After a few volatile years, it looks like startup funding came back with a bang in 2025.
According to Crunchbase data, in 2025, investors backed over 24,000 companies with $425 billion of capital, a 30% increase from 2024, making 2025 the 3rd biggest year for venture funding on record, behind only 2021 and 2022.
And whilst it may not be a surprise that AI received half of all venture capital globally, the numbers weren’t down to this sector alone. So, who else drove the charge?
From legal tech and robotics to defence, spacetech and clean energy, here are the startup sectors that saw the biggest funding growth in 2025.
Legal Tech Funding Hits Record Highs
The legal industry might not be known for being technologically advanced, but in 2025, it showed that it was in fact open to innovation.
In fact, according to Crunchbase, venture funding into legal tech startups reached more than $4 billion in 2025, nearly double the $2.2 billion raised in 2024.
A lot of this funding was driven by AI tools that could help lawyers with time intensive tasks like research, case management and document reviewing.
Some of the companies that contributed to this included:
- Clio, which raised $500 million in equity and $350 million in debt.
- Harvey, an AI legal assistant that raised $819 million across the year.
- Filevine, which has an AI legal operating system, who secured $260 million in a Series E round in September.
Spacetech Investment Is Sky High
Spacetech was another sector that drew in a lot of investor attention in 2025.
According to Seraphim Space, private spacetech investment in 2025 reached $12.4 billion, a nice jump from its previous peak of $12.2 billion in 2021.
Q4 alone was responsible for $3.8 billion of investment, making it one of the highest funding quarters in history for the spacetech industry.
Unsurprisingly, the US was the market that drove the most investment, accounting for around 60% of global spacetech funding. This was mainly driven by sectors like defence as the country battled global tensions.
Some of the biggest deals in spacetech included:
- Stoke Space, which raised $510 million in a Series D round to develop reusable rockets.
- Castelion, which raised $350 million in a Series B round.
- Space Pioneer in China, which raised $350 million in a Series D+.
Clean Energy And Climate Tech
Clean energy and climate tech also saw strong interest.
BloombergNEF reported that in 2025, global energy investment hit a record $2.3 trillion, up 8% from the previous year. This was largely driven by areas like EVs, renewables and grid infrastructure.
Climate tech companies also had a good year, raising $77.3 billion, up 53% from the year before.
And whilst interest in climate startups was a little more up and down than it has been in the past, the sector still saw its first year of growth since 2021.
Robotics Rises
Surprisingly, robotics was one of the sectors that really piqued investor interest in 2025. AI was still one of the more appealing investments, but it no longer lived only online. In fact, robots powered by AI were one of the year’s hottest investment tickets.
According to Crunchbase, total venture funding into robotics startups reached nearly $14 billion in 2025, a 70% increase from the previous year and an all time high for the sector.
Some of the biggest robotics funding rounds included:
- Figure, which raised $1 billion in a Series C round led by Parkway Venture Capital.
- Apptronik, a humanoid robotics company, which raised $734 million across its Series A and B rounds.
- Neuralink, Elon Musk’s brain-computer company, which raised $649 million in a Series E round.
This influx of investment shows that robotics could be one of the most sought-after investments over the next few years.
Defence Tech Drives A Lot Of Interest
Unsurprisingly, off the back of a geopolitically volatile few years, defence tech was one of the fastest-growing sectors of 2025.
According to Crunchbase, total funding into defence tech startups grew to $8.5 billion, more than double the amount raised in 2024 and the highest on record.
Some top funding rounds included:
- Anduril Industries, which raised $2.5 billion in a Series G round led by Founders Fund.
- Helsing, a Germany-based defence AI company, which raised $693 million in a round backed by General Catalyst, Accel and Lightspeed.
- Saronic, a maritime security startup, which raised $600 million in a round led by Elad Gil.
2025: A Big Year For Startups
2025 was certainly a great year for many startup sectors. From defence to AI, robotics and climate tech, the year saw a number of incredibly impressive rounds.
And whilst AI is still at the heart of these stats, it was the sectors that applied AI to real-life problems that saw the benefits.
Now, as 2026 rolls around, it will be interesting to see which of these sectors can hold their top spots, and which new ones may be coming for their crowns.
