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Startups That Raised the Most Funding

Written by

Arash F, Junior Journalist at Brand Vision Insights.

Business

5 min read

Mar 12, 2025

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Over the last decade, many startups have attracted mind-boggling levels of capital—often billions of dollars before going public or being acquired. Below is a countdown from 15 to 1 of the companies that raised the most money worldwide, with details on their founding, backgrounds, and what fueled their massive funding rounds.

15. Palantir

Founded in 2003 by Peter Thiel, Alex Karp, Stephen Cohen, and Joe Lonsdale, Palantir focused on data analytics for governmental agencies and major enterprises. It spent over a decade in private fundraising rounds before a direct listing on the NYSE in 2020. Its key products, Gotham and Foundry, power complex data insights in security, healthcare, finance, and more.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2003; Thiel, Karp, Cohen, Lonsdale
Total Raised: ~$2.7 billion
Funding Sources: In-Q-Tel, Founders Fund, Fidelity, among others
Note: Strategic expansions targeted defense agencies and big business, leading to slow-but-steady large infusions over many years.

14. Epic Games

Though established in 1991 by Tim Sweeney, Epic Games’ huge recent capital injections came from Fortnite’s success and Unreal Engine licensing. Fortnite became a global phenomenon, while Unreal powers video games, film, and other interactive media. Epic remains private, leveraging these funds for metaverse ambitions and continued tech development.

Year Founded & Founder: 1991; Tim Sweeney
Total Raised: ~$5 billion
Funding Sources: KKR, Sony, NetEase
Note: Mega-rounds allowed Epic to scale Fortnite operations, esports, and further refine the Unreal Engine platform.

13. Gojek

Founded in 2010 by Nadiem Makarim in Indonesia, Gojek began as a motorcycle taxi-hailing service. It eventually grew into a superapp offering food delivery, e-wallets, logistics, and more. Merging with e-commerce giant Tokopedia in 2021, it formed GoTo Group, now a publicly traded Southeast Asian tech juggernaut.

Year Founded & Founder: 2010; Nadiem Makarim
Total Raised: ~$5.5 billion
Funding Sources: Google, Temasek, SoftBank
Note: Rounds fueled expansion across Indonesia and beyond, culminating in the GoTo merger—a milestone in SEA’s digital economy.

12. Robinhood

In 2013, Vlad Tenev and Baiju Bhatt introduced zero-fee stock trading, aiming to “democratize finance.” The platform attracted millions of younger retail investors, especially during the “meme stock” surge. Although scrutinized by regulators, Robinhood went public in 2021, showcasing its disruptive model.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2013; Vlad Tenev, Baiju Bhatt
Total Raised: ~$5.6 billion
Funding Sources: DST Global, Sequoia, NEA
Note: Massive late-stage rounds amid explosive user growth, culminating in a 2021 IPO.

11. Airbnb

Started in 2008 by Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk in a San Francisco apartment, Airbnb unlocked spare rooms and private homes as short-term rentals worldwide. Despite early regulatory pushback from hotel industries, it scaled into a global hospitality marketplace. Airbnb went public in December 2020.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2008; Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, Nathan Blecharczyk
Total Raised: ~$6 billion
Funding Sources: Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst
Note: Late-stage rounds supported rapid international expansion, plus liquidity for dealing with market disruptions (e.g., COVID-19).

10. ByteDance

Zhang Yiming founded ByteDance in 2012, launching Douyin in China and then TikTok internationally—redefining short-form video content. Its AI-driven recommendation engine spurred staggering user growth, making ByteDance one of the world’s most valuable private tech companies.

Year Founded & Founder: 2012; Zhang Yiming
Total Raised: ~$7.4 billion
Funding Sources: Sequoia Capital, SoftBank, General Atlantic
Note: Huge rounds financed TikTok’s global expansion and advanced R&D in machine learning.

9. Byju’s

Byju Raveendran started Byju’s in 2011 in India, initially focusing on test prep before scaling to K-12 edtech content. With India’s strong cultural emphasis on education and surging digital adoption, Byju’s soared, acquiring several smaller edtech firms and expanding globally.

Year Founded & Founder: 2011; Byju Raveendran
Total Raised: ~$8 billion
Funding Sources: SoftBank, Sequoia Capital India, General Atlantic
Note: Mega-funding helped create one of the world’s largest edtech platforms, with expansions into international markets.

8. Klarna

In 2005, Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Niklas Adalberth, and Victor Jacobsson founded Klarna in Sweden, shaping a “buy now, pay later” approach to online shopping. As BNPL became widespread, Klarna secured multiple rounds to enter new regions, forging partnerships with e-commerce giants globally.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2005; Sebastian Siemiatkowski, Niklas Adalberth, Victor Jacobsson
Total Raised: ~$10 billion
Funding Sources: Sequoia, Silver Lake, Permira
Note: Key capital helped Klarna dominate BNPL markets across Europe, the U.S., and other regions.

7. Rivian

RJ Scaringe founded Rivian in 2009 to build rugged, eco-friendly electric SUVs and trucks. Partnerships with Amazon (for e-delivery vans) and Ford brought significant capital. Rivian’s R1T pickup gained acclaim, and the company went public in 2021 with a high valuation reflecting EV market excitement.

Year Founded & Founder: 2009; RJ Scaringe
Total Raised: ~$10 billion
Funding Sources: Amazon, Ford, T. Rowe Price
Note: Critical funding built manufacturing capabilities for Rivian’s electric vehicles and fueled extensive R&D.

6. Grab

Founded in 2012 by Anthony Tan and Tan Hooi Ling, Grab began as a ride-hailing service in Malaysia and expanded throughout Southeast Asia, ultimately developing into a superapp with food delivery, financial services, and more. A 2021 SPAC merger led to a public listing in the U.S.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2012; Anthony Tan, Tan Hooi Ling
Total Raised: ~$12.3 billion
Funding Sources: SoftBank, Toyota, Sequoia Capital
Note: Funds supported superapp ambitions, riding the region’s smartphone boom and diverse digital services demand.

5. WeWork

Adam Neumann and Miguel McKelvey co-founded WeWork in 2010, redefining coworking spaces worldwide. Despite the tumultuous 2019 IPO attempt and valuation dive, WeWork’s SoftBank-backed expansions turned it into a global shared-office giant, later undergoing restructuring to focus on profitable growth.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2010; Adam Neumann, Miguel McKelvey
Total Raised: ~$15 billion
Funding Sources: SoftBank, Benchmark, Hony Capital
Note: Multiple late-stage injections, primarily from SoftBank, pushed WeWork’s massive expansion prior to its well-publicized struggles.

4. Didi Chuxing

Launched in 2012 by Cheng Wei, Didi Chuxing emerged as China’s dominant ride-hailing app after merging with Uber China in 2016. Didi has since broadened into autonomous driving, delivery, and global services. Huge funding from SoftBank and tech titans fueled expansions into Latin America and beyond.

Year Founded & Founder: 2012; Cheng Wei
Total Raised: ~$21 billion
Funding Sources: SoftBank, Tencent, Silver Lake
Note: Capital facilitated acquisitions (like 99 in Brazil) and R&D for autonomous taxis and financial products.

3. Ant Group

Spun out from Alibaba in 2014 under Jack Ma’s leadership, Ant Group built Alipay into China’s leading digital payments service. Beyond payments, it runs consumer lending, wealth management, and insurance. Though its massive 2020 IPO was halted by regulators, Ant remains a dominant fintech force in Asia.

Year Founded & Founder: 2014; Origin with Alibaba/Jack Ma
Total Raised: ~$22 billion
Funding Sources: Temasek, Warburg Pincus, Chinese state-backed investors
Note: Expected record-breaking IPO was postponed, but private fundraising already placed Ant at a massive valuation.

2. SpaceX

SpaceX began in 2002 under Elon Musk with an ambitious goal: make space travel cheaper and enable interplanetary life. Through repeated rocket innovations—Falcon 9 and Starship—alongside Starlink satellites, the company has secured colossal venture rounds. Contracts with NASA and private clients bolster its valuation.

Year Founded & Founder: 2002; Elon Musk
Total Raised: ~$22.3 billion
Funding Sources: Founders Fund, Google, Fidelity, Baillie Gifford
Note: Musk’s Mars vision and successful reusable rocket launches spurred ongoing large-scale investments.

1. Uber

Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick founded Uber in 2009 in San Francisco, initially as a luxury car service. Rapid expansions and acquisitions turned Uber into a global mobility and on-demand giant, including Uber Eats, Freight, and more. Its 2019 IPO was one of the biggest in recent tech history.

Year Founded & Founder(s): 2009; Garrett Camp, Travis Kalanick
Total Raised: ~$25.2 billion
Funding Sources: First Round Capital, Benchmark, SoftBank, Toyota
Note: Multi-stage mega-rounds, culminating in SoftBank’s involvement and eventual public listing, made Uber the definitive ride-hailing unicorn.

Conclusion

From Palantir’s data analytics to Uber’s ride-sharing juggernaut, these 15 startups exemplify how visionary founders and massive capital injections can transform entire industries. Whether they disrupted transportation (Uber, Didi), embraced the final frontier (SpaceX), or reshaped finance (Ant Group, Robinhood), each raised billions to scale at an unmatched pace. As global markets shift, these fundraising milestones show what’s possible when market demand, technology, and investor confidence align.

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Disclosure: This list is intended as an informational resource and is based on independent research and publicly available information. It does not imply that these businesses are the absolute best in their category. Learn more here.

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