A major Silicon Valley investor just closed its largest funding round ever. The new $3 billion will back artificial intelligence startups at every stage. Sectors from healthcare to enterprise tech are in focus.
Menlo Ventures has announced the close of $3 billion across two new funds, marking the largest capital raise in the firm's 50-year history. The Menlo Park-based venture firm plans to deploy this capital into artificial intelligence startups spanning seed to growth stages, with a focus on sectors including enterprise software, healthcare, and consumer technology.
The firm highlighted its early backing of Anthropic, which recently surpassed OpenAI in valuation, reaching $965 billion. Menlo Ventures first invested in Anthropic during its pre-product, pre-revenue phase in 2023, at a time when many believed the large language model race was already decided. In a statement, the firm credited Anthropic's founding team, led by Dario Amodei, for their technical expertise and vision, calling their initial investment a "flag-planting moment" that shaped Menlo's broader AI strategy.
Menlo Ventures went on to lead Anthropic's Series D round the following year, deepening its involvement as the company scaled. The firm said this early relationship provided unique insight into the evolving AI model landscape and the infrastructure and applications emerging around it.
The new capital is split between two funds: Menlo Ventures XVII, which targets seed and Series A startups, and Menlo Inflection IV, a growth fund focused on Series B and later-stage companies that are showing strong momentum in the AI sector.
Beyond Anthropic, Menlo Ventures has a track record of investing in high-profile companies such as Uber, Roku, Warby Parker, Siri, and Gilead Sciences. Anthropic, which has confidentially filed for a 2026 IPO, is expected to be the firm's largest exit to date, with a potential valuation of $1 trillion or more at the time of public offering.
Menlo Ventures was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The firm has invested in over 400 companies since its inception, with more than 70 public offerings and over 100 mergers and acquisitions among its portfolio. Its focus on artificial intelligence has intensified in recent years, positioning it as a key player in the current wave of AI-driven innovation.
