According to TechCrunch, at least 80 new VC-backed tech unicorns have been minted so far in 2025, driven by a continued investor frenzy around AI. The list, compiled from Crunchbase and PitchBook data, includes massive rounds like a $2 billion Series B for AI model developer Reflection, valuing it at $8 billion, and a $500 million Series A for blockchain payments company Tempo, giving it a $5 billion valuation just this year. While the majority are AI-related, from infrastructure plays like Fireworks AI ($4B) to application companies like Gamma ($2.1B), a surprising number hail from other sectors like space (Loft Orbital), biotech (New Limit, $1.6B), and climate tech (Base, $4B). The youngest company on the list, Tempo, was founded in 2025 itself, while others like the legal tech firm Filevine ($3B) have been grinding since 2014. This list is being updated throughout the year, showcasing the sheer volume of capital still chasing the next big thing.
The landscape beyond the AI hype cycle
Here’s the thing: while AI is obviously the main character, the diversity of this list is what’s really telling. You’ve got companies building physical stuff. Stoke is making sustainable rockets and is worth $2 billion. Apex is using off-the-shelf parts for satellites and hit a $1 billion valuation. Base is slinging home backup batteries to the tune of a $4 billion valuation after raising a single billion-dollar Series C. That’s heavy industry, aerospace, and energy hardware—sectors that aren’t exactly known for cheap, fast scaling. It signals that deep tech and climate tech are moving beyond niche interest and into the big-money VC mainstream. They require massive capital, but the potential market size and strategic importance are now justifying those bets in a way they maybe didn’t five years ago.
The absurd velocity of capital
Look at some of these funding timelines and valuations. Substrate, a semiconductor fab company founded in 2022, got a $1 billion valuation from a $100 million seed round. Flying Tulip, a decentralized trading platform also founded this year, 2025, is already a unicorn from a $200 million seed. This isn’t just “moving fast.” This is capital operating at a velocity that completely decouples from traditional business milestones like revenue or proven product-market fit. It’s a bet on the team, the idea, and the total addressable market, all at once. And the risk is enormous. For every one of these that becomes the next Nvidia or SpaceX, several will flame out. But the sheer amount of dry powder in venture capital right now seems to be making these lottery-ticket-style bets the new normal for early-stage investing.
Infrastructure eats the world (again)
Whether it’s AI, biotech, or blockchain, the companies providing the foundational tools are cleaning up. Fireworks AI ($4B) is infrastructure for running open-source models. Baseten ($2.2B) is for model inference. Modular ($1.6B) helps update AI systems. In biotech, Enveda ($1.2B) is a drug discovery analytics platform—it’s the tool, not the drug itself. This is a classic tech pattern. During a gold rush, sell shovels. The companies building the picks, shovels, and panning equipment—the development platforms, compute layers, and data engines—are often the first to see massive, scalable businesses. They’re not betting on a single application or drug candidate winning; they’re betting that the entire field will grow, and they’ll be the utility provider for everyone in it. It’s a slightly less risky, though still insanely competitive, place to be.
Is a reality check coming?
So we have 80+ new billion-dollar companies in less than half a year. That’s… a lot. It feels like 2021 all over again, but maybe with slightly more focus on hard tech. The question isn’t really if there’s a bubble—there almost certainly is in some segments. The question is which of these sectors will have the lasting power to justify these valuations when the capital tide eventually recedes. AI infrastructure? Probably. Some of the generative AI apps? Shakeout is inevitable. The physical tech companies in space and energy? They might be insulated longer because their timelines are measured in decades, not quarterly growth metrics. But for now, the mint is running hot. And if you’re a founder with a big idea in a hot sector, it’s a great time to be raising money. Just don’t forget that a unicorn badge is a starting gun, not a finish line.
