Paradigm Plans $1.5B Fund as It Expands Beyond Crypto Into AI and Robotics
Venture capital firm Paradigm is preparing to raise a new $1.5 billion fund focused on artificial intelligence, robotics and other emerging technologies — its most significant move yet beyond the crypto industry that made its name.
The San Francisco-based investor will continue backing blockchain startups, but it’s also widening its scope to tap into fast-growing areas of computing and automation, according to people familiar with the plan.
Key Takeaways
Paradigm is raising a $1.5 billion fund to invest in AI, robotics and other frontier technologies, while still supporting crypto projects.
The firm plans to use its existing technical investment team rather than creating a separate AI unit.
Executives see increasing overlap between AI and crypto, including use cases like autonomous payments and smart contract security.
A Strategic Broader Focus
Rather than building an entirely new division, Paradigm intends to lean on its current technical investment team to source and evaluate deals in frontier technologies.
Regulatory filings show the firm manages roughly $12.7 billion in assets. It previously launched a record-setting $2.5 billion crypto-focused fund in November 2021 and followed that up in 2024 with an $850 million vehicle aimed at early-stage blockchain startups.
But internally, managers reportedly concluded that sticking strictly to crypto could mean missing major opportunities emerging across AI, computing infrastructure and robotics.
The move reflects a broader shift across Silicon Valley, where artificial intelligence is increasingly reshaping both software and financial systems.
Why AI and Crypto Are Converging
Paradigm executives have long argued that AI and crypto aren’t competing technologies — they’re complementary.
One example is agent-driven payments, where autonomous AI systems execute transactions over blockchain networks. In that model, AI handles the decision-making, while decentralized infrastructure settles the payments.
The firm’s interest in AI isn’t new. Back in 2023, observers noticed that Paradigm had quietly removed some Web3-specific language from parts of its website, sparking speculation that it was pivoting away from digital assets.
Co-founder and managing partner Matt Huang pushed back at the time.
“We’ve never been more excited about crypto,” Huang wrote, while acknowledging that AI’s rapid development was impossible to ignore. He predicted growing overlap between the two ecosystems.
That overlap is already visible. Earlier this month, Paradigm partnered with OpenAI to release EVMbench — a benchmark designed to test whether machine-learning models can detect and fix vulnerabilities in smart contracts, a persistent issue in decentralized finance.
AI Funding Boom Creates Tailwinds
Paradigm’s fundraising push comes amid a surge in AI venture investment.
According to OECD data, AI startups attracted $258.7 billion in venture funding in 2025, accounting for 61% of total global VC investment. That share has roughly doubled since 2022.
Generative AI companies alone represented 14% of AI-focused funding, with US startups capturing the largest portion.
Meanwhile, Andreessen Horowitz recently secured more than $15 billion in new capital, reinforcing its position as one of the most influential venture firms in the US tech sector. In 2025 alone, the firm accounted for more than 18% of all venture capital deployed in the United States.
Co-founder Ben Horowitz said that fundraising reflects a broader mission: venture capital exists to give founders the opportunity to build companies and create lasting value.
