Menlo Ventures, an SF-based VC firm, has raised $1.35 billion for funds targeting AI startups.
The move came the same week as reports that Menlo Park-based Khosla Ventures is closing in on raising $3 billion across three funds.
The new capital will be divided by Menlo Ventures across two funds — an early-stage fund called Menlo XVI and early growth fund Menlo Inflection III, according to Bloomberg News. Both funds will focus on AI companies.
The VC firm has previously backed fintechs like Chime and Harness, along with consumer apps like Uber and Roku. It has also backed AI firm Anthropic, which is considered the main competitor to ChatGPT-creator OpenAI.
Menlo Ventures did not respond to a request for comment.
Alongside Khosla and Menlo, New York-based Coatue Managment also announced a massive fund, having raised $1.4 billion, according to the Information.
Despite the recent flurry of activity, 2023 has been a markedly cool year for VC fundraising. In the first three quarters of the year, U.S.-based VC firms only raised $42.7 billion, according to PitchBook. VC fundraising peaked in 2022 at $162.6 billion, up from $154.1 billion in 2021 and $93.3 billion in 2020.
PitchBook expects VC firms to only raise around $57 billion by the end of the year.
