A16z Expands Fifth Growth Fund to $8.5 Billion

Andreessen Horowitz has expanded its fifth growth fund from $6.75 billion when it was launched in January to $8.5 billion, adding $1.75 billion. According to ChainCatcher, the fund targets growth-stage startups that are scaling products, entering new markets, and expanding their businesses. The expansion comes days after a16z said it had closed a $1.1 billion Machines Fund focused on AI hardware. According to ChainCatcher, that fund invests in infrastructure startups across chips, storage, networking, and data storage. David George, who leads a16z's growth investing team, said the firm's growth funds have invested in more than 100 companies over the past seven years. He added that AI companies are reaching growth stages faster, with rising financing needs and valuations. A16z is currently focusing on enterprise and consumer AI, defense tech, robotics, hardware and software infrastructure, and health tech.