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Q1 2026 AI VC funding shatters records, led by Waymo's $16B Series D
Ep. 56 04:38

Q1 2026 AI VC funding shatters records, led by Waymo's $16B Series D

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About This Episode

Q1 2026 AI funding has already exceeded all of 2025's total, with three mega-deals accounting for 67% of capital deployed. Autonomous machines posted a record $29 billion across 118 deals in Q1, with Waymo's $16B Series D alone more than tripling the segment's prior-quarter deal value. Anthropic's annualized revenue surpassed $30 billion in April, while OpenAI's topped $25 billion, fueling investor pile-on ahead of both companies' anticipated IPOs.

Our Take

When a single quarter of AI investment outpaces an entire prior year — with one self-driving car deal worth $16B — the 100x future isn't a forecast anymore, it's a balance sheet.