Overview of Funding Trends

In February 2025, total global venture funding experienced a significant decline, dropping to $19 billion. This marked one of the slowest months for startup financing in recent history, as indicated by data from Crunchbase. The United States played a major role, contributing slightly over $10 billion, representing 54% of the worldwide venture investments.

This reduction in funding patterns aligns with previous dips observed during the market correction that began at the end of 2021. Similar trends were noted in mid-2023, when monthly funding levels fell below the $20 billion threshold.

Leading Sectors: AI and Healthcare

The artificial intelligence (AI) sector was the frontrunner during this period, attracting approximately $5.7 billion—around 30% of the global venture capital influx. Following closely, healthcare and biotech sectors accounted for 22% of total investments.

Other notable sectors included hardware, which secured 18% of the funding, primarily due to significant investments in data centers and robotics, while manufacturing garnered 15%, focusing on startups within defense, aerospace, and material sciences.

Among the standout investments was a $600 million round for Saronic, a company known for developing maritime unmanned surface vehicles aimed at enhancing defense capabilities, a deal led by Elad Gil of Gil Capital. Additional considerable fundraising efforts included:

• NinjaOne, which raised $500 million for its endpoint management platform.
• Lambda, securing $480 million for its GPU training and inference technologies.
• Eikon Therapeutics, raising $351 million for advancements in drug discovery.
• Apptronik, which received $350 million for its humanoid robotics development.

Status of High-Value Funding Rounds

Despite the overall decline in venture capital investment, the month of February maintained a robust count of high-value funding rounds. Approximately $9.7 billion, representing half of total venture activity, was allocated to late-stage investments. Early-stage companies attracted more than $7 billion, with seed-stage startups receiving around $2.3 billion.

Notably, the number of funding rounds exceeding $1 billion remained unchanged at 21, even compared to the previous month’s total of 23 and the same month a year prior, which recorded 17 such transactions. This trend highlights the ongoing availability of substantial growth equity for significant deals.

Outlook and Economic Factors

The anticipated recovery of the stock market in 2025 now faces uncertainty, particularly with potential new tariffs in the U.S. posing risks to public technology enterprises. These economic indicators may further impact venture capital trends as the year progresses.

Methodology

This report derives its data directly from Crunchbase, relying on reported figures as of March 4, 2025. It is important to note that funding numbers, particularly at the seed stage, may initially underrepresent actual investment amounts as they often inflate significantly post-quarter or year-end reporting.

Understanding Funding Terms

The following definitions apply to the funding categories discussed:

• Seed and Angel: Includes seed, pre-seed, and angel funding rounds.
• Early-Stage: Encompasses Series A and B rounds, as well as other funding above $3 million but less than or equal to $15 million.
• Late-Stage: Constitutes Series C and beyond funding, with rounds exceeding $15 million.
• Technology Growth: Refers to private-equity funding raised by companies that have previously received venture financing.