Nvidia reaches record 121 startup deals in 2026, Crunchbase finds

Nvidia’s reach into startups now extends across 121 funding deals this year, from major AI developers to companies automating construction equipment. A November 13 Crunchbase analysis puts Nvidia and its NVentures arm ahead of every other corporate startup investor in 2026, with a deal count that already exceeds their previous annual record.

A record in participation, not spending

The count combines investments made by Nvidia and its venture arm. Together, they participated in 91 known startup financings in 2025, following 54 in 2024. Their 2026 total has passed both full-year figures before the year is over. Crunchbase also places the pair among the 20 most active startup investors overall, not just those backed by corporations.

The unit matters: this is a tally of funding deals, rather than a total of Nvidia’s spending. The analysis counts participation in rounds alongside other investors. Its largest examples carry enormous headline values, but those figures describe the entire financing rounds—not the size of Nvidia’s individual checks. A large round and a large Nvidia investment are not interchangeable measures.

From model developers to construction robots

The portfolio spans AI model developers, data-center operators, robotics and healthcare companies. At the largest end, Nvidia participated in OpenAI’s $122 billion Series G, which closed in March, and Anthropic’s $30 billion Series G in February. Those two rounds put Nvidia alongside other investors in two of the biggest AI developers, but they are only part of the activity captured in the tally.

September brought participation in another two multibillion-dollar rounds: a $3.9 billion Series F for AI infrastructure provider Crusoe and a roughly $3.5 billion Series D for model developer Mistral AI. The examples cover both companies developing AI models and a provider of the infrastructure supporting AI.

NVentures’ other investments show how far the footprint extends beyond those model and infrastructure companies. Its robotics and autonomous-driving activity included several substantial rounds, with one construction-automation company returning for funding twice in the same year:

• Skild AI, which develops robot intelligence, raised a $1.4 billion Series C in January with NVentures participating.
• Waabi, an autonomous-driving startup, also received NVentures backing in January through its $750 million Series C.
• Bedrock Robotics, which develops technology to automate construction equipment, received backing in a $270 million Series B in February and a $600 million Series C in October.

Usually alongside other investors

The record does not mean Nvidia usually takes the lead in arranging these financings. Nvidia or NVentures was listed as a lead or co-lead investor in about one in five of its 2026 deals, according to Crunchbase. Most of its participation therefore came without that designation—a distinction between being a frequent backer and routinely leading the rounds it joins.

For founders, NVentures pitches more than capital. It describes its offering as access to technical teams, technology integrations and help reaching customers. That is the venture arm’s stated proposition: financial backing paired with technical and commercial support.