Australia’s largest venture capital firms are heading into 2026 with some of the biggest reserves of fresh capital seen in years, but they are deploying it with far greater discipline.
As AI reshapes entire industries and investors report elevated deal flow, venture capitalists say this cycle is defined not by scarcity, but by selectivity.
Three of Australia’s largest VC firms — Airtree, Blackbird and Square Peg — have either recently closed or are nearing completion on some of their biggest funds to date.
Airtree closed its $650 million Fund V in August last year, split between $250 million for seed investments and $400 million for growth. Blackbird has secured more than $700 million in first-close commitments for its sixth fund and is working towards final close by the end of this year.
