Following recent news that New York’s prominent venture firm, Thrive, raised $10 billion for a new fund, its largest ever and twice the previous one, another major VC firm aims to match that amount. General Catalyst is reportedly in discussions to raise $10 billion, as per sources cited by Bloomberg. This firm, having repositioned itself as a broader financial services entity, had raised $8 billion in 2024.
Concurrently, Spark Capital is working towards raising $3 billion, according to sources from The Information, marking a significant increase from its prior funds. Additionally, TechCrunch recently disclosed that Founders Fund is on the brink of closing a new $6 billion fund.
This activity follows Andreessen Horowitz’s announcement of $15 billion in new funding in January.
Venture firms already had a record amount of “dry powder,” or uninvested money, by the end of 2025, based on reports from PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. However, 2026 appears to be gearing up for even larger movements, particularly for renowned venture firms with strong portfolios.
It seems likely that venture capitalists will continue fueling seed-stage AI startups with substantial initial rounds and significant valuations. Record-breaking funding rounds for AI-focused startups are expected to remain the trend in 2026.