①Databricks raised $5 billion in its latest funding round, with the company valued at $134 billion; ②Ali Ghodsi, co-founder and CEO of Databricks, stated that the company is ready to go public and can initiate an IPO "when the timing is right." The company will focus on enhancing Lakebase database and continue investing in Genie.
Cailian Press, February 10 (edited by Niu Zhanlin) – On Monday local time, data analytics and artificial intelligence software company Databricks announced that it had raised $5 billion in its latest funding round and secured a new $2 billion debt financing facility. The company's valuation reached $134 billion, marking a 34% increase from the previous funding round last summer.
The San Francisco-based company also disclosed that as of January this year, its annualized revenue had exceeded $5.4 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of 65%, and it had achieved positive free cash flow over the past year.
This performance is undoubtedly set to spark investor interest. In recent years, capital markets have rarely seen IPOs from technology companies that combine rapid growth with substantial scale. Ali Ghodsi, co-founder and CEO of Databricks, stated that Databricks is prepared for an IPO and can launch it "when the timing is right."
Ghodsi stated: "With this new capital, we will focus on strengthening Lakebase database to help developers build transactional databases specifically designed for AI agents. At the same time, we will continue to invest in Genie, enabling every employee to access data through conversational methods to gain precise and actionable insights."
This year could be a significant year for technology IPOs, with fast-growing AI stars Anthropic and OpenAI also considering going public in 2026. Additionally, Elon Musk mentioned in December last year that his rocket company SpaceX might also go public this year.
Like many tech companies, Databricks is currently generating substantial revenue from its AI business. Databricks profits by renting out analytical capabilities, AI, and other cloud-based software, which can process AI-compatible data for building enterprise technology systems.
Databricks stated in its announcement that its AI-related products are now contributing $1.4 billion in annualized revenue, and the company's overall growth momentum is accelerating.
The company had already indicated in December last year that it would raise more than $4 billion in this funding round, with the valuation remaining at $134 billion.
Ghodsi stated: "We were not sure if we could really raise the full $5 billion," adding that investor interest had been exceptionally strong in recent weeks. He noted that venture capital typically takes months to respond to significant changes in the stock market.
Goldman Sachs, Glade Brook Capital, Morgan Stanley, Neuberger Berman, and the Qatar Investment Authority all participated in this round of financing. Ghodsi stated: 'If this market correction has not yet bottomed out and will continue to worsen, we will continue to operate as a private company.'
Currently, Databricks has surpassed its competitors in scale.$Snowflake (SNOW.US)$The latter achieved revenue of $1.21 billion in the fourth quarter, with a market value of approximately $58 billion. As Databricks officially launched Lakebase database last week, the company further expanded its market boundaries and began directly challenging traditional database giants.$Oracle (ORCL.US)$And $SAP SE (SAP.US)$ such as Oracle and SAP SE.
Last week, the US software sector came under overall pressure as investors worried that the open-source plugins of Anthropic's Claude Cowork AI productivity tool might bring new competitive pressures to listed software companies, triggering sell-offs.
Ghodsi stated: 'This round of pullback is an overreaction by the market. You will see that these companies will continue to exist, and no one will be eliminated in the short term, but their competitive moats are shrinking.'
Editor/Stephen
