Global venture capital funding showed renewed strength in the second quarter of this year, with total funding increasing to $91 billion, up from $82 billion in the same quarter of last year.

That’s according to a new report released today by market intelligence company Crunchbase Inc. The figure, though up year-over-year, was down from $113 billion in the first quarter, which was the highest quarter since the third quarter of 2022. However, Crunchbase notes that the second-quarter figure marks a continuation of robust activity driven by artificial intelligence and a strong appetite for so-called mega-rounds.

Not surprisingly, interest in AI companies once again drove the VC market, with $40 billion in funding in the quarter, accounting for around 45% of the quarter’s global total. Of the $40 billion raised by AI companies, more than a third went to a single company, Scale AI Inc., which raised $14.3 billion from Meta Platforms Inc. in June. The round was the second-largest single VC funding deal on record after OpenAI’s $40 billion round in the first quarter.

Behind the $40 billion raised by AI companies, the next highest were healthcare and biotech companies, which raised $14.8 billion in funding and financial services, which pulled in $11.3 billion.

A key trend noted in the report was the concentration of capital in fewer, larger deals. Seventeen companies each raised $500 million or more in the second quarter, accounting for one-third of all capital raised. U.S.-based startups dominated the landscape, pulling in $60 billion — two-thirds of all global VC funding for the quarter — reflecting continued investor confidence in domestic innovation and scale.

For the first half of 2025, total global venture funding hit $205 billion, up 32% from the first half of 2024, with more than $70 billion going to just 11 companies that raised $1 billion or more, reinforcing a funding environment that increasingly favors scale more than early-stage risk.

In another positive sign for startups, merger and acquisition activity also surged. The second quarter saw $50 billion in disclosed deal value, the second-highest quarter for startup merger and acquisitions since 2021. Though that was down from $71 billion in the first quarter, which included Google LLC’s $32 billion acquisition of Wiz Inc., the second quarter still saw 18 deals exceeding $1 billion in value apiece.

OpenAI led the charge in acquisitions, buying four companies, including Jony Ive’s io Products Inc. for $6 billion and Windsurf for $3 billion. Other notable deals included Databricks Inc.’s acquisition of open-source database Neon Inc.

The general tone of Crunchbase’s report was more positive than the first-look report from PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor released on July 3 discussing the same markets. Still, the venture capital market enters the second half of 2025 with strong momentum.

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