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AI Boom Mints 50+ New Billionaires as 2025 Funding Hits $202 Billion

Fresh warnings from analysts plus regulators point to stretched valuations, heavy AI outlays, rising ROI scrutiny, with a 2026 shakeout separating monetizers from spenders.

Overview

  • Crunchbase data shows $202.3 billion flowed into AI startups in 2025, roughly half of global venture funding and up 16% from 2024.
  • Forbes and Bloomberg tallies indicate more than 50 new AI billionaires this year, while gains for top U.S. tech leaders exceeded half a trillion dollars, lifting their wealth to nearly $2.5 trillion.
  • The Bank of England cautioned this month that major tech valuations could face a sharp correction if lofty AI expectations falter.
  • Market concentration has grown more extreme, with the top 10 companies now comprising about 42% of the S&P 500, heightening the risk that an AI-led pullback could weigh on broader indices.
  • Goldman Sachs estimates nearly 90% of near-term AI spend will be funded from corporate cash, even as tight GPU capacity and multi‑year data‑center commitments influence how quickly revenue and margins materialize.