Rounds, Global Fund Activity, M&A Deals, Technology Market Trends. Analytics for Investors and Venture Funds.
By the end of 2025, the startup and venture capital market is showing strong growth. In Q3, global venture investments exceeded $100–120 billion, demonstrating double-digit percentage growth year-over-year. Major funds and corporations are returning to large-scale financing of innovations, particularly in the fields of artificial intelligence and deep tech. New large unicorns are emerging, and promising tech companies are going public. Investors are also diversifying their portfolios: alongside IT and AI, there is increased financing in fintech, biotech, climate tech, and defense startups. Below are the main topics and examples of recent funding rounds.
- Return of Large Investors and Mega Funds
- Record Investments in AI and Emergence of New Unicorns
- Revival of the IPO Market and Startup Listings
- Sector Diversification: Fintech, Biotech, Climate, and Defense
- Consolidation and M&A Deals
- Geography of Investments: Asia, Middle East, Africa
- Interest in Crypto and Blockchain Startups
- Local Context: Russia and CIS
Return of Large Investors and Mega Funds
The largest venture and corporate investors are actively re-entering the market. SoftBank is forming Vision Fund III with ~$40 billion for investments in AI and robotics, while Andreessen Horowitz is closing a record fund of approximately $10 billion (focused on AI infrastructure and fast-growing companies). Sequoia Capital is preparing new seed and Series A funds totaling nearly $1 billion. Sovereign funds from the Persian Gulf (Mubadala, PIF) plan to direct multi-billion dollar investments into promising technologies. Major tech corporations (Google, NVIDIA, Samsung, Microsoft, etc.) are expanding their venture divisions, attracting startups in the fields of artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and semiconductors.
- SoftBank – Vision Fund III (~$40 billion for AI and robotics)
- Andreessen Horowitz – new $10 billion fund (AI infrastructure and scalable growth)
- Sequoia Capital – ~$750 million for Series A + $200 million for seed funds
- Sovereign Funds (Mubadala, PIF, etc.) – multi-billion dollar investment programs
- Corporate VCs (Google, Microsoft, Samsung, etc.) – growth of venture activity
Record Investments in Artificial Intelligence and New Unicorns
The artificial intelligence sector continues to set the tone for venture investments. According to PitchBook/FT estimates, approximately two-thirds of all VC investments in 2025 have already been directed towards AI projects – around $160–200 billion. Generative AI and machine learning platforms are regularly attracting unprecedented funding rounds. For example, developers of AI platforms have secured the following amounts:
- Anysphere (Cursor platform) – $2.3 billion (Series D), valuation over $29 billion
- Lila Sciences (AI for scientific research) – $350 million (Series A)
- Sesame (voice AI) – $250 million (Series B)
- Hippocratic AI (AI for medicine) – $126 million (Series C)
Among the largest deals are American companies Anthropic ($13 billion) and xAI ($10 billion) in Q3, while in Europe, French Mistral and British Nscale raised $1.5 billion each, indicating a global race for AI unicorns. As rounds grow larger, the number of unicorn startups (valuation of $1+ billion) is steadily increasing. Venture analysts note that the AI platforms and tools market, even after the release of GPT-4, will continue to dominate, attracting a significant portion of investor capital.
Revival of the IPO Market and Exit Prospects
After a lull, a wave of IPOs and major exits for tech startups is on the rise. Funds expect that a number of global unicorns (for example, in fintech and biotech) will go public in the U.S., Europe, or Asia by 2026. In 2025, fintech companies and biotech startups with successful placements re-entered NASDAQ and LSE, returning capital to venture investors. M&A deals are also becoming more active: strategic players are buying mature projects or merging with them to monetize technology. In sum, these trends allow investors to anticipate exits and a partial recovery of liquidity in the market, which fuels interest in new funding rounds.
Sector Diversification: Fintech, Biotech, Climate, and Defense
Investors are broadening their focus from "pure" AI to other sectors. In fintech, investments are actively flowing into solutions for automating banking services and payments. For instance, AI platforms Model ML (Australia) and Nevis (UK) raised $75 million and $35 million respectively for automating investment banking and wealth management. The European payment platform Sokin received €42.9 million for global transactions. In biotech, the startup One-Carbon Therapeutics (Sweden) raised SEK 153 million (~$16.2 million) for oncology research. Climate and sustainable technologies are becoming priorities: investors are exploring projects aimed at reducing emissions, clean energy, and agri-tech. In the defense tech sector, German company Quantum Systems raised €180 million for developing AI-powered drones. As such, venture funds' portfolios today are balanced between AI and adjacent industries – from fintech and biomedicine to eco-technologies and the defense industry.
- FinTech: Nevis ($35M, platforms for wealth management), Model ML ($75M, generative AI for investment banking), Sokin (€42.9M, payment infrastructure).
- Biotech & Health: One-Carbon Therapeutics (Sweden, SEK153M for oncology); startups in therapeutics and genomics.
- ClimateTech: clean energy, electric mobility, and carbon footprint reduction projects are receiving grants and venture rounds.
- DefenseTech: Quantum Systems (€180M) – autonomous combat drones with AI, as well as cybersecurity and drone projects.
- IndustrialTech: robotics, IoT, and manufacturing innovations are popular among industrial fund investors.
Consolidation and M&A Deals
The market is witnessing a revival in mergers and acquisitions. Venture funds are consolidating, and large companies are acquiring tech startups to expand their portfolios. A notable example of consolidation is the merger of American funds CerraCap Ventures and Impact VC into a new global fund, CerraCap Impact VC, creating a unified ecosystem for startups in AI, cybersecurity, and IT transformation. Analysts note that many M&A deals in AI and Web3 are occurring at significant discounts to previous valuations: in recent months, dozens of startups worth a total of around $2.3 billion have been acquired at prior round valuations nearly four times higher. This suggests a wave of market rebalancing: strategic buyers are increasingly focusing on actual profitability and technological comparability rather than on the previous hype surrounding "yet-to-be-validated" technologies.
- Merger of CerraCap Ventures + Impact VC → CerraCap Impact VC (new global VC platform).
- OpenAI acquired a stake in Thrive Holdings (Thrive Capital) to integrate its technologies into accounting and IT services for major companies.
- Many AI and Web3 startups are currently exiting through M&A at discounts (~70%) to their last valuations, reflecting a realization of overly optimistic assumptions.
- Funds and corporations are also forming joint CVC programs, aiming to scale innovations more quickly by acquiring talented teams.
Geography of Investments: Asia, Middle East, and Africa
Venture capital is actively entering new markets. In Asia, investment growth is particularly evident in China and Southeast Asia: here, large tech startups are raising rounds of hundreds of millions of yuan and dollars. For example, the Chinese company Robot Era raised around ¥1 billion (~$140M) for robotics development. In Southeast Asia, investors are financing fintech and insurance services – Thai online insurer Roojai received $60M, Indian real estate platform SquareYards obtained $35M. In Singapore and the Philippines, deep tech projects are emerging with rounds of $10–50M.
In the Middle East, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are becoming hubs for venture capital: fintech startup Erad secured a $125M credit line, while the platform Revibe ($17M) and housing construction service Mnzil ($11.7M) received funding from international investors. Infrastructure projects (residential complexes, energy, logistics) are also being financed. In Africa, there is increased activity in fintech and renewable energy: startups from Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa are receiving funding from global funds. Thus, global venture capital is spreading far beyond traditional capitals, focusing on regional technology leaders.
- Asian Market: Robot Era (China) raised ¥1 billion ($140M), Roojai (Thailand) – $60M (digital insurance), SquareYards (India) – $35M.
- Middle East: Saudi fintech Erad – $125M credit line, Revibe – $17M, Mnzil startup – $11.7M (Series A); regional infrastructure startups (Zinit, Strataphy, Buildroid AI) raised up to $8M.
- Africa: startups in fintech, e-commerce, and clean energy are attracting foreign capital; the largest deals are concentrated in South Africa and Nigeria.
Interest in Crypto and Blockchain Startups
After a prolonged correction, the crypto market is showing signs of revival, which is reflected in venture investments in Web3. Bitcoin prices are holding around record levels (~$85–90 thousand), and in the U.S., regulators are approving new products based on crypto assets: a Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF is expected to launch by the end of the year. On December 3, 2025, a major update called Fusaka is planned for the Ethereum network to increase scalability and security. The success of public offerings of crypto companies (ETFs, exchanges) is restoring investor confidence in the sector. Currently, DeFi, NFT infrastructure, and enterprise blockchain projects are securing rounds at high valuations. Experts warn that startups need to prepare for increased regulation, but overall interest in crypto technologies is growing.
Local Context: Russia and CIS
The Russian startup market remains relatively small but is showing growth. According to Venture Guide and ComNews, Russian tech companies attracted approximately $125.5 million in venture investments in the first nine months of 2025 – a 30% increase compared to the previous year. However, the number of deals has declined (103 vs 120 in 2024), and there is a shortage of large rounds. Industrial Tech is traditionally the leader in investment volume in Russia ($29.7 million), followed by Healthcare ($19.1 million) and FinTech ($18.3 million). AI and machine learning startups attracted about $60.4 million, maintaining their leadership among technologies. Amid the outflow of foreign capital, state institutions are trying to support the ecosystem: "RUSNANO" and the Russian Direct Investment Fund plan to increase funding – by the end of the year, "RUSNANO" intends to invest about 2.3 billion rubles in startups. However, major international investors are still virtually absent from the Russian sector. In neighboring CIS countries (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus), government initiatives and small rounds ($1–5 million) continue in exchange for equity stakes.
- Investment volume in Russia (9 months 2025) – $125.5 million (+30% y/y); number of deals – 103 (−14%).
- Main sectors by investments: Industrial Tech ($29.7M), Healthcare ($19.1M), FinTech ($18.3M).
- Technology leader is AI/ML: startups in this field received ~$60.4M (over 30% of total investments).
- Government support: “RUSNANO” will invest ~2.3 billion rubles in domestic innovations by the end of 2025; similar programs are being implemented by the Russian Direct Investment Fund and regional funds.
