With $3.5B in fresh capital, Kleiner Perkins is going all in on AI
Kleiner Perkins, the leading U.S. venture capital firm, announced Tuesday that it has raised $3.5 billion in fresh capital through two funds, a significant increase from the $2 billion the firm raised less than two years ago.
The company, founded in 1972, says it has raised $1 billion for its 22nd early-stage venture fund, and $2.5 billion for a separate vehicle designed to finance late-stage growth companies.
The much greater capital flight is no surprise. In recent years, Kleiner Perkins has managed to acquire early stakes in a number of fast-growing AI startups, including Together AI, Harvey and OpenEvidence. The company is also investing in Anthropic and SpaceX, two companies expected to go public this year.
At a time when exits are scarce, Kleiner Perkins also realized significant returns from last year’s initial public offering of Figma, a design software company that led its $25 million Series B round in 2018. The company also reportedly scored a decent return when its portfolio company Windsurf was acquired by Google last summer.
Kleiner Perkins, a company known for its legendary early bets on Amazon and Google, now operates with a small team of just five partners. The firm has seen some leadership turnover recently, with Ev Randle leaving for rival firm Benchmark, while Annie Case moved from partner to an advisory role, a Kleiner Perkins spokesperson confirmed.
Kleiner Perkins joins a wave of mega-raises from other venture capital firms. Thrive Capital was recently secured $10 billion in new commitments, while General Catalyst is allegedly targeted a comparable amount. Meanwhile, a SEC filing Confirms TechCrunch’s previous reporting that the Founders Fund has closed $6 billion on its fourth growth vehicle.
