Who Were The Most-Active AI Investors In 2024?

This column is a look back at the week that was in AI. Read the previous one here.

Last column, we took a look at the massive amount of cash that went to artificial intelligence-related startups.

But who is putting that cash into the sector? Not surprisingly, it’s the usual suspects.

Andreessen Horowitz — which also topped our list of most-active global post-seed investors last year — also took part in the most post-seed rounds for AI-related startups. The firm completed 42 deals, per Crunchbase data. That’s more AI-related rounds than the firm consummated in 2022 and 2023 combined.

Those rounds included participating in the massive $10 billion Databricks raise at a $62 billion valuation — the largest venture capital raise of 2024 — as well as xAI’s $6 billion round in May.

The Silicon Valley giant also placed first for firms that led or co-led the highest number of AI-related rounds post-seed with 20.

Who’s next?

Lightspeed Venture Partners ranks second on our list of investors with the most post-seed rounds for AI-related startups, with 37 deals announced in 2024, compared to 26 AI-related rounds the previous two years.

Lightspeed’s biggest AI bets last year included xAI’s $6 billion funding round in November that valued it at $50 billion and Anduril Industries’ $1.5 billion Series F that valued the company at $14 billion.

Y Combinator came in third last year for most post-seed rounds invested in when it came to AI-related companies. The accelerator giant took part in 36 such rounds, including a $1 billion round for Scale AI that valued the data labeling and evaluation startup at a stunning $13.8 billion.

Next on the list are Alumni Ventures (32 deals), Sequoia Capital (30) and General Catalyst (27).

This will not come as a shock, but all of those firms increased the number of AI-related deals they completed in 2024 from 2023.

As far as which firm led or co-led the most amount of rounds money wise, that was Thrive Capital. The firm led or co-led eight AI-related rounds that totaled $17.3 billion — including Databricks’ huge raise and a $6.6 billion investment for OpenAI.

Next on that list is — yep, you guessed it, the same firm that began this column — Andreessen Horowitz.

In general, this list is similar to the most-active global post-seed investor list. That shouldn’t come as a huge surprise considering it’s logical that the most-active investors in venture certainly are likely to have been caught up in the AI craze that has dominated the market.

Nevertheless, it is impressive to see not just the amount of deals many of these VC titans have completed, but the amount of cash involved. As history tells us, only a small percentage of these bets are likely to pan out for VCs, and those companies will need to have massive exits for the return everyone in this game wants.