Startup and Venture Capital News for Friday, February 6, 2026: Major Funding Rounds, Venture Fund Activity, Growth of AI Startups, and Key Trends in the Global Venture Market.
As of early February 2026, the global venture capital market is demonstrating a solid recovery following the downturn of recent years. Preliminary estimates suggest that 2025 was one of the most successful years in history regarding venture investments in startups (only trailing the peak years of 2021 and 2022), indicating a return of significant private capital to the technology sector. Investors worldwide are once again actively financing promising companies: record-sized deals are being closed, and startup plans for public offerings are re-emerging on the agenda. Major venture funds are stepping back into the spotlight with new mega-rounds and investment strategies, while governments and sovereign funds are increasing their support for innovation in a bid to keep up in the global tech race. As a result, the beginning of 2026 sees the venture market presenting positive dynamics, instilling cautious optimism, although investors remain selective in their assessments and business models of startups.
In terms of geography, the rise in venture activity is global in nature. The United States remains the primary engine, accounting for a lion's share of large rounds, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence. Europe is also witnessing increased investments: by the end of 2025, Germany surpassed the UK for the first time in a decade in terms of total venture capital raised, reflecting the strengthening of European tech hubs. In Asia, the dynamics vary: the Indian ecosystem has reached a new level of maturity (with the emergence of the first "unicorns" of 2026 in January and the revival of high-profile IPOs on local exchanges), while the Chinese market remains subdued due to regulatory pressure and a shift of capital towards domestic projects. However, Chinese investors are actively investing in overseas AI startups and semiconductor companies to maintain a global presence. In the Middle East and North Africa, there is an acceleration: funds from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar are ramping up financing for tech companies both in their region and worldwide, betting on fintech, cloud services, and AI. Meanwhile, the startup ecosystems in Russia and neighboring countries are also striving to keep up with global trends by launching local funds and support programs, although the market volumes there remain significantly smaller. Overall, 2026 begins under the sign of a new venture boom, although market participants remain mindful of the associated risks.
Below are the key events and trends shaping the agenda for startups and venture investments on February 6, 2026:
- Return of Mega Funds and Major Investors. Leading players are attracting record-sized venture funds and sharply increasing their investments, once again saturating the market with capital.
- Unprecedented AI Mega Rounds and New Unicorns. Historically large investments in artificial intelligence are driving startup valuations to unprecedented heights.
- Energy and Climate Technologies Attract Mega Deals. The sustainable energy and climate tech sectors are taking center stage due to billion-dollar funding rounds.
- Fintech Consolidation and a Wave of M&A Activity. Mature fintech companies are becoming targets for multi-billion dollar acquisitions, mergers, and strategic purchases in the global market.
- Revival of the IPO Market. Initial public offerings of tech companies are back in the spotlight: successful IPOs are encouraging new candidates to enter the stock market.
- Focus on Defense and Cyber Startups. Venture funds are redirecting capital to strategic sectors such as defense, space, and cybersecurity in response to new geopolitical challenges.
Return of Mega Funds and Record Investments
After a period of quiet, the venture market has triumphantly welcomed back the so-called "mega funds" — gigantic pools of capital for technology investments. American flagship Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) raised over $15 billion in new funds, increasing its assets under management to a record $90 billion. This capital is focused on priority areas — artificial intelligence, cryptocurrencies, defense technologies, and biotech. Simultaneously, Japan's SoftBank has bolstered its presence in the AI sector: at the end of 2025, SoftBank invested about $22.5 billion in OpenAI, marking one of the largest single investments in the history of the startup industry. The renewed activity of such major players confirms the trend of capital concentration among industry leaders and the desire of investors to secure a stake in the next technological breakthrough.
AI Startup Boom: Mega Rounds and New Unicorns
The artificial intelligence sector remains the main engine of the current venture boom. AI startups are attracting unprecedented volumes of funding, setting new records for round sizes. For example, the project xAI, founded by Elon Musk, secured around $20 billion in investments with the participation of Nvidia — an unheard-of amount for a private company. Industry leader OpenAI not only regularly attracts substantial capital but also enters into strategic agreements: it recently secured exclusive supplies of high-performance Cerebras chips worth over $10 billion to accelerate its models, strengthening its technological advantage. Alongside giants, new players are rapidly emerging. In the U.S., startups in generative video (such as Higgsfield) and voice AI (Deepgram, among others) have reached unicorn valuations just a few years after their foundation. In Europe, the German company Parloa raised $350 million at a valuation of around $3 billion, confirming the global nature of the current AI craze. The enormous funds currently flowing into artificial intelligence reflect a fierce competition among companies and states for leadership in this field. The lion's share of venture dollars is flowing into AI projects, creating new market imbalances and raising concerns about overheating in specific segments.
Climate Technologies Securing Mega Deals
Amid rising energy demand and a transition to sustainable sources, capital is pouring into climate and energy technologies. One of the recent landmark events was a record funding round for the American project Base Power (Austin, Texas), which is developing a network of home battery systems for energy storage and excess feed into the grid under the principle of a "virtual power plant." The startup raised about $1 billion (Series C) at a valuation of approximately $3 billion — one of the largest rounds in the history of climate tech. Investors such as Addition, Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed, and Google Capital participated in the deal, showcasing a high level of trust in energy innovations. The funds raised will allow Base Power to accelerate the construction of its own battery factory and broaden its market presence. Venture funds are betting on solutions that can reduce the load on power grids during peak periods (especially considering the rapid rise in energy consumption from data centers for AI) and accelerate the transition to renewable sources. Overall, the climate and "green" startup segment is attracting increasing funding. Billion-dollar investments are being directed toward energy storage projects, electric vehicle developments, climate fintech (such as platforms for trading carbon credits or insuring climate risks), and other technologies that help combat climate change.
Fintech Consolidation: Major Exits and M&A
A new wave of consolidation has begun in the fintech sector, signaling the maturation of the fintech market. Several high-profile deals were announced in January 2026. For instance, Capital One agreed to acquire the startup Brex (a corporate expense management platform) for $5.15 billion. This purchase became the largest "bank-fintech" deal in history, underscoring traditional financial giants' eagerness to integrate advanced fintech solutions. The European venture fund Hg acquired the American financial platform OneStream for approximately $6.4 billion, buying out shares from previous investors (including KKR). Other major deals include the stock exchange operator Deutsche Börse purchasing the investment platform Allfunds for €5.3 billion to strengthen its positions in WealthTech, and US Bancorp acquiring the brokerage firm BTIG for about $1 billion. In addition to traditional players acquiring fintechs, several rapidly growing startups have themselves entered the purchasing market: for example, the Australian unicorn Airwallex is expanding into Asia by acquiring the Korean payment company Paynuri. The surge in M&A activity demonstrates that as the industry matures, successful fintech companies either come under the wing of larger corporations or enhance their influence through strategic acquisitions.
IPO Market Revives: Tech Companies Going Public
The primary public offering (IPO) market for tech companies is confidently coming back to life after a prolonged pause. As early as 2025, it surpassed analysts' expectations with a number of notable public offerings: in the U.S. alone, at least 23 companies conducted IPOs with a valuation exceeding $1 billion (up from 9 the previous year), with the total market capitalization of these offerings exceeding $125 billion. Investors are again eager to welcome profitable and rapidly growing businesses to public markets, especially if the company has a clear story around artificial intelligence or other "hot" technologies. This trend is expected to continue in 2026, with several well-known unicorns signaling their preparations for IPO. Among the most anticipated candidates for public offerings are:
- Major fintech unicorns: payment platforms Plaid and Revolut.
- Leaders in artificial intelligence: AI model developer OpenAI, big data platform Databricks, and AI startup for businesses Cohere.
- Other tech giants: such as the space company SpaceX, if market conditions prove favorable.
Successful debuts of these companies could provide an additional boost to the market, although experts remind us that volatility could close this "IPO window" at any moment. Nevertheless, the current revival in public markets strengthens confidence that investors are ready to reward startups with strong growth and profitability metrics.
Defense and Cyber Startups in the Spotlight
The geopolitical landscape and emerging risks are reshaping the priorities of venture investors. Amidst global tensions and the pursuit of technological independence, significant capital is being directed toward defense technologies and cybersecurity. In the U.S., the American Dynamism movement is gaining traction — investments in companies strengthening national security. Notably, part of the funds from the new mega-round a16z will be invested in defense sector startups and deeptech. Developers of technology for the military and government structures are attracting nine-digit sums: for instance, the California company Onebrief, which creates software for military planning, recently secured about $200 million in investments at a valuation exceeding $2 billion, while concurrently acquiring a relevant startup to expand its platform's capabilities. In Europe, one of the fastest-growing cybersecurity startups is the Belgian Aikido Security, which achieved unicorn status (valuation of $1 billion) in just two years thanks to its comprehensive platform for protecting source code and cloud systems. Such successes reflect the growing market demand for technologies that ensure digital and national security — from supply chain protection (as seen with the British project Cyb3r Operations, which raised about $5 million to monitor cyber risks) to new intelligence and satellite observation tools. The trend of increasing interest in defense-related projects is evident at the governmental level, with authorities and state funds in the U.S., Europe, and Israel actively investing in dual-use startups that can provide a strategic advantage.
Looking Ahead: Cautious Optimism and Balancing Growth
Despite the rapid rise at the start of the year, investors maintain a degree of caution, mindful of the lessons learned from the recent market cool-down. Capital has indeed begun to flow back into the technology sector, but the requirements for startups have tightened: funds expect clear business models, economic efficiency, and understandable paths to profitability from teams. Company valuations are again on the rise, particularly in the AI segment, yet investors are increasingly focusing on diversifying risks and the long-term sustainability of their portfolios. The returned liquidity — from billion-dollar venture funds to new IPOs — creates opportunities for expansive growth while simultaneously enhancing competition for outstanding projects. It is likely that in 2026 the venture capital industry will enter a phase of more balanced development. Funding for "breakthrough" areas (such as artificial intelligence, biotechnology, climate, and defense technologies) will continue, but there will be increased attention to the quality of growth, corporate governance, and compliance with regulatory requirements. This approach should help the market avoid overheating and lay the foundation for sustainable innovation development in the long term.
