AI leads the charge as 63 startups reach unicorn status, totalling $103.7 billion in combined value.
What’s happening: Private companies are achieving billion-dollar valuations at an unprecedented pace in 2025, with 63 new unicorns emerging so far. AI startups account for over half of all new unicorns in 2025 so far, while enterprise technology and fintech round out the top sectors driving this growth.
Why this matters: The unicorn surge signals a maturing but resilient startup ecosystem, with total valuations reaching $103.7 billion. This trend indicates where future innovation and job creation will occur, while demonstrating how private companies are increasingly competing with established corporations in shaping the global economy.
Artificial intelligence continues to dominate the unicorn landscape, producing 17 new billion-dollar companies in 2025, representing 27% of all new unicorns according to research from BestBrokers. The sector’s prominence reflects investors’ confidence in AI’s transformative potential across industries.
Leading the pack is US-based Thinking Machines Lab, which achieved a remarkable $12 billion valuation just months after launching, making it the most valuable new unicorn of 2025. San Francisco-based, Israel-founded Decart follows with a $3.21 billion valuation, demonstrating the global nature of AI innovation.
French AI startup Mistral secured €1.7 billion in funding at an €11.7 billion post-money valuation, establishing it as Europe’s most valuable AI company and highlighting the continent’s growing presence in the sector.
Enterprise tech surges
Enterprise technology claimed the second-largest share of new unicorns, with 15 companies reaching billion-dollar status, representing 23.8% of the total. These companies are building the fundamental infrastructure that powers modern business operations.
US-based Peregrine leads this category with a $2.5 billion valuation for its cloud infrastructure innovations, while Supabase, an open-source alternative to Firebase, achieved a $2 billion valuation. In Canada, Tailscale demonstrated the global reach of enterprise innovation, reaching $1.45 billion through its secure networking platform.
“The 2025 unicorn landscape shows a maturing market, with growth slowing after the 2021-2022 boom but still producing remarkable innovation,” comments Paul Hoffman from BestBrokers.com. “AI leads the way, with startups like Thinking Machines Lab and Decart transforming industries from healthcare to enterprise software.”
Global competition heats up
The robotics sector showcases intensifying international competition, with the US and China each producing two unicorns. American companies The Bot Company ($2 billion) and Gecko Robotics ($1.25 billion) face competition from China’s Zhiyuan Robot ($1.4 billion) and Unitree Robotics ($1.3 billion), highlighting the race to lead intelligent automation.
As of July 2025, there are over 1,200 unicorns around the world, with the United States hosting 714 of them, nearly half of all unicorns globally. China follows with 156 unicorns, while India has 68.
Silicon Valley maintains its position as the unicorn capital, hosting 196 billion-dollar startups in San Francisco alone, followed by New York with 124 and Beijing with 59.
What’s driving growth
The diversity of sectors achieving unicorn status reflects a broadening innovation landscape. Fintech produced five new unicorns led by Kalshi’s $2 billion valuation for its regulated event contracts exchange. Healthcare contributed three unicorns, including Sweden’s Neko Health at $1.8 billion for its AI-powered screening platform.
The “Other” category, representing 30.2% of new unicorns, demonstrates innovation spanning from food and beverage to space technology and quantum computing. Companies emerged across multiple countries including the US, China, India, France, South Korea, New Zealand, Portugal, and Singapore.
So far this year, 53 companies have reached billion-dollar valuations, putting 2025 on pace to exceed the 80 unicorns minted in all of 2024, marking the third consecutive year of growth following the substantial decline between 2021 and 2023, when new unicorns dropped from 502 to 69.
The combined valuation of 2025’s new unicorns totals $103.7 billion, demonstrating continued investor appetite for high-growth private companies despite a more selective funding environment compared to the peak years of 2021-2022.
“The United States remains the dominant hub, while Asia and Europe continue to nurture high-value startups,” adds Hoffman. “Tech hubs such as Silicon Valley, New York, and Beijing illustrate how access to talent, investment, and infrastructure drives the creation of the world’s most valuable private companies.”
More information on private companies and their valuations, as well as the complete methodology, can be found in the full report.
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