Fourth Industrial Revolution

Al funding grew 592% in four years

The hand of humanoid robot AILA (artificial intelligence lightweight android) operates a switchboard during a demonstration by the German research centre for artificial intelligence at the CeBit computer fair in Hanover March, 5, 2013. The biggest fair of its kind open its doors to the public on March 5 and will run till March 9, 2013.  REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch (GERMANY - Tags: POLITICS) - BM2E93519ZN01

Banking on bots. Image: REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

Sarah Feldman
Share:
Our Impact
What's the World Economic Forum doing to accelerate action on Fourth Industrial Revolution?
The Big Picture
Explore and monitor how Private Investors is affecting economies, industries and global issues
A hand holding a looking glass by a lake
Crowdsource Innovation
Get involved with our crowdsourced digital platform to deliver impact at scale
Stay up to date:

Private Investors

During the second quarter of this year, the artificial intelligence startups brought in $7.4 billion in funding, the single highest amount ever in a quarter, according to CB Insights. The number of deals grew as well, rising in step with the money raised. There were 488 artificial intelligence deals, the second-highest number in a given quarter.

Some companies brought in stellar funding rounds, grossing over $100 million in a single deal. During the most recent quarter, eight of the top ten of those heavy-hitting companies were in the United States. Despite this, for the first time, the United States made up less than half of all AI startup funding deals. In 2013, about three quarters of artificial intelligence deals went to companies in the United States. As of this year, that number dropped to 40 percent. International AI startups have been supported in the EU and China by enhanced efforts to expand government AI initiatives.

Overall, artificial intelligence startups are being supported immensely by the venture capital industry. In the first quarter of 2015, artificial intelligence startups collectively brought in just over $1 billion. The record amount that companies collected this quarter means that funding grew by about 592 percent in just four years. Analysts expect commercial AI systems to expand significantly within the next five years or so, while enterprise artificial intelligence solutions are forecasted to have a slower adoption rate.

Have you read?
Don't miss any update on this topic

Create a free account and access your personalized content collection with our latest publications and analyses.

Sign up for free

License and Republishing

World Economic Forum articles may be republished in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International Public License, and in accordance with our Terms of Use.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author alone and not the World Economic Forum.

Related topics:
Fourth Industrial RevolutionEmerging Technologies
Share:
World Economic Forum logo
Global Agenda

The Agenda Weekly

A weekly update of the most important issues driving the global agenda

Subscribe today

You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails. For more details, review our privacy policy.

Why the Global Digital Compact's focus on digital trust and security is key to the future of internet

Agustina Callegari and Daniel Dobrygowski

April 24, 2024

About Us

Events

Media

Partners & Members

  • Join Us

Language Editions

Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

© 2024 World Economic Forum