Tech investments surged to $200 billion in Q2 2025, representing 40% of all global venture funding, M&A, and IPO activity according to PitchBook, a market research firm. This substantial capital influx signals a steady recovery from a two-year downturn caused by high borrowing costs, macroeconomic uncertainty, and the correction from inflated COVID-era valuations.
What you should know: The second quarter built on first quarter gains, with AI and supporting infrastructure driving renewed dealmaking despite ongoing investor concerns about inflation and geopolitical risks.
Key details: Major transactions dominated the quarter’s investment landscape, showcasing the scale of capital deployment across fintech, AI, and enterprise software sectors.
- Capital One led with its $35 billion acquisition of Discover, included due to its fintech business operations.
- Meta invested $14 billion in Scale AI, demonstrating big tech’s commitment to AI infrastructure.
- Salesforce acquired Informatica for $8 billion, expanding its enterprise software capabilities.
- OpenAI spent $6.5 billion on Jony Ive and his io devices company, signaling hardware ambitions.
The big picture: The tech industry is emerging from a challenging period marked by high borrowing costs and macroeconomic uncertainty that had dampened investment activity for two years.
- COVID-era valuations and hiring practices had created unsustainable market conditions.
- Current investment levels suggest investors are regaining confidence in tech fundamentals.
- AI demand is serving as a primary catalyst for renewed dealmaking activity.
Market highlights: Public market activity also showed strength, with crypto firm Circle completing the quarter’s largest IPO by raising more than $1 billion.
Why this matters: The sustained investment momentum across two consecutive quarters indicates that tech’s recovery may be gaining durability, though investors remain cautious about persistent inflation pressures and global political risks that could impact future funding cycles.
Recent Stories
DOE fusion roadmap targets 2030s commercial deployment as AI drives $9B investment
The Department of Energy has released a new roadmap targeting commercial-scale fusion power deployment by the mid-2030s, though the plan lacks specific funding commitments and relies on scientific breakthroughs that have eluded researchers for decades. The strategy emphasizes public-private partnerships and positions AI as both a research tool and motivation for developing fusion energy to meet data centers' growing electricity demands. The big picture: The DOE's roadmap aims to "deliver the public infrastructure that supports the fusion private sector scale up in the 2030s," but acknowledges it cannot commit to specific funding levels and remains subject to Congressional appropriations. Why...
Oct 17, 2025Tying it all together: Credo’s purple cables power the $4B AI data center boom
Credo, a Silicon Valley semiconductor company specializing in data center cables and chips, has seen its stock price more than double this year to $143.61, following a 245% surge in 2024. The company's signature purple cables, which cost between $300-$500 each, have become essential infrastructure for AI data centers, positioning Credo to capitalize on the trillion-dollar AI infrastructure expansion as hyperscalers like Amazon, Microsoft, and Elon Musk's xAI rapidly build out massive computing facilities. What you should know: Credo's active electrical cables (AECs) are becoming indispensable for connecting the massive GPU clusters required for AI training and inference. The company...
Oct 17, 2025Vatican launches Latin American AI network for human development
The Vatican hosted a two-day conference bringing together 50 global experts to explore how artificial intelligence can advance peace, social justice, and human development. The event launched the Latin American AI Network for Integral Human Development and established principles for ethical AI governance that prioritize human dignity over technological advancement. What you should know: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, the Vatican's research body for social issues, organized the "Digital Rerum Novarum" conference on October 16-17, combining academic research with practical AI applications. Participants included leading experts from MIT, Microsoft, Columbia University, the UN, and major European institutions. The conference...