Databricks takes $5B at a $190B valuation after planning a $1B round
Ali Ghodsi set out to raise $1B; a leaked report pulled in roughly $15B of investor interest, and Databricks closed $5B at a $190B valuation led by Coatue alongside Blackstone, MGX, T. Rowe Price-advised accounts, and Sixth Street Growth. The demand rests on real numbers — a $7B annualized run rate growing over 80% year over year, cash-flow positive — so this is capital absorption, not a rescue. Staying private at $190B keeps one of the largest AI data platforms off the public market while it funds multibillion-dollar hyperscaler commitments, a 100-person research team, and continued M&A.
Source: techcrunch.com ↗
The interest level was just insane. Just from this select group of investors that we looked at, there was $15 billion of interest.
Ali Ghodsi, Databricks co-founder and CEO
Why this matters
- → AI data platform absorbs $5B at $190B valuation; cash-flow positive with 80% YoY growth.
- → Staying private lets Databricks fund multibillion-dollar hyperscaler commitments and 100-person AI research te
- → Late-stage mega-rounds now table stakes: $1B raise no longer considered massive in AI era.
The $1B problem