Unicorns Raising Fast Follow-On Rounds Are Mostly — But Not Only — An AI-Centric Bunch

After landing tens or hundreds of millions in fresh venture funding, most startups are content to take a break from fundraising for a while.

Ultra-hot unicorns, however, are another story.

For these companies, which tend to share exceptionally ambitious growth plans, large cash needs and high inbound interest from investors, it’s common to see huge rounds close just months apart.

While such startups can arise in any industry, lately they’ve been an AI-centric bunch. The big names in generative AI are, of course, at the top of the list, with OpenAI, Anthropic, xAI and others collectively raising over $90 billion in commitments to date.

Unicorns developing industry-specific AI applications in areas such as legal tech, marketing and healthcare are also raising follow-on rounds at a fast clip. Meanwhile, other sectors, including defense tech, cybersecurity and fintech, are also contributing fast movers.

To illustrate, we used Crunchbase data to put together a list of 33 U.S. unicorns that have closed rounds this year, just months after announcing a prior fundraising. Below, we break it down by sector, focusing on generative AI, vertical AI and other industries.

Generative AI

We’ll start with generative AI platforms, which have been busy ingesting the world’s data as well as much of its venture capital lately.

The seven companies listed below all raised big rounds this year, mere months after raising their prior mega-financings.

You’ve probably heard of most of them. But just to review, it’s worth pointing out how quickly they’ve raised successive rounds, typically waiting seven months or less between financings.

Notably, Perplexity, one of the companies already on the list, is reportedly in talks to raise more money, mere months after its most recent round, this time at a $20 billion post-money valuation — up $2 billion from its July fundraise.

Vertical AI

Startups that have demonstrated a lead in applying AI to automate or boost performance in industry-specific applications are also seeing a lot of love from investors.

To illustrate, we put together a list of eight recently funded vertical AI unicorns that have raised rounds in quick succession.

Here, the most heavily funded name is Anysphere, which sells the popular AI coding assistant Cursor. The San Francisco startup confirmed in June that it raised a $900 million round at a staggering $9.9 billion valuation. It was the company’s third round in less than a year.

Harvey, a provider of AI tools for law firms, is another heavy hitter. The 3-year-old, San Francisco-based company landed $300 million in a June Series E at a $5 billion valuation. That came just four months after its Series D, also for $300 million.

Notably, three of the companies on our vertical AI list hail from the healthcare sector. These include OpenEvidence, focused on aggregating and synthesizing medical research, Hippocratic AI, which is applying generative AI to reduce healthcare staffing demands, and Abridge, offering clinical note-taking.

Defense tech

Defense tech is another area of surging interest for venture investors, and this is reflected in the tallies of fast fund-raising unicorns. Our query unearthed four recently funded examples.

Of these, Anduril Industries is the far-and-away leader in name recognition and funding, with more than $6.1 billion in known equity financing to date. But the defense tech sector is, overall,  seeing a broader upswing in activity.

Fintech, cybersecurity and other areas

Fintech, unsurprisingly, also had some fast fundraisers. This included Ramp, a corporate card and financial tools provider that picked up $500 million in late July, and Bilt Rewards, a payments and loyalty platform for renters that secured $250 million a few weeks ago.

Cybersecurity also remains far from lukewarm, with Cyera and Cyberhaven among the security-focused unicorns that have raised large rounds at a rapid rate.

Valuations on the rise too

In addition to pulling in gobs of fresh funding, many of the unicorns on this list are managing to secure eye-popping valuations as well.

Last week, for example, news broke that OpenAI is reportedly eyeing a $500 billion valuation, while Anthropic is said to be seeking a $170 billion valuation for its next round.  At this rate, one wonders what the next up round will bring.

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Illustration: Dom Guzman