Here at Startup Geek, we make it a tradition to highlight the most active investors every year, once the year is over. We have done that for 2024, 2023, and 2022, with only a slight change in approach.
2025 has been a particularly interesting year in the investment sector. Investors have shown an overwhelming interest in AI, and they’ve been willing to put their money where their mouth is. Ironically enough, even though there has been a shift in the sectors money is being poured into, not much has changed as regards those doing the pouring.
Still, there have been some interesting developments, and this is bound to be an interesting and eye-opening read. Let’s get to it!
The Top 10 Most Active Investors in 2025
1. Techstars
Location: Boulder, Colorado, United States
Investor Type: Accelerator, Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Convertible Note, Early Stage Venture, Non-Equity Assistance, Seed, Venture
2025 Performance: 236
Techstars had an exceptional 2025, making 222 accelerator investments that catalyzed success across its portfolio, with 309 companies securing funding totaling $1.19 billion throughout the year. The accelerator’s commitment to community-building was evident through 290 Techstars events that connected founders, mentors, and investors, while an impressive 55 portfolio companies achieved successful exits, delivering returns to their stakeholders and validating Techstars’ ability to identify and nurture high-potential startups from inception to acquisition or IPO.
Techstars had its fair share of contributions in the AI boom, participating in funding rounds for companies like Jeeva AI, Tradeverifyd, and HiredUpAI.
Other notable participations include Flexpoint and Solestial, which raised $17.2M each in Series A funding to modernize the way technology is bought and sold, and deliver abundant energy to space, respectively.
2. Y Combinator
Location: Mountain View, California, United States
Investor Type: Accelerator
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture
2025 Investments: 960
One position less than in our previous ranking but still maintaining the prestige as one of the world’s most prolific seed-stage investors in 2025, Y Combinator is probably a startup household name at this point. This year, they impressed, again!
In 2025, Y Combinator was just as busy in every quarter of the year, with over 200 investments every quarter. Some of their notable investments of the 960 include PowerRouter, Candytrail, and Imagine AI (one of their countless AI investments this previous year).
3. 500 Global
Location: San Francisco, California, United States
Investor Type: Accelerator, Angel Group, Micro VC, Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture
2025 Investments: 74
500 Global continued its aggressive investment pace in 2025, adding over 70 companies to its portfolio of more than 3,000 startups across 75+ countries. The firm’s unique position as both an accelerator and venture capital fund allows it to support founders from pre-seed through growth stages. With over 400 successful exits, including notable companies like GitLab and Animoca Brands, 500 Global has proven its ability to identify winners early.
Some of their notable investments this year include Appzen Series D, Intella, and Fleak.
4. Plug and Play
Location: Sunnyvale, California, United States
Investor Type: Accelerator, Corporate Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture
2025 Investments: 180
Plug and Play emerged as one of 2025’s most active investors through its unique corporate innovation platform model. With over 60 industry-focused accelerator programs and partnerships with more than 500 corporations worldwide, Plug and Play invested in about 180 startups throughout the year. The firm’s ability to connect startups with corporate partners for pilots, POCs, and strategic investments creates a powerful system that accelerates both innovation and revenue generation.
5. Andreessen Horowitz (a16z)
Location: Menlo Park, California, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture
2025 Investments: 166
Andreessen Horowitz maintained its position as one of Silicon Valley’s most influential venture firms in 2025, deploying capital at an impressive volume across its specialized funds. This year, a16z invested in over 160 companies while leading or co-leading numerous mega-rounds.
Andreessen Horowitz led and participated in Databricks, which raised $4B, and Radiant, raising over $300M. The firm’s crypto fund also participated in major protocol launches and infrastructure buildouts, while its bio fund backed breakthrough companies in cell therapy and precision medicine.
6. General Catalyst
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Convertible Note, Debt, Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture, Post-IPO, Private Equity, Seed, Venture
2025 Investments: 214
General Catalyst cemented its reputation as a transformative global investment firm in 2025, building on its record €7.5 billion fund raised in 2024. With 214 investments made throughout the year, General Catalyst demonstrated its commitment to backing founders at every stage from pre-seed through growth.
The firm’s healthcare transformation initiatives gained significant momentum in 2025, with multiple investments in value-based care platforms and health tech infrastructure. Some notable investments include Armis and Ramp at $435M and $311.7M, respectively.
7. Accel
Location: Palo Alto, California, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Growth
2025 Investments: 150
Accel demonstrated why it remains one of venture capital’s most respected names in 2025, leveraging decades of experience from backing all-time companies like Facebook, Slack, and Spotify.
In 2025, Accel was particularly active in AI infrastructure and application layers, recognizing the massive opportunity in enterprise AI adoption. Accel led significant rounds throughout 2025, including a $300 million Series F for Vercel, a developer platform valued at over $9 billion, and a $120 million Series B for a cybersecurity company.
8. Sequoia Capital
Location: Menlo Park, California, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Growth
2025 Investments: 21
Sequoia Capital’s inclusion in this list is not due to the number of investments they have had in the previous, because by the looks of it, they have not had anything close to most of the other investors on this list. But the sheer amount of the few investments is astounding.
Sequoia led or co-led numerous high-profile rounds in 2025. One of the more profound ones is the $1B Series E investment in Kalshi (a regulation prediction market), on top of the $300M Series D and $185M Series C, just a few months apart. Others include Chainguards $350M, Mercury’s $300M, and most notably, participation in OpenAI’s venture round of $40B.
9. Lightspeed Venture Partners
Location: Menlo Park, California, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Growth
2025 Investments: 124
In 2025, Lightspeed was particularly aggressive in AI infrastructure investments, recognizing the massive opportunity in foundational models, tooling, and enterprise adoption. The firm has backed over 160 AI-native companies in total, including several that achieved unicorn status within months of their seed rounds.
Some of the more recent ones include Unconventional AI seed round at $475M, Distly AI Seried B at $175M, and Mistral AI at a whooping €1.7B. The firm also participated in breakthrough health tech rounds and the modern energy provider sector.
10. Khosla Ventures
Location: Menlo Park, California, United States
Investor Type: Venture Capital
Investment Stage: Seed, Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture
2025 Investments: 132
Khosla Ventures maintained its reputation as one of venture capital’s most conviction-driven firms in 2025, making over 100 new investments across breakthrough technologies. Founded by Vinod Khosla, a legendary entrepreneur and early Sun Microsystems executive, the firm is known for backing technologies others consider too risky or far-fetched. This contrarian approach has yielded massive successes, including Square, Affirm, and DoorDash, validating Khosla’s thesis that the biggest opportunities come from supporting ambitious technical founders solving hard problems.
For some of their notable investments in 2025, Khosla Ventures backed some big rounds, including Trade Republic Secondary Market at €1.2B, Sakana AI at ¥20B, and Lovable Series B at $330M, to name a few.
How We Chose the Most Active Investors
To identify the most active investors in 2025, we employed a rigorous, data-driven methodology focusing on three primary metrics:
1. Number of Deals/Investments
We tracked the total number of individual investments or deals each firm completed throughout 2025. This metric directly measures investment activity and shows consistent engagement across the market. Data was sourced from Crunchbase, PitchBook, and direct firm announcements.
2. Total Capital Deployed
We measured the aggregate dollar amount invested across all deals. This reveals not just frequency but scale of activity and financial commitment.
3. New Portfolio Companies Added
We counted the number of new companies receiving first-time investments (as opposed to follow-on funding in existing portfolio companies). This shows how actively firms are expanding their portfolios and discovering new opportunities versus simply supporting existing bets.
Conclusion
Not very much has changed since last year in regards to the investors that are most involved, but there have been some changes in direction. As these firms continue adapting to market dynamics and emerging technologies, their role in shaping the future of industries remains indispensable.
For entrepreneurs seeking funding, understanding these investors’ focus areas, investment criteria, and portfolio construction approaches can significantly improve fundraising success. The firms on this list represent not just capital sources but potential long-term partners offering networks, operational expertise, and strategic guidance that can accelerate company building.
