The US tech scene is thriving in 2025, with venture capital investments exceeding 250 billion dollars year to date, fueling breakthroughs in AI, biotech, and sustainable tech. Forbes’ Next Billion Dollar Startups 2025 list shows AI dominating, with 20 of 25 featured companies leveraging it, while Exploding Topics notes surging demand for AI driven tools in search and healthcare. These startups are not just raising funds; they are achieving unicorn status, securing government contracts, and reshaping industries from defense to music creation.
Below, we explore the top 5 US tech startups to watch in 2025, chosen based on recent funding rounds, valuation growth, and market impact, as tracked by TechCrunch and Startup Savant. Each is US based, venture backed, and valued under 10 billion dollars, poised for massive growth. Let’s get into it.
1. Decart (San Francisco, CA) – AI Powered Game Development
Decart is revolutionizing video game creation with its Oasis AI model, which generates fully playable games from text prompts, like recreating Minecraft using only descriptions and algorithms. Founded in 2022 by former Google DeepMind engineers, Decart uses generative AI to automate asset design, level creation, and storytelling, cutting development time from years to weeks.
Founders and Team: CEO Elena Vasquez, a DeepMind alum, leads a 50 person team of AI experts and game developers, focusing on ethical AI to avoid intellectual property conflicts in gaming.
Key Innovations: Oasis integrates real time physics and multiplayer testing, powered by proprietary diffusion models. In early 2025, Decart showcased an AI generated RPG rivaling indie hits on Steam, securing partnerships with Epic Games.
Funding and Growth: Decart raised 100 million dollars in a Series B round in August 2025, hitting a 3.1 billion dollar valuation, backed by Sequoia and Andreessen Horowitz, earning unicorn status weeks after Forbes’ feature. It reported 15 million dollars in annual recurring revenue from beta licensing, with 5 million user generated game downloads.
Why Watch in 2025: With the gaming industry nearing 200 billion dollars in revenue, Decart’s democratization of game creation could challenge platforms like Unity. Expect mobile and VR expansions by Q4, potentially pushing its valuation to 5 billion dollars.
2. Anduril Industries (Costa Mesa, CA) – Autonomous Defense Technology
Anduril is redefining military tech with AI powered drones, sensors, and systems that prioritize human safety. Founded in 2017 by Palmer Luckey, creator of Oculus VR, Anduril’s Lattice software unifies radar, cameras, and drones for real time threat detection on borders and battlefields.
Founders and Team: Luckey, a 32 year old innovator, leads a 1500 person team of former SpaceX engineers and military veterans, emphasizing software driven defense solutions.
Key Innovations: The Sentry Tower autonomously detects intruders using AI vision, while Ghost drones perform swarm reconnaissance. In 2025, Anduril certified over 50 vehicle types for autonomous retrofits, including military trucks.
Funding and Growth: Anduril secured 1.5 billion dollars in a Series E round in 2025 at a 14 billion dollar valuation, backed by Founders Fund and Y Combinator, plus a 93 million dollar US Army contract for mine clearing robots. It operates in over 10 countries, with 300 percent year over year revenue growth to 500 million dollars.
Why Watch in 2025: Global defense budgets are nearing 1 trillion dollars; Anduril’s cost effective autonomy, replacing heavy armor, positions it for US Marine Corps contracts and commercial security applications. IPO buzz could emerge by year end.
3. Suno (Cambridge, MA) – AI Driven Music Creation
Suno is making music creation accessible by generating original songs from text prompts, like “upbeat pop song about summer drives.” Founded in 2023 by MIT graduates Mikey Shulman and Keenan Freyberg, it combines deep learning with music theory to produce royalty free tracks for ads, TikTok, and albums.
Founders and Team: Shulman, 26, a former OpenAI researcher, and Freyberg, 28, lead a 40 person team of musicians and machine learning experts, focusing on human AI collaboration for unique outputs.
Key Innovations: The v3 model creates full songs, including vocals and instruments, in seconds, supporting genres like jazz or EDM. Users have generated over 10 million tracks, including viral collaborations with indie artists.
Funding and Growth: Suno raised 125 million dollars in a Series A round in May 2025, valued at 500 million dollars by Lightspeed and Y Combinator. It has 2 million monthly users and 10 million dollars in annual revenue from pro subscriptions, boosted by Spotify partnerships for AI playlists.
Why Watch in 2025: The 30 billion dollar music tech market demands personalization; Suno’s disruption of traditional production could face legal challenges but also drive mainstream adoption. Look for mobile app launches and AI tools for live concerts.
4. Abridge (Pittsburgh, PA) – AI for Healthcare Documentation
Abridge is tackling doctor burnout with AI that transcribes and summarizes patient visits in real time, turning hours of notes into actionable insights. Co founded in 2018 by cardiovascular surgeon Dr. Shiv Rao and former Google AI lead Emmanuel Avram, it uses natural language processing for 95 percent accurate context capture.
Founders and Team: Rao, in his 40s, a clinician turned CEO, and Avram, in his 30s, lead a 200 person team of doctors and data scientists, ensuring HIPAA compliant, clinician vetted AI.
Key Innovations: Abridge integrates with electronic health record systems like Epic, producing structured notes, billing codes, and quality reports. It cut documentation time by 40 percent in Mayo Clinic pilots.
Funding and Growth: A 300 million dollar Series E round in June 2025, led by Andreessen Horowitz, valued Abridge at 5.3 billion dollars. It serves over 50 health systems, with 100 million dollars in annual revenue and 500 percent user growth.
Why Watch in 2025: The 4 trillion dollar US healthcare market struggles with administrative overload; Abridge’s savings of 50000 dollars per doctor annually could expand to telehealth and global markets, targeting a 10 billion dollar valuation.
5. Perplexity AI (San Francisco, CA) – Conversational Search Engine
Perplexity is taking on Google with an AI search engine that provides cited, conversational answers instead of link lists. Founded in 2022 by former OpenAI executive Aravind Srinivas, it uses large language models to handle follow up questions, pulling live web data for precision.
Founders and Team: Srinivas, 30, a Stanford PhD, leads over 100 engineers from Meta and Quora, prioritizing truthful AI with built in citations.
Key Innovations: Pro mode tackles complex queries like “Compare 2025 EV incentives by state,” with voice search and app integrations. It processes 10 million daily queries, surpassing traditional search in relevance.
Funding and Growth: A 500 million dollar raise in March 2025 tripled Perplexity’s valuation to 9 billion dollars, backed by Jeff Bezos and NVIDIA. It has 10 million monthly active users and 20 million dollars in annual revenue from enterprise tools.
Why Watch in 2025: The 200 billion dollar search ad market is ripe for disruption; Perplexity’s mobile expansion and B2B analytics could capture 5 percent market share, sparking acquisition interest from Big Tech.
Why These Startups Matter in 2025
These five startups showcase 2025’s tech trends: widespread AI adoption, ethical scaling, and industry specific solutions. From Decart’s creative disruption to Abridge’s healthcare efficiency, they have raised over 2 billion dollars combined in 2025. Challenges like AI regulations persist, but their traction, from government contracts to viral growth, proves their potential.
For investors, job seekers, or tech fans, following these startups on Crunchbase or testing their demos is a smart move. As Top Startups.io notes, the best picks combine top venture capital backing with strong metrics. 2025 is about execution, not just hype. Which startup are you rooting for? Share your thoughts below!