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Bessemer Venture Partners just closed $5.75 billion in new capital, one of the largest single fundraises in venture capital this year. The firm is splitting the haul into two vehicles: $1.75 billion earmarked for seed and early-stage deals, and $4 billion for a newly created growth-stage platform designed to write bigger checks into companies that are choosing to stay private longer.
The message from Bessemer’s partners is blunt. AI-native companies are reaching $100 million in annual recurring revenue faster than any technology category in history, and the firm wants enough dry powder to back them from first check to late-stage expansion.
Where the money is going
Bessemer has been building its AI portfolio since 2022, deploying more than $3 billion into over 260 companies focused on everything from compute infrastructure to enterprise applications. Roughly 70% of those bets landed at the earliest stages, from pre-seed through Series A, which is where the new $1.75 billion fund will continue to operate.
The firm’s existing portfolio includes Perplexity, the AI search engine that has positioned itself as a challenger to Google, alongside Anthropic, the safety-focused lab behind the Claude family of models. Shopify, a longer-standing Bessemer bet, has increasingly woven AI capabilities into its commerce platform.
Geographically, Bessemer plans to deploy across the US, Europe, India, and Israel.
The venture capital AI arms race
Bessemer manages approximately $20 billion in total assets and has backed more than 450 companies over its long history.
This fundraise builds on a $1 billion commitment the firm announced in 2023 specifically for AI-native startups across sectors like fintech, healthcare, and cybersecurity.
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