AI’s gold rush is in full swing, but the dealmaking mechanics are shifting just as fast. Mega-rounds in AI are rewriting late-stage venture norms, while OpenAI and Anthropic have started clamping down on the SPVs that once fueled access. The result: a higher-stakes, more exclusive playing field for investors.

The Mega-Round Era

AI deals are getting bigger, bolder, and more concentrated. Mega-rounds (>$100M) now account for nearly 70% of late-stage AI funding in 2025 (gfrfund).

• Ramp’s $500M raise at a $22.5B valuation, led by ICONIQ, highlights fintech’s race to AI-driven efficiency (prnewswire).

• OSL Group’s $300M round reflects how digital assets and AI are converging to reshape trading infrastructure (FT).

These aren’t just vanity checks—they’re survival plays. Training frontier models and deploying infrastructure require billions in GPUs, talent, and data. The mega-round has become the entry ticket to the AI endgame.

SPVs: From Gateway to Gatekeeping

For years, SPVs (Special Purpose Vehicles) democratized access to buzzy late-stage startups. They pooled capital from family offices, angels, and emerging managers, giving smaller investors a seat at the table.

But in July, OpenAI and Anthropic moved to restrict SPV participation, warning investors that unauthorized vehicles could be barred from their rounds (FT). The rationale: keep cap tables clean, manage regulatory scrutiny, and control who touches sensitive AI equity.

This marks a structural break: SPVs once symbolized access, but now they’re becoming a liability in the most sought-after deals.

Why the Crackdown Now?

1. National Security Spotlight – AI is viewed as a strategic asset, and regulators want tighter visibility into who’s investing.

2. Cap Table Discipline – Mega-rounds already bring complex syndicates; dozens of SPVs add legal and governance friction.

3. Return of the Club Deal – Restricting SPVs reinforces exclusivity, rewarding long-term institutional backers and freezing out opportunistic capital.

Investor Implications

• Institutions Win: The biggest checks and deepest relationships get priority.

• Emerging Managers Pivot: Without SPVs, they’ll chase earlier-stage vertical AI (e.g., proptech AI like Buena AI).

• Secondaries Heat Up: SPV investors locked out of primaries may turn to secondary markets and continuation funds, accelerating a liquidity wave into 2026–27.

The Bigger Picture:

The AI boom isn’t slowing—but participation rules are tightening. Investors who relied on SPVs to ride the rocket ship must rethink their approach, while incumbents with deep pockets gain leverage.

Key Takeaway:

The AI boom is bifurcating private markets. Mega-rounds are pulling capital into fewer, bigger deals, while governance constraints like SPV restrictions are reshaping who gets in. The winners? Investors with patient capital, regulatory fluency, and insider access.

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The Market Pulse

Quality Over Quantity: When $100B Valuations Become the New Normal

AI Infrastructure Drives Selective Capital Deployment: Capital is moving with precision, not desperation. Databricks' $1B Series K at $100B valuation and mega-rounds across AI infrastructure signal that quality assets command premium prices, while global VC funding hit $109B in Q2 2025, dropping 17% QoQ but holding firm excluding OpenAI's massive Q1 deal. The mood? Disciplined deployment on proven AI thesis plays, with checkbooks opening only for companies that can spell "profitability."

• AI Agents Command Premium Valuations
  Databricks closed its Series K round at >$100B valuation with $1B raised from existing investors including Insight Partners and Thrive Capital, targeting AI agent infrastructure through its Lakebase database and Agent Bricks platform. The company simultaneously acquired machine learning startup Tecton to strengthen its AI agent offerings, signaling sustained appetite for AI infrastructure consolidation plays among investors who've decided that "AI agent" is the phrase that opens checkbooks.

• Funding Concentration in Mega-Deals
  Global venture funding reached $91B in Q2 2025 with greater capital concentration in the largest funding rounds compared to a year ago. North American companies raised $145B in H1 2025, a 43% YoY gain and the highest half-year total in three years. The flight to quality continues as investors chase category-defining opportunities rather than spray-and-pray strategies—turns out "unicorn hunting" is more profitable than "unicorn farming."

• Cybersecurity Sees Revival
  Global venture funding to cybersecurity surged to $4.9B in Q2, pushing H1 to the highest half-year level in three years. Notable deals include Cyera's $540M for AI-enabled data security and Cato Networks' cloud security raise, reflecting enterprise urgency around AI security infrastructure and zero-trust architectures.

• European Markets Find Footing
  Europe raised $12.6B across 1,200 startups in Q2, with Germany leapfrogging the UK for the first time since 2012. Regional diversification is accelerating as US valuations compress and European assets offer relative value plays for international capital seeking alternatives to Silicon Valley's premium pricing.

• Stage-Based Performance Diverges
  Seed through Series C demonstrated strong Q2 performance with deal sizes growing 5-22% and valuations rising 3-60% QoQ, while Series D+ rounds declined 8.9% in capital raised and 48% in pre-money valuations. Early-stage resilience contrasts sharply with late-stage compression as growth capital becomes more selective—apparently, the closer you get to IPO, the more investors remember that fundamentals matter.

📌 TL;DR

• Capital: Flowing to AI infrastructure leaders and cybersecurity, avoiding late-stage risk.

• Strategy: Agent economy, data security, and European diversification leading deployment.

• Valuations: Early stages holding firm, late stages compressing significantly.

• Spotlight: Mega-deals return for category leaders while disciplined capital allocation drives selectivity.

Sources: Databricks Press Release, TechCrunch - Databricks, Bain Global VC Outlook, Crunchbase Q2 Analysis, Fenwick Q2 Venture Beacon

Latest Fundraises from Major Firms (PE, VC, and Institutional Investors)

Venture Capital & Growth

• BDC Capital unveiled a $200M Industrial Innovation Venture Fund II to scale Canada’s industrial and cleantech sectors (GlobeNewswire).

• Veteran Ventures Capital closed Fund II at $60M, focused on veteran-led ventures and national security (Veteran Ventures Capital).

• Delphinus Venture Capital launched its new firm, setting its sights on high-impact investments (EUStartups).

• Norrsken Evolve Fund, Swedish VC firm, closes €57M pre-seed fund (Vestbee).

• Monex Group launched a $20M fund aimed at backing African tech startups, with a focus on everything from mobile payments to agri-tech (GlobalVenturing).

• 1834 Ventures launched a $20M fund to back startups from Tulane alumni and its extended community, fueling innovation and reversing brain drain in Louisiana (BizNewOrleans).

• GoalVest closed the first tranche of its Venture Growth Fund II, aiming for a $50M target (GoalVest Advisory).

• Hatteras Venture Partners raised over $200M across two healthcare-focused venture funds to support innovation in biotech and life sciences (CityBiz).

• Scenius Capital launched a $20M fund-of-funds to invest in emerging managers and early-stage funds (Blockworks).

• JMI Equity closed a $3.1B fund focused on software investments, marking one of its largest vehicles to date (Businesswire).

Private Equity & Credit

• Bain Capital raised $3B for its latest MM credit fund (Businesswire).

• Energize Capital raised $430M for a new fund targeting early-stage climate tech startups (InforCapital).

• Achmea launched a €250M private equity impact fund focused on ESG-aligned companies across Europe (ESGToday).

Top Jobs

Venture Capital roles

Associate at BIP Ventures (Atlanta)

Associate at Suffolk Technologies (Boston)

Investor at Decasonic (Chicago)

Associate at Pathlight Ventures (NYC)

Growth Equity Roles

Analyst at JMI Equity (San Diego or DC)

Analyst at Morgan Stanley Growth (NYC)

Investor at Stripes (NYC)

Growth Equity Associate at Trimer Capital (SF)

Private Equity (Buyout) Roles

Associate at GreyRock Investment Partners (Dallas)

Senior Associate at Graycor (Chicago)

Analyst at TI Partners (Atlanta)

Associate at Ares (Los Angeles)

Analyst at StepStone (NYC)

CoS Roles

Chief of Staff at David AI (SF)

Chief of Staff at Headway (NYC)

Chief of Staff at EvenUp (SF)

Business Operations Roles

Founding Growth at Conversion (SF)

Growth Marketing Manager at Harper (SF)

Strategy & Operations Lead at Decagon (SF)

Strategy & Operations Manager at Venn (Toronto)

Interesting Podcasts from the past week

Podcasts:

• The Future of Crypto | Brian Armstrong, CEO of Coinbase

• Lovable CEO, Anton Osika: The State of Foundation Models, Grok vs OpenAI, and Replit vs Bolt

• Anthropic Co-founder: Building Claude Code, Lessons From GPT-3 & LLM System Design

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