Tech
AI startups are eating the venture industry and the returns, so far, are good
Well, the data is out. AI startups accounted for 41% of the $128 billion in venture dollars raised by companies on Carta last year — a record-high annual share. In a sense, though, we knew that. Investors last year were voracious in deploying capital to AI startups, to the point that 10% of startups accounted for half of the funding.
Those startups included Anthropic, OpenAI, and xAI, which raised double-digit billions last year at sky-high valuations. Actually, they are still raising at an even more astounding velocity. In January, xAI raised a $20 billion Series E. In February, OpenAI snagged a $110 billon round, one of the largest private rounds ever raised, bringing the company closer than ever to a $1 trillion valuation.
Size-wise, in between OpenAI and xAI was Anthropic, which raised a $30 billion Series G last month at a $380 billion valuation. OpenAI and Anthropic accounted for a heavy chunk of the $189 billion in global venture capital raised last month and, alongside xAI, have teased IPOs for later this year that have left investors foaming at the mouth.
The state of the venture market is now K-shaped — or bifurcated — in which capital remains concentrated in a select few firms that then back a handful of companies, while everyone else is, well, kinda just there.
“While funding rounds have gotten slightly harder to raise, the capital for each round has increased,” Peter Walker, head of insights at Carta, told TechCrunch. “So fewer bets, but more capital. AI startups are raising bigger rounds not because they have lots of employees — they don’t — but because the cost of running AI models is high.”
The latest Carta data also shows that funds raised in 2023 and 2024 (after the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022) have posted the highest internal rate of return (IRR), compared with the declining IRR of funds raised between 2017 and 2020. The report views the increased IRR over the past few years as a positive indicator for the funds backing some of the leading startups emerging from this AI moment.
“It’s promising that the younger funds have seen IRR start strong,” Walker said, adding, however, that there were a few factors to consider. For one, he said, newer funds might look like they are doing well on paper because if they invested in a seed round, for example, and that company went on to raise a Series A at a higher valuation, then on paper it looks like the investor made high returns in a short time period.
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“This pushes IRR up,” Walker said. “It is also likely that the portfolios of the more recent vintage funds are full of AI-native startups in a way that the portfolios of 2021/2020 funds are not.”
Time will tell if this early enthusiasm will translate into real returns for investors via exits like blockbuster IPOs or big-dollar acquisitions, or if we are merely in the hype phase of a bubble that will eventually pop.
Tech
Glean’s top line crosses $300M as AI budget cutting becomes its major selling point
Glean, a company often described as the Google for enterprise, said it has reached $300 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR), a three-fold increase from the $100 million milestone it reached just 15 months ago.
While many AI startups are growing at a blistering pace, Glean’s progress is particularly remarkable. After years of essentially being the only player in the category, the seven-year-old startup is accelerating its growth as tech giants enter the enterprise AI search market with rival products.
“The first four or five years of our existence, we had no competition,” Glean CEO Arvind Jain told TechCrunch. “Given how important search is to make AI work in the enterprise, every single company in the world wants to be in this space.”
Tech heavyweights building Glean-like tools include Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Anthropic, Salesforce, and Atlassian.
Jain maintains there’s value in being a first mover in the space, but that it’s also equally important to offer a better product.
What Glean does better than its competition, according to Jain, comes down to the deep understanding that its AI tools have of customers’ business needs. Glean’s AI achieves this knowledge — a concept captured by the new, popular term “context graph” — by connecting to and learning from enterprises’ internal software systems.
Jain claims that Glean’s context graph also helps enterprises cut AI computing costs.
“If you connect your AI to Glean, it gives you all the information that you need to do your work, and that results in AI consuming far fewer tokens compared to if you unleash AI onto your systems directly,” Jain said. That’s because with Glean, AI ends up performing fewer operations, he added.
At a time when many companies are blowing through their AI budgets, those token cost savings have become a major selling point for the company.
“One of the things you know our customers really like about Glean is the fact that we can reduce your AI bill significantly,” he said.
The company, which was last valued at $7.2 billion when it raised a $150 million Series F last June, offers various pricing structures to its customers, which include Databricks, Reddit, Pinterest, and Samsung.
According to Jain, Glean offers both a consumption-based model, where clients pay per use, and a hybrid model that combines a fixed monthly fee for active users with separate usage fees for model consumption.
Glean is definitely not the first company to do this, but it’s worth pointing out that the company’s $300 million milestone cannot be fully described as traditional ARR, because a consumption model by definition doesn’t have a strictly recurring component.
Pure consumption pricing models depend on fluctuating user activity rather than predictable subscription renewals, therefore a portion of Glean’s top line is more accurately described as an annualized revenue run rate.
Glean did not immediately respond to a request for comment; this post will be updated if the company replies.
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Tech
Final 24 hours to save up to $410 on your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 ticket
This is it. The countdown is almost over. You now have until tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT to lock in Early Bird savings of up to $410 for TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 before prices increase.
If Disrupt has been on your must-attend list, this is your final chance to secure the lowest available rates before the next price jump hits. Once the deadline passes, so do the savings.
Register now and join 10,000+ founders, investors, operators, and innovators at Moscone West in San Francisco from October 13–15 for three days packed with networking, startup discovery, and conversations shaping the future of tech. Bring a plus-one at 50%, or bring a group to get an up to 30% discount.
What makes Disrupt worth attending year after year
TechCrunch Disrupt is where startup momentum accelerates. The event brings together the people actively building, funding, and scaling what’s next across AI, fintech, SaaS, climate, cybersecurity, consumer tech, and beyond.
Attendees come to Disrupt for:
- Direct access to investors, founders, and operators making moves now.
- Conversations that lead to partnerships, funding, and hires.
- Tactical insights from leaders scaling breakout companies.
- An inside look at emerging technologies before they hit the mainstream.
With 300+ exhibiting startups, Startup Battlefield 200, curated networking experiences, and multiple stages of programming, Disrupt is built to help attendees make meaningful connections and real business progress.
Built for the people shaping what’s next
Disrupt is designed for founders raising capital, investors sourcing opportunities, operators scaling companies, and innovators looking for an edge. Whether you’re launching your next startup, growing your network, or tracking the future of technology, Disrupt puts you in the room with the people driving the industry forward.
Hear directly from tech leaders shaping the industry
Every year, Disrupt brings together hundreds of influential voices across startups and venture capital. Past speakers have included leaders from the companies and firms shaping the future of AI, enterprise software, fintech, consumer tech, and more.
This year will deliver the same high-caliber experience, with 200+ sessions across six industry-focused stages, plus roundtables and breakouts covering scaling, AI, fintech, infrastructure, robotics, and emerging technologies. Explore the growing agenda to see the latest sessions and speaker announcements.
Speakers include:
Savings of up to $410 end tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT
Early Bird savings of up to $410 end tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT. After that, ticket prices increase.
Register now to secure your TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass at a low rate before the deadline expires. Bringing more than just you? Save 50% on a second ticket, or up to 30% on community passes.
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Tech
Today is the last day to apply to speak at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026
TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 returns October 13–15 to Moscone West in San Francisco — and applications to speak are open for just a few more hours.
We’re inviting founders, investors, operators, and technology experts to apply for a chance to take the stage at one of the most influential tech events of the year.
More than 10,000 startup and VC leaders will gather at Disrupt 2026 to explore what’s next in AI, scaling, fintech, infrastructure, robotics, and the future of innovation.
Applications close tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now to share your expertise and help shape the conversations defining the tech industry.
Pick your session format
We’re looking for high-impact speakers to lead one of two session types:
Breakout Sessions: A 30-minute talk (up to 4 speakers, including a moderator) with a 20-minute audience Q&A. Capacity: 100 attendees.
Roundtables: A 30-minute speaker-led group discussion, designed for up to 40 participants. No slides or AV — just insight and conversation.
How the application process works
Each application will be carefully reviewed by our editorial team. Finalists will be selected for the Audience Choice vote — where TechCrunch readers choose which sessions make it to the Disrupt Stage. Learn more about speaking on Disrupt’s Call for Content page.
Lead the conversation at Disrupt 2026
If you have actionable insights, real-world experience, and a desire to contribute meaningfully to the tech ecosystem, we want to hear from you. Submit your application before today’s deadline.
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