Venture Capital Report 2025 (Gunderson Dettmer)

Summary

• Ten companies received more than half of all venture capital investment dollars in 2025.p.2
• The pre-seed median post-money valuation cap grew over 20% to reach an all-time high of $18.0 million in 2025.p.5
• The median pre-money valuation for seed financings grew 10% year-over-year to reach $22.0 million in 2025.p.5
• Series A median pre-money valuation surged 42% year-over-year to an all-time high of $70.8 million in 2025.p.7
• For Series B financings, median pre-money valuation reached $178.0 million while transaction size grew 23% to $38.1 million.p.8
• Series C median transaction size and median pre-money valuation grew 41% and 54% respectively compared to 2024.p.9
• Nearly 40% of Series D+ financing rounds in 2025 included a secondary component.p.12

Key insights

1. AI financings captured between 57% of total capital at Series B and 76% at Series D+ despite representing a smaller share of deal counts.p.3
2. The median pre-money valuation of AI companies was 5.3 times higher than non-AI companies at Series D+.p.4
3. AI coding tools have lowered startup costs and enabled early-stage companies to reach milestones faster and with less capital.p.4
4. Series A deal count increased 18% in 2025 as investors began easing constraints on post-seed capital.p.6
5. Policy and regulatory tailwinds helped drive valuation expansion for companies in cryptocurrency, defense technology, and aerospace alongside AI.p.7
6. Series B deal count grew only 7% year-over-year, leading companies unable to secure funding to pursue acquisition exits.p.8
7. AI companies comprised 63% of Series C financing recipients in 2025, representing the highest concentration among all stages.p.9
8. The share of Series D+ deals with transaction values exceeding $250 million increased from 21% in 2024 to 37% in 2025.p.10
9. Secondary share purchases served as interim liquidity options for founders, employees, and early investors amidst delayed IPO and M&A markets.p.12