North America Q1 Funding Surges to $252.6B — 3x Prior Quarter, 87% to AI Categories
Crunchbase News·high signal
U.S. and Canadian startups raised $252.6 billion in seed-through-growth funding in Q1 2026, more than 3x the prior quarter's $83.7B and smashing the previous record of $95.7B (Q3 2021). Late-stage dominated at $222.4B (88% of total), while seed held at $5.1B. Over 87% of Q1 investment went to Crunchbase AI-related categories — $221B directed specifically to AI-focused companies, approximately 6x the prior quarter's AI funding.