Institutional investors deployed a record $198 billion into private equity and venture capital coinvestments between January 1 and June 25, 2026, as artificial intelligence funding rounds reshape private markets. This figure has already exceeded the full-year totals recorded in five of the last six years and positions 2026 to surpass the $253 billion invested across all of 2025. The surge is driven largely by high-conviction AI deals, with limited partners increasingly investing directly alongside firms to lower fees and gain greater control over portfolio construction.

AI funding leads the surge

The momentum is anchored by a select group of massive AI financings. According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, three funding rounds for Anthropic—including the company's $65 billion raise—and a major financing for rival xAI ranked among the 10 largest global coinvestment transactions completed since the start of 2025. These deals highlight a shift where institutional investors bypass traditional fund commitments to secure direct exposure to specific high-growth companies.

Infrastructure focus dominates Q2

A review of the five largest private funding rounds tracked by Forge Global during the second quarter reveals a common theme: the biggest winners are companies developing foundational AI models, autonomous defense systems, enterprise automation platforms, computing infrastructure and AI deployment tools. Leading the list was Anthropic, which raised a staggering $65 billion Series H round, valuing the company at approximately $965 billion as it prepares for a potential public offering.

Defense technology company Anduril secured a $5 billion financing to expand manufacturing capacity, accelerate autonomous defense products and invest in next-generation military technologies. Meanwhile, Reflection AI raised $2.5 billion to automate complex knowledge work and recently partnered with SpaceX to support the aerospace company's growing AI computing ambitions. Long Lake closed a $2.25 billion funding round while pursuing an acquisition of American Express Global Business Travel, betting that AI-powered workflows can transform a traditional services business. Baseten rounded out the top five with a $1.5 billion raise to expand its AI inference platform.

Quarterly and investor breakdown

Coinvestment activity remained robust throughout the first half of 2026. The second quarter generated $74.68 billion in coinvestments. While this trailed the exceptionally strong first quarter, it exceeded every quarterly figure recorded in 2023 and 2024, underscoring sustained demand for large-scale transactions.

Sovereign wealth funds led the activity, participating in $178.12 billion of direct investments through June 30. This total is nearly double the combined capital invested by pension funds, endowments, and family offices. Pension funds accelerated their pace, deploying $76 billion in the first half of 2026, which already surpasses the $59.59 billion invested in all of 2025.

Beyond AI: Infrastructure and buyouts

While AI dominates the headlines, other sectors also saw significant activity. Major transactions included Silver Lake's $55.2 billion acquisition of Electronic Arts, AES Corp.'s $48.1 billion infrastructure deal, Aligned Data Centers' $40 billion financing, and Waymo's $16 billion funding round. These deals illustrate that infrastructure and buyouts remain active, even as AI commands the largest private funding rounds on record.

S&P Global Market Intelligence noted that direct coinvestments are becoming a critical mechanism for the world's largest institutional investors to gain exposure to the AI sector alongside established private market managers. If the current pace continues, 2026 is on track to set another annual record for global private equity and venture capital coinvestment activity.

The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is using Anthropic's AI model Mythos to audit government software for potential security flaws, three people familiar with the matter said. The initiative aims to scan government code repositories for bugs that could be exploited by foreign spies and cybercriminals, highlighting the agency's growing interest in leveraging advanced AI tools for cybersecurity defense.

CISA's Attack Surface Evaluation team is conducting the scanning, according to one source. This unit specializes in digital security assessments and hacking exercises across government infrastructure. Two sources indicated that the audits have already uncovered a large number of vulnerabilities, though specific details regarding the nature, severity, or volume of code scanned were not disclosed.

The reported deployment comes after a turbulent period in Anthropic's relationship with the U.S. government. Tensions escalated earlier this year after the San Francisco-based AI startup reportedly refused to remove safeguards designed to prevent its models from being used for autonomous weapons or domestic surveillance. The dispute led the Pentagon to designate Anthropic as a supply-chain risk, although a federal judge later blocked that designation. Relations have since improved following the private release of Mythos, an AI model reportedly built with advanced cybersecurity capabilities.

Government interest in Mythos appears to extend beyond CISA. The National Security Agency (NSA) has also utilized Mythos, despite existing government blacklists. Previous reports said NSA analysts tested Mythos in classified environments and were impressed with its cybersecurity performance. Anthropic later released a public version of the model called Fable with cybersecurity safeguards. The White House reportedly pushed the company to block foreign access to the model, triggering a temporary global shutdown that was lifted last week.

Anthropic did not respond to inquiries about the specific initiative with CISA. A representative for CISA previously stated they would look into the matter but has not provided further comments. The adoption of AI models for critical security audits underscores a shift in federal cybersecurity strategies, aiming to proactively identify and mitigate risks in government software systems.