The December 2025 US Venture Capital Funding Report

US Startups Raised $15.4B in December 2025

US startup funding declined 15.4% in December to close out 2025, with $15.4B deployed across 521 deals. While down from November’s elevated levels, December maintained healthy deal flow across all stages, led by Databricks’ $4B mega-round. AI companies continued to dominate, capturing 67.6% of total funding.

The US venture capital market closed 2025 with measured activity in December, as funding declined 15.4% from November’s $18.2B to $15.4B across 521 deals. The month-over-month decrease reflected typical year-end patterns as some investors completed their deployment cycles and companies deferred announcements into early 2026.

Year-over-year comparisons showed a similar 14.9% decline from December 2024’s $18.1B, suggesting continued normalization following the elevated funding environment of late 2024. Despite the declines, December maintained robust deal flow with strong activity across all stages, demonstrating sustained investor appetite for quality assets.

US Deal Activity by Round Type

December’s stage distribution followed familiar patterns, with late-stage deals capturing 56.2% of total capital despite representing less than 10% of deal count. The $8.65B in late-stage funding was driven significantly by Databricks’ $4B round, which alone accounted for 26% of the entire month’s venture deployment.

Early-stage activity remained robust with 309 deals totaling $1.54B, representing 59.3% of all transactions while capturing 10% of total capital. The healthy volume of early-stage deals indicated continued seed and pre-seed market activity, though individual deal sizes remained modest with a $1M median.

Series A and Series B stages showed balanced activity, each capturing approximately $1.6-3.6B in funding.

Top US Funding Rounds – December 2025

Databricks’ $4B late-stage round dominated December’s funding landscape. The data analytics and AI platform’s massive raise demonstrated continued investor confidence in enterprise AI infrastructure, with the round valuing the company at reported levels consistent with anticipated public market positioning.

Beyond Databricks, December’s top deals showed notable diversity across sectors. Saviynt’s $700M Series B in cybersecurity, Fervo Energy’s $460M renewable energy round, and Castelion’s $350M aerospace financing reflected investor appetite extending well beyond pure-play AI companies. This sectoral breadth suggested a maturing investment environment where capital flowed to companies demonstrating strong fundamentals across multiple industries.

AI Investment Continues to Dominate

Artificial intelligence companies captured an overwhelming 67.6% of December’s total funding, with $10.4B deployed across 262 AI-related deals. This concentration exceeded even recent months’ elevated AI investment levels, driven primarily by Databricks’ $4B round but also reflecting sustained capital deployment across the AI landscape.

The 262 AI deal count—representing 50.3% of all December transactions—showed that AI investment was not merely concentrated in a few large rounds but distributed across a substantial portion of the venture market. This breadth suggested AI had become a fundamental component of modern startup formation rather than a discrete investment category.

Geographic Distribution

San Francisco maintained its position as the dominant venture hub, with companies in the Bay Area capturing a substantial portion of December’s funding. However, meaningful deal activity extended well beyond traditional coastal hubs. Houston’s Fervo Energy ($460M), Columbus’s Erebor ($350M), and Colorado-based companies including Boom Supersonic ($300M, Centennial) and Castelion ($350M, Torrance) demonstrated geographic diversification in venture funding, particularly for deep-tech and infrastructure-focused companies.

New York’s strong showing with multiple deals including Eon’s $300M round reflected the city’s established position in fintech, enterprise software, and healthcare technology. The geographic distribution suggested venture capital was increasingly flowing to quality companies regardless of location, though concentration in major tech hubs remained substantial.

Market Analysis

December’s 15.4% month-over-month decline from November’s $18.2B represented typical year-end moderation as investors completed annual deployment cycles. The similar 14.9% year-over-year decline suggested the market was operating within a relatively stable range following the substantial normalization of 2023-2024.

The $15.4B total, while down from recent peaks, remained within the healthy range for monthly venture deployment. The 521 deal count indicated sustained market activity across stages, with particularly strong volume in early-stage funding suggesting ongoing formation of new companies despite broader economic uncertainties.

The market’s heavy skew toward AI investment—with two-thirds of capital flowing to AI-related companies—represented both opportunity and concentration risk. While AI companies were demonstrating genuine traction and commercial adoption, the investment concentration suggested potential vulnerability if AI sentiment were to moderate or if expected returns failed to materialize at current deployment levels.