The third quarter of 2024 presented a mixed picture for North American startup funding, according to Crunchbase data. While overall funding declined 10% sequentially to $40.5 billion, it still represented a 14% increase from the same period last year.
Artificial intelligence continued to be a bright spot, with nearly $15 billion invested in AI-related startups in North America alone. This figure would have been higher if OpenAI’s $6.6 billion financing had been officially announced within the quarter.
Funding by Stage
Late-stage deals led the way with $23.8 billion in funding, a 28% increase from the previous quarter and 19% from Q3 2023. Notable late-stage deals included:
- Alphabet’s $5 billion investment in Waymo
- Anduril’s $1.5 billion Series F round
- Clio’s $900 million Series F at a $3 billion valuation
- Groq’s $640 million Series D
- Cohere’s $500 million Series D
Early-stage funding experienced a decline, dropping 39% sequentially to $13.5 billion, although it remained 16% above year-ago levels. The Q2 high was largely due to xAI’s $6.4 billion round, and without that outlier, Q3’s decline would have been less pronounced. Significant early-stage deals included:
- Safe Superintelligence’s $1 billion September financing
- Candid Therapeutics’ $370 million Series A
- Skild AI’s $300 million Series A
Seed investment also declined to $3.3 billion across 1,207 known rounds, representing the lowest quarterly total in years.
Exits and M&A Activity
The quarter saw several significant exits, including:
- Mastercard’s $2.65 billion acquisition of Recorded Future
- Salesforce’s $1.9 billion acquisition of Own Company
- Boehringer Ingelheim’s $1.3 billion acquisition of Nerio Therapeutics
- Nasuni’s $1.2 billion majority stake sale
The IPO market was relatively quiet, with biotech being a notable sector for public offerings:
- Bicara Therapeutics debuted with an $881 million initial valuation
- Zenas BioPharma went public with a market cap around $740 million
- BioAge Labs had a market cap around $675 million post-IPO
Outlook
The venture funding landscape remains nuanced, with continued enthusiasm for AI and significant deals in sectors like defense tech and biotech. While the tech IPO market remains subdued, expectations suggest potential activity in the latter half of 2025.
