Funding benchmark · last 12 months

The typical pre-seed round in AI

From 180 pre-seed rounds announced in AI over the last twelve months, each read from a named source. Half of them raised between $1.1M and $3.5M.

See the roundsAll benchmarks

Pre-seedAI
Median round$2.1M
$600K1 in 10 below$1.1M – $3.5Mmiddle half$6.4M1 in 10 above

180 rounds counted · recounted nightly

Rounds counted180pre-seed rounds in AI, last 12 months
Against worldwide+5%vs the $2.0M worldwide median
Since last round-too few earlier rounds on record
Lead named78%of these rounds name the investor who led

The trend

Median pre-seed round, quarter by quarter

From $800K in 2024 Q4 to $2.0M in 2026 Q3. Quarters with fewer than five rounds are left blank.

$800K'24 Q413 rds
$1.5M'25 Q118 rds
$2.3M'25 Q217 rds
$1.9M'25 Q323 rds
$2.0M'25 Q427 rds
$1.2M'26 Q115 rds
$2.0M'26 Q225 rds
$2.0M'26 Q360 rds

Who leads

The most active leads

The firms that led the most pre-seed rounds in AI this year.

  1. 1Y Combinator3 led
  2. 2Seedcamp3 led
  3. 3Fuel Ventures3 led
  4. 4Superhero Capital3 led
  5. 5Lightspeed Venture Partners2 led
  6. 6SFC Capital2 led

Recent examples

Pre-seed rounds in AI, latest first

How to read these figures

They come from announced rounds. Large rounds are almost always announced and many small ones never are, so the true typical round is probably a little smaller than shown, most of all at pre-seed and seed. Every round behind them is in the record with its source. How we read rounds.

Other stages in AI

Seed$7.0MSeries A$21MSeries B$55MSeries C$110MSeries D$150MGrowth$150M

Pre-seed elsewhere

United States$3.0MFintech$2.4MSoftware$2.0MUnited Kingdom$2.0M

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Q&A

How big is a typical pre-seed round in AI?

The median is $2.1M, from 180 pre-seed rounds announced in AI in the last twelve months. Half of them raised between $1.1M and $3.5M; one in ten raised more than $6.4M.

Which rounds are counted?

Rounds announced in the last twelve months with a stated amount and stage, each read from a named article or filing. A page is only published where at least 30 rounds stand behind it.

Are these figures biased?

Towards larger rounds, yes. Big rounds are announced; many small ones never are. So the true typical round is probably a little smaller than the figure here, especially at pre-seed and seed.

How often does it change?

The figures are recounted from the record every night, as new rounds are read.