Silicon Valley veteran venture capital firm Benchmark has completed a new fundraising round totaling $2 billion and established its first dedicated growth fund. According to The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, $1.25 billion will be allocated for late-stage investments, and $750 million will go toward early-stage projects.
This means Benchmark is breaking from its long-standing investment practices. For over two decades, the firm has kept the size of each fund at approximately $425 million, focusing primarily on early-stage startups and emphasizing rigorous selection and high ownership stakes.
AI funding boosts fund size
In recent years, funding amounts for AI startups have risen rapidly, especially for foundational model companies, where single rounds often reach hundreds of millions of dollars. The relatively small size of existing funds made it difficult for Benchmark to participate in these high-capital projects.
The report noted that Benchmark had previously not invested in Anthropic, OpenAI, or other AI labs requiring substantial funding. The new growth fund signals its intent to make room for larger, later-stage funding rounds.
Meanwhile, the newly established $750 million early-stage fund gives Benchmark greater flexibility in an environment of rising valuations. While the firm has historically focused primarily on Series A investments, it has recently expanded its investment scope to include seed and Series B rounds and other earlier or broader stages.
Has participated in Series B and Pre-IPO projects
Over the past few months, Benchmark has invested in two Series B AI companies: Gumloop, a no-code AI agent platform, and Monaco, an AI-native sales and CRM platform—indicating that its investment pace is no longer limited to traditional early-stage opportunities.
Benchmark has also made early moves in later-stage projects. TechCrunch previously reported that the firm participated in Cerebras’s $1 billion pre-IPO financing through a special-purpose vehicle of $225 million. Benchmark led Cerebras’s Series A round as early as 2016.
Cerebras completed its IPO last month. According to reports, Benchmark's book return at the offering price amounted to approximately $3.25 billion. This exit gain is considered one of the key factors behind its decision to establish a dedicated growth fund.
The partner team is being adjusted accordingly.
In addition to changes in its fund structure, Benchmark has also adjusted its partnership lineup over the past two years. In 2024, Miles Grimshaw left the firm to return to Thrive Capital. Subsequently, Sarah Tavel transitioned to a less active role as a venture partner, and Victor Lazarte departed to found his own venture capital firm.
To bolster the team, Benchmark has brought on two new investors: Everett Randle from Kleiner Perkins and Jack Altman, brother of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
From fund size and investment stage to team composition, this venture capital firm, long known for its restraint, is shifting toward a model better suited for the AI era. According to insiders, the newly established growth fund is expected to make five to six large investments, covering both existing portfolio companies and new startups.