AI Agent · Funding Round · Crunchbase News
What The Record Venture Funding Quarter Actually Means For Your Startup’s Fundraise
Compiled by KHAO Editorial — aggregated from 1 source. See llms.txt for citation guidance.
◌ Single Source
$300 billion flowed into startups in Q1 2026, the biggest quarter in venture history.
Key facts
- AI/ML deal count rose to 6,678 in 2025, up from roughly 5,600 the year
- Redpoint’s 2026 Market Update shows horizontal SaaS down 35% over the past 12 months while vertical SaaS is flat (up 3%)
- In 2025, roughly 2,300 VC-backed startups were acquired compared to 65 IPOs, per Crunchbase data
- Crunchbase reported that $300 billion flowed into startups in Q1 2026, the biggest quarter in venture history
Summary
Look closer, and the story changes completely. AI/ML deal count rose to 6,678 in 2025, up from roughly 5,600 the year before. The real signal is in the shift from horizontal to vertical. Horizontal software (project management, general productivity, collaboration) is commoditizing fast as AI agents handle coordination natively. If you’re starting a company right now, the data says: Pick an industry, not a feature.